Our Land, Our People

Wentai pagoda

Kinmen is located at the junction of Jiulong River and Xiamen Island of Mainland China. Besides the main island, there are 15 more islets including Lieyu, Dadan, with a total area of 150 square Kilometers. Kinmen is wider in the east and west, and narrow towards the center; it is shaped like a butterfly.

According to archaeological records, Kinmen had inhabitants as early as 6000 years ago. During the Jin Dynasty, residents of the Middle Kingdom fled their homes and settled on the island because of the civil wars.

The ancient names of Kinmen included Wuzhou, Xianzhou, Wujiang, etc. During the 20th year (1387A.D) in the regin of Emperor Hong Wu, Zhou De-Xing, Marquis of Jiangxia esfablished a city and named it Kinmen ("Gateway Fortress"). The name was given because the city was considered a gate for navigational routes.

During the Tang Dynasty, Kinmen was one of the designated horse breeding districts in Quanzhou. During the Song Dynasty, the government built dams and weirs on the island and placed it under the administration of Tong An County. In 1975, Kinmen became a full-fledged autonomous county.