嘉义 (Jiāyì): Chiayi (city and county, Taiwan)

Meanings

1 Chiayi (city and county, Taiwan)

Characters

嘉

jiā

excellent, commendable

义

yì

righteousness

Examples

嘉义在台湾的西南部。

Jiāyì zài Táiwān de xīnán bù.

Chiayi is in southwestern Taiwan.

从嘉义可以坐阿里山小火车。

Cóng Jiāyì kěyǐ zuò Ālǐshān xiǎo huǒchē.

From Chiayi you can take the Alishan narrow-gauge railway.

Tips

history

Qing Emperor Qianlong renamed the town 嘉义 ('commendable righteousness') in 1787 to honor its residents' loyalty during the Lin Shuangwen rebellion — one of the few Chinese city names literally given as a reward. In Taiwanese Hokkien pronunciation it's Ka-gī, which gave the romanization 'Chiayi.'