page_title: Sinhua District
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Sinhua District / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Tawian AMS Topographic Maps
context_page_description: Sinhua District, alternatively spelled Xinhua, is a suburban district in central Tainan, Taiwan.
context_section_description: Before the Dutch and Han Chinese invaded, this region was home to a community of Taiwanese aborigines, the Siraya. In 1624, the VOC occupied Tayuan (modern day Anping, Tainan). 
  In the past, the Siraya indigenous tribe called this place Tavocan ("land of hill and forest"). Tavakan was a village of about a thousand people; the name was also written Taffacan, Tavocan, Tavacang, and Davocan in Dutch records. The village grew into the market-town of Twa-bak-kang (Chinese: 大目降; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tōa-ba̍k-kàng), about 2 miles (3.2 km) southeast of Sin-kang (modern-day Sinshih). 
  After 1627, the VOC sent missionaries into neighboring districts. In 1635, George Candidius, a Dutch pastor, advised Pieter Nuyts, the leader of the Dutch VOC in Taiwan, that the VOC would have to conquer the aborigines before they could be controlled. In 1636, eighteen tribal groups, including the inhabitants of Tavocan, submitted to Dutch rule.
  Since the early part of the 20th century, Sinhua has been an important fruit wholesaling center. Around 1920, dozens of baroque-influenced store buildings were constructed along what is now Jhongjheng Road. Most of these buildings survive in good condition, and the street, known as "Sinhua Old Street," has become a tourist attraction.
  In 1945, Sinshih Township was part of Sinhua District.
  The Taiwan Communist Party was established on 20 June 2008 in Sinhua.
caption: Map of Sinhua (labeled as Hsin-hua (Shinka) 新化) (1950)
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