One of the first recorded official names of the Hualien area was Qi Lai, a truncated transliteration of the name of an aboriginal Ami tribe settlement named Sa-Qi-La-Ya formerly located in today's Hualien. However, the area's current name, Hualien, stems from a moniker created by early Han settlers to the region in the 18th century. Spellbound by the steep mountains and the rocky shores of the Pacific Ocean, these pioneers were astounded to find that the pounding surf appeared to send water upstream, rather than vice versa. The name they chose to depict this phenomenon, Hui-Lan, stuck, and the area became known as this name. Later, the name Hui-Lan was changed to Hualien because the characters chosen for the new name paint a unique orthographic portrait of the area's scenic landscape.

From the various labels that have been used for Hualien in the past, we can discern that numerous visitors to Hualien - past and present - have been enchanted by the natural splendor and majestic beauty of the area. Over the years, this pristine piece of land has served as the ancestral homeland of the Ami, Taiya, Pingpu, and numerous other Taiwan aboriginal tribes. Nowadays, Hualien is well-known for - and proud of - its cultural and linguistic diversity. Over the years, all of the various ethnic groups that make up Taiwan's population have intermarried with the local population to create what has become a unique cultural and linguistic mosaic. Indeed, it is not uncommon to hear neighbors in the same village communicating in Mandarin, Hokkien-Taiwanese, Hakka, the various aboriginal languages, and sometimes even English, Indonesian, Japanese, and Thai.

While the citizens of Hualien, living in the shadows of cloud-bedecked mountain peaks and the rhythmic pounding of the verdant Pacific Ocean surf, consider themselves to be living in a virtual paradise, the "other" residents of Taiwan harbor different stereotypes of the region. If one were to even mention the name Hualien to the average "West Coaster" he or she will inevitably respond with terms such as "earthquake-prone," "typhoon-befouled," "backwards," and "back-mountain." Restricted to its natural environment and rugged surroundings, the people of Hualien have developed a regional character as being hardworking, thrifty, gentle, and considerate. They have also developed an optimistic attitude toward life, which probably results from the fact that the earlier settlers, who had to ford raging rivers and traverse perilous mountain peaks to reach the area, learned to appreciate the simple things in life.

For the past three centuries, the East Coast has been regarded by the Han peoples as a backwards, barbarian area devoid of the luxuries and technological advances of modern civilization. Over time, those who have succeeded in flourishing in the region have done so by eking a living from Hualien's fertile and mineral-rich soil. Hardly anyone in the past would refer to Hualieners as "cut-throat" or "eager-beaver" politicians and business manager; in contrast, the people of Hualien tend to devote themselves more to sculpting, painting, handicrafts, and various forms of artistic expression. This is why foreign visitors to Hualien often have the feeling that the east coast of Taiwan, with its comparatively mellow aura and distinct gemutlichkeit, is an entirely different country than the rest of Taiwan.

In today's world of the Internet and modern transportation, Hualien, however, faces mounting pressures to abandon its "backwater" ways and "small-town" mindset to catch up with the rest of Taiwan. While the people in Taiwan are understandably proud of the tremendous strides they have made in the past three decades, these advances have come at a tremendous human and environmental price. This is easily evident when one compares the extremely high pollution rates and meager living conditions in the west coast of Taiwan with those on the east coast.

It is undeniable that the East Coast is less developed than the western parts of Taiwan in a number of important ways. This being the case, however, the present situation will, hopefully, ultimately save the Taiwanese East Coast by allowing it to learn from the lessons suffered on the west coast of the island by restricting development to rates and means that allow the natural environment to flourish as well. The most effective and cost-efficient way to minimize the aforementioned disparity between the developments of both sides of the island is to implement steady, long-term balanced growth through the establishment of higher education. Enter National Dong Hwa University.

As National Dong Hwa University celebrates its first decade of existence, its impressive track record continues to speak for itself. Not only has the University made monumental strides in fortifying its campus infrastructure and augmenting its impressive academic teaching and research reputation, but it has also contributed greatly to improving the overall quality of life on the Taiwanese East Coast. There is no doubt that the University will continue to make progress in the years to come, and as the University continues to grow in reputation, size and stature, so much the stronger will the symbiotic relationship it has forged with the local business community, utilities, and government employees become. Indeed, who would ever dream that a series of mere sugarcane fields located halfway down the Taiwanese East Coast could blossom into the world-class university that has become National Dong Hwa University!