Xiulin, Hualien

Xiulin Township / Sioulin Township^[1][2][3][4] (Chinese: 秀林鄉; Hanyu Pinyin: Xiùlín Xiāng; Tongyong Pinyin: Siòulín Siang) is a mountain indigenous township of Hualien County, Taiwan. It is located northwest of Hualien City, and is the largest township in Taiwan by area (1,641.86 km²) with 9 villages. It has a population of 17,068, most of which are the indigenous Taroko people.^[5][6]

Xiulin Township 秀林鄉 Sioulin
Mountain indigenous township
Buluowan in Taroko National Park
Xiulin Township
Coordinates: 24°13′00″N 121°32′00″E
Country	Taiwan
Region	Eastern Taiwan
Government
• Type	Township
Area
• Total	1,641.8555 km2 (633.9240 sq mi)
Population  (February 2023)
• Total	17,068
• Density	9.201/km2 (23.83/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+8 (CST)
Post code	972
Subdivision	9 villages, 128 neighborhoods
Website	www.shlin.gov.tw

The Central Cross-Island Highway

Because of its location beside the Central Mountain Range, the climate changes by altitude. Taroko National Park is located in Xiulin Township. In recent years, people in Xiulin have lobbied to change its name to "Taroko Township" (太魯閣鄉).

The second deadliest train disaster in Taiwan's history happened here in 2021.

Administrative divisions

Map of northeastern Xiulin area (1944)

Map of southwestern Xiulin area (1944)

The township comprises nine villages: Chongde, Fushi, Heping, Jiamin, Jingmei, Shuiyuan, Tongmen, Wenlan and Xiulin.

Tourist attractions

• Taroko National Park
• Qingshui Cliff
• Sanchan Creek Scenic Area
• Mukumugi ecological Trail and preserve area
• Kilai Mountain (3607 m)
• Dayu Mountain (2565 m)
• Hehuanshan (3416 m)
• Pingfeng Mountain
• Xiangde Temple
• Shimen Mountain
• Wuming Mountain

Infrastructure

• Bihai Power Plant
• Hoping Power Plant

Transportation

• TRA Heping Station, Heren Station, Jingmei Station, Chongde Station (North-link line)
• Provincial Highway 8 (Central Cross-Island Highway)
• Provincial Highway 9 (Suhua Highway)
• Heping Cement Port