The Ministry of the Interior Dec. 31 approved “New Taipei City” as the English name for the newly upgraded northern municipality formerly referred to as “Xinbei City.”
Discussion on the English name for the administrative entity after its promotion from Taipei County went on for some time before the mayoral elections for special municipalities Nov. 27.
Though some preferred to call it “Xinbei City,” following the pronunciation of its Chinese name, to avoid confusion with Taipei City, the new municipal administration eventually submitted the name “New Taipei City” to the MOI for approval Dec. 28.
According to Chen Shen-hsien, secretary-general of the new special municipality and representative to an MOI naming meeting, a survey commissioned by the Taipei County government prior to the upgrade showed a majority of its citizens preferred “New Taipei” to “Xinbei.”
Chen added both mayoral candidates had expressed support for the name “New Taipei.”
“The English name ‘New Taipei City’ indicates an inheritance from Taipei County and a forward-looking attitude that suits the city, as over the past decades it has evolved into a different cityscape from that of Taipei City,” Chen said.
According to the Land Surveying and Mapping Act, geographic names come under the jurisdiction of local governments, the MOI noted.
Although the Rules for Standardized Place Name Translation state that the basic principle for place names in English is transliteration, they also allow for direct translation for special reasons of history, linguistics, custom, religion or international usage, according to the MOI. As such, the ministry said it respected the new special municipality’s decision. (THN)