Xinpu township is located at Hsinchu County in Taiwan, more than 90% of the population is Hakka. It has retained many historical Hakka buildings and traditions, as well as landmarks such as ancestral shrines. One of the key cultural spirit is to unite families together and strengthen the family bond through gatherings in the ancestral shrines.
The Hakka ancestral shine is the place for the same surnamed families to meet together in daily life, and provided the spiritual sustenance. The background is when their ancestors migrated from China to Taiwan 200 years ago, there was a difficult time for Hakka clans as they had to fight with other clans for farm lands and resources. This had united the Hakka clans and transformed into Hakka culture.
To promote Hakka culture of filial piety of the ancestors , and memorize Hakka traditional lifestyle, the local government revitalized the old streets by forming “Ancestral Shrine Museum of Xinpu”. In so doing, the Hakka clans are once again reunited.
Through this museum we envision our ancestors’ lives 200 years ago, and we also envision Xinpu as a delightful township in the near future. One in which you could just walk into an old monument on the corner of a street and travel in time there!
With half of our team members are Hakka, we envision to see much more integration of the ancient Hakka life and culture to the modern society. The ancestral shrines not only are spiritual landmarks, but also the core to promote the Hakka value and culture to see the future we have envisioned.