Chiayi

Chiayi (嘉義) is a historic region of southern Taiwan sandwiched between Yunlin and Tainan, spanning the coastal plains along the Taiwan Strait to the mountainous Alishan range in the east. The county’s name, meaning “commended righteousness”, was bestowed by the Qianlong Emperor in 1787 to acknowledge citizens’ loyalty during the Lin Shuangwen rebellion. With the completion of the Chianan Irrigation (嘉南大圳) project in 1930 the county became a major agricultural center, particularly for sugar production. Nowadays it is widely known as the home of the Alishan Forest Railway, which has been redeveloped for tourism.