Taipei

Taipei 101

Taipei, Chinese (Wade-Giles romanization) T’ai-pei, Pinyin Taibei, special (province-level) municipality (chih-hsia shih, or zhizia shi) and seat of government of Taiwan (Republic of China). It is situated on the Tan-shui (Danshui, or Tamsui) River, almost at the northern tip of the island of Taiwan, about 15 miles (25 km) southwest of Chi-lung (Jilong, or Keelung), which is its port on the Pacific Ocean. Taipei is completely surrounded by New Taipei City, which was created out of the former T’ai-pei (Taipei) county in 2010 and is an administratively separate entity.

Taipei lies in the relatively narrow bowl-shaped valley of the Tan-shui and two of its main tributaries, the Chi-lung (Jilong) and Hsin-tien (Xindian) rivers. The generally low-lying terrain of the central areas on the western side of the municipality slopes upward to the south and east and especially to the north, where it reaches 3,675 feet (1,120 metres) at Mount Ch’i-hsing (Qixing). The climate is humid subtropical, with hot, muggy, rainy summers and cool, damp winters. Although it is no longer Taiwan’s most populous city—having been surpassed in the 21st century by other municipalities—it remains the political, economic, and cultural centre of the island. Area 105 square miles (272 square km). Pop. (2015 est.) 2,704,810.