The administrative area of Taikang was originally known as "Yangxia County". As a major thoroughfare, the county has been historically important. It was the hometown of
Wu Guang, one of the peasant leaders of the rebellion against the
Qin dynasty. It was also the
ancestral hometown of the
Xie and
Yuan surnames; it consequently was the birthplace of several famous Xie clan members such as
Xie Daoyun,
Xie Hui,
Xie Lingyun,
Xie Tiao, and others. Following the start of the chaotic
Sixteen Kingdoms period, Yangxia County initially remained part of the areas held by the
Eastern Jin, but was later conquered by the
Former Qin. In course of the latter's decline, the county was occupied by the
Northern Wei that held it until 446. It was then captured by the
Liu Song dynasty, but reconquered by the Northern Wei in 488. Toward the end of the
Northern and Southern dynasties period, Yangxia County fell to the
Sui dynasty, which changed its name to "Taikang County" in 587. This name was derived from
Xia dynasty king
Tai Kang. The character "" is normally pronounced as but in
Central Plains Mandarin is pronounced . In 884, the
Tang army under
Li Keyong defeated the rebel army of
Shang Rang at Taikang. By time of the
Ming dynasty, Taikang had grown rich as trade center and market town, and was widely nicknamed "Silver Taikang". Due to this wealth, however, the town was repeatedly sacked in times of political unrest. It was plundered by the
Shun rebel army of
Li Zicheng in 1644 during the
fall of the Ming dynasty. In course of the
Nian Rebellion, Taikang was plundered by insurgents four times, namely in 1852, 1856, 1861, and 1863. After the
Xinhai Revolution's outbreak, the
Yellow Sand Society and the Cha Tianhua bandit group raided the town in 1911. In the following years, Taikang's economic importance declined due to the construction of railways in the region, but it was still the target of rampaging bandits and soldiers in the
Warlord Era and
Nanjing decade, with raids occurring in October 1923, December 1924, November 1925, January as well as June 1926, March 1927, March 1928, winter 1930, and January 1932. Today, Taikang is a primarily agrarian county, with some
light industry. The county is famous for its production of
cotton. ==Administrative divisions==