As our city has developed from Dayuan, to Anping, to Fucheng, to Tainan over the last 400 years, – it has always been diverse and outward-looking. In the 85 years since our school’s founding, its identity has evolved too: from Tainan Technical College in 1931, to Taiwan Provincial College of Engineering in 1946, Taiwan Provincial Cheng Kung University in 1956, and National Cheng Kung University in 1971. Named after Zheng Chenggong (Koxinga), a heroic pioneer of Taiwan’s development, NCKU’s history has been closely bound up with the changes that have affected our nation and society. While training countless talented students, the school has grown symbiotically with the city of Tainan, staying in touch with the pulse of society and forging links throughout the world.

Four hundred years ago, people from afar came to Anping, Tainan, and now NCKU is reaching out from this historic city as a university with a pragmatic academic climate, solid research strengths, an internationalized learning environment, interdisciplinary innovation, effective academia–industry cooperation and a pragmatic approach to issues – a school that is able to actively exert a positive influence in different sectors in Taiwan and also embrace the world. For the future, NCKU aims to be a university that is the pride of Taiwan and an inspiration to Tainan, an institution that our partner schools respect and are happy to work with. NCKU is positioned as a university of global importance that develops high quality, well-rounded citizens.

Tainan City was formerly a provincial city. In 2010, it merged with the adjacent Tainan County to form a single particular municipality and became one of the five capital cities in Taiwan.

Once called "Fu-Cheng (府城)", Tainan was Taiwan's capital and administrative center from 1624 to 1887. After being governed by the Dutch, the Ming Dynasty (明朝), Koxinga (鄭成功), and the Ching Dynasty (清朝), the Japanese established Tainan State. They built Tainan State Hall (now the National Museum of Taiwan Literature). Further, they introduced European urban design concepts and built roads resembling rays emanating from a central point, linking the city's people.

Tainan is a place where East and West complement each other. It has many cultural relics from the period of Dutch rule, the Ming Dynasty, the Ching Dynasty, and the Japanese occupation era. It has more national historic sites, historic buildings, and archeological sites than any other city in Taiwan. In terms of ecology, the mouth of the Tseng-Wen River (曾文溪) and the Si-Cao Wetlands (四草濕地) are internationally recognized nature reserves. As a result, Tainan is an ideal place to get to know Taiwan's history, culture, and ecology.

On both the old and new streets of 21st century Tainan, you will find warm and friendly people, snacks that the locals are proud of, and see that although the city is now a mix of old and new, its splendor remains unchanged.