Inaugural Hsinchu Culture Awards Honor Late Historians with Lifetime Achievement Honors

The Hsinchu City Government officially held the award ceremony for the inaugural Hsinchu City Cultural Fengding Awards today. This newly established cultural award aims to honor cultural workers who have long worked quietly and made outstanding contributions in fields such as local history and literature research, Chinese orchestral education, and traditional crafts. During the ceremony, four outstanding figures in the cultural sector received honors. Notably, this included two late cultural pioneers, Zhang Denan and Xiao Zaigan, who were both posthumously awarded the Lifetime Contribution Award, a symbol of the highest reverence. The atmosphere was solemn and grand, moving many cultural colleagues and family members in attendance as they jointly witnessed an important milestone in Hsinchu City's preservation and promotion of local culture.

Reviewing the background of this new award's establishment, the local government specially created the Hsinchu City Cultural Fengding Awards to more systematically organize and affirm the value of local culture. The depth of a city often depends on the thickness of its cultural heritage, and the accumulation of cultural heritage does not happen overnight; rather, it relies on the decades-long perseverance of countless independent scholars, artists, and educators. Zhang Denan and Xiao Zaigan, who received the Lifetime Contribution Awards, both dedicated their entire lives to the land of Hsinchu. Zhang Denan deeply cultivated local historical and literary research and textual verification for a long time, leaving behind precious historical memories for Hsinchu through writing and fieldwork. Xiao Zaigan demonstrated exquisite skills and a spirit of heritage in the field of traditional crafts. Although the passing of both men is a tremendous loss to local culture, the spiritual assets and substantial works they left behind have long become a shared cultural treasure for the citizens of Hsinchu.

In addition to the two pioneers awarded the Lifetime Contribution Awards, the ceremony also recognized outstanding workers who continue to shine brightly in other cultural fields, particularly those who have made significant contributions to Chinese orchestral education and the promotion of traditional culture. In recent years, Hsinchu City has achieved brilliant results in the development of Chinese orchestral music, not only nurturing many outstanding performing talents but also establishing a deep-rooted local Chinese orchestra community. This success often relies on the long-term, quiet foundation-building of grassroots educators. In their respective positions, these award winners not only imparted professional skills but also transmitted passion and respect for traditional culture, giving younger generations of students the opportunity to encounter and fall in love with their own cultural roots, thereby ensuring the continuous continuation of the local cultural lineage.

From a broader perspective, the establishment of dedicated cultural awards by local governments holds profound significance for the development of Taiwan's overall cultural ecosystem. For a long time, many local cultural workers have often faced dilemmas such as insufficient resources, low visibility, or a lack of successors. Through official, representative award ceremonies, substantial encouragement and social status recognition can be given to these front-line cultural promoters, while simultaneously arousing public attention toward the preservation of local history and literature, the maintenance of traditional crafts, and arts education. When the general public begins to see and value the importance of these cultural cornerstones, related policy resources and private support forces can be more effectively mobilized, forming a positive cycle.

The successful conclusion of the inaugural Hsinchu City Cultural Fengding Awards is not only the highest tribute to the lifelong dedication of the four award winners, but it also opens a brand-new page for the cultural development of Hsinchu City. In a rapidly changing modern society, how to retain the soul and memory of a city is a common challenge for every local government and cultural worker. The four award winners have proven through their actions that individual perseverance can converge into a powerful driving force propelling local culture forward. Looking ahead, the Hsinchu City Government hopes that through the continuous hosting of this award, more fresh blood will be encouraged to enter cultural work, allowing Hsinchu City's historical and humanistic landscape to continuously innovate through heritage and bloom with even more dazzling brilliance.