Guoxing

Guóxìng (國姓) is a rural township in northwestern Nantou, formerly known as Guoxingpu (國姓埔). The name derives from Koxinga (國姓爺), the Ming loyalist general whose lieutenant Liu Guoxuan (劉國軒) led troops into this area during the Ming-Zheng era. Hakka people form approximately 70% of the population, which has declined steadily from a peak of roughly 33,000 in the early 1970s to around 16,000 today. The township suffered extensive damage in the 921 Earthquake of 1999; Jiufenershan (九份二山), now preserved as the Jiufenershan National Earthquake Memorial Park, was among the most catastrophic landslide sites.