Magong (POJ: Má-keng) is a county-administered city and seat of Penghu County, Taiwan. Magong City is located on Penghu's main island.

Name

The settlement's temple honoring the Chinese Goddess Mazu, the deified form of Lin Moniang from medieval Fujian Province, is usually accounted the oldest in all of Taiwan and Penghu. The town was originally named Makeng but was changed to Makō (馬公) during Japanese rule in 1920, and was the center of the Mako Guard District. After 1945, the Wade-Giles romanization Makung was used. Taiwan officially adopted Tongyong Pinyin in 2002 and Hanyu Pinyin in 2009, leading to the romanization Magong.

History

The island's Mazu temple was erected in the late 16th or early 17th century. The city Magong'ao began to grow around 1887, during the rule of the Qing dynasty. Under Japanese rule, the settlement was renamed Makō and organized as a subprefecture of Hōko. The area was a major base of the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was an embarkation point for the invasion of the Philippines during the Second World War.

Republic of China

On 25 December 1981, Makung was upgraded from an urban township to a county-administered city.

Administration

Magong City contains 33 municipal villages :

Government institutions

Education

Energy

The city is powered by the Hujing Power Plant located on Table Island.

Climate

Magong has a very warm humid subtropical climate under the Köppen system. Due to the maritime influence, diurnal temperature variation is very low, but in spite of being right on the boundary with the tropics and having 15 C winter lows it falls short of being such a climate. This is courtesy of the influence of the cool Asian landmass and prevailing winds in winter. As a result, the coldest month just falls short of the 18 C isotherm. In summer, Magong receives monsoonal rainfall with moderated but hot temperatures. While afternoons most often stay in the low 30's Celsius, nights remain above 25 C for several months. It is drier than many mainland areas of Taiwan, although it still frequently is cloudy.

Tourist attractions

Transportation

Penghu Airport operates domestic flights and Magong Harbor hosts ferry connections to Kaohsiung, Tainan, Chiayi and Kinmen.

Notable natives