客家先民從中原往南遷移，迨淸初更大舉從廣東移民台灣，他們所採取的策略如何？以往學者有幾種不同的看法。本文擬從頭份的客家聚落，尤其是陳家的渡台與發展爲例，來探討客家移民台灣的聚落發展模式。
全文共分五部份。㈠導論，㈡漢人移民台灣與頭份的開拓，㈢陳家的渡台及其發展，㈣聚落發展模式與漢人社會的建立，㈤結語。作者發現早期移入頭份的墾民並沒有大墾戶，大部份是普通的墾民，他們透過同姓的關係，組織合約字蒸嘗，聚集資本與勞力，以從事開墾工作，頭份陳家就是一個很好的例子。其次，這種合約字蒸嘗，例如陳家所參加的陳氏始祖嘗，表面上看起來是一種祭祀團體，以祭祀其共同的祖先爲目的，事實上它等於是一種現代的‘土地利用合作社’。他們籌集資金，購置田產，由派下人承耕，每年租穀收入，除供祭祀祖先外，得依股份而分紅。這可以說是台灣漢人移墾社會的一大特色。最後，頭份客家人的移墾，大多沿中港溪上、中游，選擇靠山或丘陵之地區，不像進入中港溪的閩南人，大多停留在中港溪下游的竹南沿海平原。

Institute of Ethnology Academia Sinica
Hakka originated in the area called ‘Chung-yuan’and migrated in a southerly direction. During the reigns of K’ang-hsi, Ch’ien-lung and Chia-ch’ing in the Ch’ing dynasty the fourth major Hakka movement, from K’wang-tung to Taiwan, occured. Scholars have different points of view regarding the settlement strategies adopted by Hakka migrants to Taiwan. The author draws upon the example of the Ch’en family of T’ou-fen in order to discuss what kinds of factors and forces contributed to the settlement of the Hakka on Taiwan.
An examination of the Ch’en family in T’ou-fen shows an absence of major land-opening households among the early immigrants to T’ou-fen. In order to concentrate capital and labor, and to cooperate in land opening work, early immigrants established relationships on the basis of common surname and organized contract lineage organizations. The Ch’en family is only one instance. In addition, although, on the surface, contract lineages look as if they were formed for the purpose of ancestor worship, they were, in fact, more like a land investment team. Lineage organization permitted the concentration of capital and the purchase and cultivation of land. Aside from that part used for the worship of the ancestors, the annual rental income was redistributed in grain among the shareholders according to the number of shares owned. This is a special characteristic of Han Chinese immigrant society on Taiwan. Finally, the Hakka reclamation of T’ou-fen was, for the most part, along the middle to upper reaches of Chung-kang Creek. Lowland settlers chose land next to mountainous or hilly areas. This was distinct from the Minnan of Chung-kang, whose lowland settlements lie along the seacoast at the lower reaches of Chung-kang Creek.