Sanxia District

Name

The old name of Sanxia, Sa-kak-eng () dates back to the 1780s and refers to the meeting of the Dahan River, Sanxia River, and . In 1920, Taiwan's Japanese government administratively designated the town as , Kaizan District, Taihoku Prefecture.

History

The first Han people settled in what would become Sanxia during the 1700s, and originally rented land from the Plains Indigenous before forcing their displacement. After several groups of settlers from Southern China fought amongst themselves, Anxi County natives became dominant and began cultivating Strobilanthes cusia in the area. After Monga merchant Weng Tian introduced Indigofera tinctoria to Sa-kak-eng, the production of indigo increased, with the first recorded instance of large-scale production dating to 1822. Lin Tzu-tzeng of Anxi moved to Sa-kak-eng in 1830, and established the town's first dyeing workshop.

After the first coffee plants on Taiwan were imported by the British to Tainan in 1884, the first significant small-scale cultivation took place in Sa-kak-eng.

On December 25, 2010, Sanxia Township was renamed Sanxia District as Taipei County became a special municipality, New Taipei City.

Geography

It has an area of 191.45 km2 and a population of 115,443 (February 2023).

Government institutions

• National Academy for Educational Research

Education

University

• National Taipei University Sanxia Main Campus (國立臺北大學三峽校區本部)

Senior High schools

• Mingde High school (市立明德高中)
• BeiDa High School (市立北大高中)
• Tsz-Shiou Senior High school (辭修高中)

Junior High schools

• Sanxia Junior High school (市立三峽國中)
• Anxi Junior High school (市立安溪國中)

Others

• National Academy for Educational Research Preparatory office-Planning Objectives

Tourist attractions

• Zushi Temple - The most important religious site in Sanxia. Originally built in 1769 by Fukienese immigrants to Taiwan, it has been rebuilt three times, of which the last effort (beginning 1947) is the masterpiece of Taiwanese artist Li Mei-shu. It is considered by many to be the most intricately sculpted temple in Taiwan.
• Sanxia Old Street - A business street built during the Japanese rule, it is a very well preserved example of baroque-style architecture of the time. The street features stores selling art, ceramics, and local specialty foods (most notably Bull Horn Croissants).
• New Taipei City Hakka Museum - the largest Hakka cultural center in Taiwan exhibiting the culture, history, and influence of the Hakka people in Taiwan and abroad.
• Li Mei-shu Memorial Gallery
• Sanxia History Museum - preserves artistic and cultural artifacts from Sanxia's past.
• Manyueyuan National Forest Recreation Area
• National Taipei University Arts Boulevard
• Sanxia Agricultural Specialty Products Museum
• Tourism Factory of Cha-Shan-Fang Soap
• Pigs of God (神豬 ()) Contest - The largest event held at Zushi Temple around Chinese New Year where farmers compete to raise the fattest pig. The fattest pig is then sacrificed at the temple but not to the main deity, Zushi-Ye as he was formerly a Buddhist monk. Controversial to animal rights activists, Zushi Temple is one of the few places in Taiwan that still practice this tradition.
• Sanxia Indigo Blue Dye Festival - A celebration of Sanxia's past as a major dyeing center in northern Taiwan.

File:Sansia Minquan Old Street IMG 1640.JPG|Walking along Sanxia Old Street File:Sansia Zushih Temple IMG 1658.JPG|Zushi Temple File:Sansia IMG 1625.JPG|Baroque-style architecture along Sanxia Old Street File:Sansia IMG 1622.JPG|Shops along Sanxia Old Street File:Sansia IMG 1645.JPG|Changfu Bridge across the Sansia River File:Changfu Bridge on Weekend.jpg|Street market on Changfu Bridge during Weekend File:Sanxia River Viewed from Changfu Bridge.jpg|Sanxia River viewed from Changfu Bridge File:Sansia IMG 1779.JPG|Bull Horn Croissants, a local specialty File:Sanxia Fu'an Temple roof 20070804.jpg|Sanxia Fu'an Temple File:Sansia Changfu Bridge.JPG|View from Changfu Bridge in Sanxia

Transportation

• Car — Sanxia is served by Freeway No. 3. (San-ying Interchange)
• Bus — Sanxia is accessible by bus from Taipei (buses 702, 703, 705, 706,939), Taoyuan District, and Yingge (Blue 19).
• Train — Although Sanxia does not have a train station, it is accessible by bus from Yingge Train Station across the river.
• MRT — Accessible via the Tucheng Line of the Taipei Metro to Yongning. Bus 916 from exit 1 connects to Sanxia on Highway 3. In addition Bus 910 leaves from Fuzhong station in Banqiao. Both routes are multi-section tickets, paying on entry or exit.

Notable natives

• Li Mei-shu, painter, sculptor, and politician

References

References

1. "Sanxia District Office".
2. (13 July 2025). "Taiwan in Time: When Sansia was dyed blue". Taipei Times.
3. Staff Writer. (17 February 2021). "FEATURE: Growers along Tainan's 'Coffee Road' want to put local brew on national map". Taipei Times.
4. "Sanxia tourist flyer".
5. (24 February 2015). "'Holy pig' festival draws thousands in Taiwan but protesters decry cruelty". The Guardian.
6. (3 September 2007). "Anger at Taiwan's 'heaviest pig'". BBC.