concentrated on the islet of Gulangyu off the main island of Xiamen. Today, Gulangyu is known for colonial architecture and the tradition of piano-playing and organized sports.
Many natives of Xiamen and southern Fujian emigrated to Southeast Asia and Taiwan during the 19th and early 20th century, spreading Hokkien language and culture overseas. Some of the diaspora later returned to fund universities and cultural institutions in Xiamen. An estimated 220,000 Xiamen residents are returning overseas Chinese and their kin. Some 350,000 overseas Chinese trace their ancestry to Xiamen.
During World War II, Xiamen was occupied by Japan from May 1938 to September 1945. In the Chinese Civil War that followed, the islands of Xiamen and Gulangyu were captured by Communist forces in October 1949 but an assault on the island of Jinmen was repelled by Nationalist defenders. The battle line of the war remained in the narrow channel between Xiamen and Jinmen. In 1955 and 1958, mainland China escalated Cold War political tensions by shelling offshore islands held by Taiwan including Jinmen in what became known as the First and Second Taiwan Strait Crisis. The Nationalists responded by reinforcing Jinmen and shelling Xiamen. Due to political tensions, the eastern half of Xiamen Island and much of the Fujian Coast facing the offshore islands remained undeveloped in the 1960s and 1970s.
When China began to reform its economy, Xiamen was made one of the original Special Economic Zones in 1980, to attract foreign investment, particularly from overseas Chinese. The city grew and prospered from foreign investment and trade. In 2001, the governments of mainland China and Taiwan agreed to initiate the "Three Mini-Links" and restored ferry, commercial and mail links between the mainland and offshore islands. Trade and travel between Xiamen and Jinmen was restored and later expanded to include direct air travel to Taiwan. In 2010, travelers between Xiamen and Jinmen made
