Xiamen «shee ah
muhn», (pop. 639,436), is a seaport
on the coast of Fujian Province in southeast China. Xiamen is also known as
Amoy«uh moy». The name Amoy is based on the pronunciation of the
city's name in the South Fujian dialect. Xiamen has a fine harbor and was once
the center of China's tea trade.
During the 1600's, traders from
Portugal traded with Xiamen, but the Chinese drove them out because they
mistreated the people. In 1842, a treaty with Britain opened Xiamen and four
other ports to British trade (see Treaty port). British citizens and
other foreigners living in Xiamen gained special rights. In 1943, Britain and
the United States gave up these special privileges, and other countries followed
their example. Before World War II (1939-1945), Xiamen had a flourishing trade.
In the early 1980's, the Chinese government set up the Xiamen Special Economic
Zone to attract foreign investment. Trade began to flourish once again.
Opposite Xiamen is Gulangyu, an island where many wealthy Chinese have
their homes. From the port of Xiamen, numerous Chinese from Fujian have gone to
various countries in Southeast Asia. Most of the "overseas Chinese" in Southeast
Asia speak the South Fujian dialect.
______________ Contributor: • Parris H. Chang, Ph.D., Former Professor of Political Science and
Director of the Center for East Asian Studies, Penn State University.
How to cite this article: To cite this
article in a footnote, World Book recommends the
following format:
Parris H. Chang,
"Xiamen," World Book Online Americas Edition,
