Shakalangkou Village Introduction
Adjacent to the Shakaran River, the Koushe community is a Paiwan Indigenous tribe. The former name of Koushe is Shakaran (sagaran), which split from Dasha. In the past, two hunters from the Dasha Dawalan tribe, sapantje and salatiliman, went hunting and settled in a place known as Kauma'an (高媽安), where their hunting dogs refused to leave. Some residents of Dasha also migrated here. The hunter sapantje returned to invite the fourth son of the Dasha chief, sa'adiu, to be the chief of the new settlement, thus forming a new tribe called "Shakaran." At the entrance of the Koushe community, the stone pavilion arch features statues of the two hunters, their hunting dog, and the chief. To this day, villagers still present betel nuts and oranges woven into floral wreaths to the descendants of the two hunters during weddings, in respect for the tribe's heroic ancestors. The tribal name of Koushe is Shakaran (sagaran), and the Shakaran River flowing through the village is the source of life for the sagaran people. After three relocations, the sagaran people have always coexisted with the Koushe River, maintaining an important reciprocal relationship. In 2001, an incident where unscrupulous individuals poisoned fish led to a mass death of the fish, severely impacting the river's ecosystem. The villagers felt deep resentment towards this act, prompting the village chief to gather the residents to launch a river protection plan, initiating the Shakaran (sagaran) river conservation movement. Over the past two years, the community has engaged in voluntary labor, allowing villagers to participate in river patrols, construct river pathways, build stone embankments, and organize platforms for stilts, gradually restoring the river's original ecological environment. Indigenous peoples have historically nourished their communities with resources from mountains and rivers, balancing the extraction and conservation of nature by establishing ethical guidelines based on the natural lifecycle. This ensures the sustainable use of resources. The rich cultural features of the Paiwan tribe, combined with the unique lifestyles and customs intertwined with the abundant ecological resources of the Shakaran River, allow us to develop high-quality ecological tourism in Shakaran (sagaran).
