Between the Gate of Min Sea and the Treasure Island: A Three-Hundred-Year History of "Two Gates Crossing"
Introduction: “Two Wings of a Bird” Across the Strait In the geographic context of Southern Fujian, the relationship between Xiamen and Taiwan is often described as the “two wings of a bird”—as the saying goes, “Xiamen is Taiwan, and Taiwan is Xiamen”. This close connection is not a modern invention but is deeply rooted in centuries of maritime administrative evolution, military confrontation, and population migration. From Zheng Chenggong using Xiamen as a base to recover Taiwan, to the Qing Dynasty’s legal designation of Xiamen as the sole port for crossing to Taiwan, to modern Xiamen being the most concentrated area for Taiwanese investment, this sea has witnessed a transformation from a “military outpost” to a “grain lifeline,” and finally to an “economic co-prosperity circle”. ...