Overseas Chinese And Qiaoxiang Developments In The Republic Of China

In the relationship between China and Overseas Chinese,Qiaoxiang research and many other fields,Overseas Chinese participating in the economic construction of Qiaoxiang is one of the important topics concerned about.So far,refferring to this topic scholars have mainly focused on the successful cases.However,Port opening of Songyu is a failed case.Xiamen port is in the southeastern part of Fujian Province.Songyu is the corner of Xiamen port and the terminal on the northern shore of the Jiulong Estuary.It has the unique advantages of port resources.In the Republic of China,Song Yu belonged to Zhangzhou Haicheng,and it was the terminal of Zhangzhou-Xiamen Railway which was the only railway line of Fujian Province in the early 20th century.As early as in the Ming and Qing Dynasties,Songyu and its affiliated Haicheng Sandu have been influenced by the prosperous foreign trade of Yue port and Xiamen port.They developed maritime trade and formed Qiaoxiang society gradually with transnational immigrants.Port opening of Songyu went through two phases.First,Overseas Chinese Lin Songpan suggested to build Songyu Island as a new commercial port of Overseas Chinese.It became a dead letter because of the chaos in the warlords.Later,led by Zhang Zhen,a military and government official,supported by Overseas Chinese Songyu port construction began again.And it failed due to the war.Through combing the characteristics of the participation and interaction of the Overseas Chinese in the Songyu case,we can explore the driving forces of Overseas Chinese to participate in the construction of Qiaoxiang,the different ways in which Overseas Chinese play a role,and the game and interaction between Overseas Chinese and local authorities.In addition,Overseas Chinese are the main force in promoting the modernization process of Qiaoxiang,but the success of Qiaoxiang's development is affected by many factors.So,from the reasons for the failure of Songyu,it is possible to explore the external dynamics and internal mechanisms of the development of Qiaoxiang.This is also a microcosm of the deep relationship between Overseas Chinese and Qiaoxiang's developments during the Republic of China.