Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
Immigrants from China began arriving in the four-
teenth century , a migration stream that continued until
World War II. These were Han people from the Fujian
coast who spoke the dialect known variously as Amoy ,
Minnan, or Hoklo. This dialect is called Taiwanese, and
these people are known as native Taiwanese. Native Tai-
wanese are 70 percent of Taiwan' s population. In recent
years the term Taiwanese has come to be used to mean
everyone who lives on the island.
In the sixteenth century , the Portuguese were struck
by the beauty of the forested mountains and pristine
beaches of the island and called it Ilha Formosa, “the
beautiful island.” Taiwan was known to the world as For-
mosa for much of the twentieth century .
Japanese traders also visited the island and even es-
tablished a settlement near present-day Tainan. They
called the island Tai Wan, meaning “Big Bay .”
In 1624, the Dutch established forts Zeelandia and
Providentia near the by then defunct Japanese settlement
at Tainan. Spain established colonies in 1626 but was
later ousted by the Dutch. The Dutch established sugar
plantations and encouraged increased immigration from
China as fieldworkers. The Dutch were thwarted by a
Ming general in 1662.
In the seventeenth century , Hakka speakers from
Guangdong arrived and settled in the foothills. There,
they developed Taiwan' s forest products industry includ-
ing camphor wood and oil. Hakka account for 10 to 15
percent of the population and make up a disproportion-
ate share of Taiwan' s industrial workers.
Emigration from China had been illegal since the
Ming Dynasty . Even so, people left to avoid taxes and
seize new opportunities elsewhere. The Chinese regime
regarded them as people who renounced civilization. T To
China, Taiwan was uncivilized.
In 1684, the Qing Dynasty achieved control of Tai-
wan for the first time. But the island' s population rebelled
against them repeatedly over the next 200 years. One of-
ficial Qing document complained: “Every three years an
uprising! Every five years a rebellion!” Chinese immigra-
tion continued, and by the late nineteenth century , the is-
land had a population of 2.5 million.
Western traders reappeared after the Opium Wars of
the 1840s. Britain and Canada expanded agricultural ex-
ports, sent Presbyterian missionaries, and established
hospitals and schools.
The safety of foreign traders was a major issue.
China denied responsibility for incidents of violence be-
cause these were taking place “beyond the boundaries of
China.” Nevertheless, China made Taiwan a province of
China in 1887. These unclear relationships between
China and Taiwan were a prelude to decades of uncer-
tainty and difficulties that continue to this day .
JAPANESE RULE
At the end of the Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895), the
T Treaty of Shimonoseki gave Formosa and the Pescadores
(along with Korea) to Japan. On June 1, 1895, a resist-
ance movement proclaimed Asia' s first republic: the Re-
public of Formosa. This republican group was quickly
crushed, and the Japanese began their era of harsh rule.
Japan accelerated Taiwan' s economic development.
This was meant to provide Japan with agricultural and
later, industrial products. The colonial authorities ex-
panded electric power, and improved port facilities, in-
ternal transportation, and communication. A health
system was established, and an educational system pro-
moted Japanese language and culture. Many Taiwanese
attended Japanese universities. The groundwork for fu-
ture progress was laid at this time.
When the Qing Dynasty was overthrown in 1911,
both the Chinese Nationalists and the Communists wanted
Taiwan liberated from the Japanese. Both groups voiced
support for an “independent and democratic” Taiwan.
Chiang Kai-shek became increasingly interested in
Taiwan as World War II ensued. Fearing that Chiang' s
corrupt and incompetent troops would surrender to
Japan, the Allied powers issued the Cairo Declaration in
1943. This was one of several communiqués promising
to restore Taiwan and the Pescadores to China. Ever
since, despite their earlier support of Taiwan' s independ-
ence, the Nationalists and Communists have cited this
declaration to justify their view that “Taiwan is a sacred
and inseparable province of China.” But the Cairo Decla-
ration was, in fact, a statement and not a legally binding
treaty . The island' s uncertain status was furthered by the
Allied-Japanese peace treaties that left the fate of the is-
land to its inhabitants.
Another element of the island' s population consists
of immigrants who arrived from the mainland between
1945 and 1949. These are referred to as mainlanders, al-
though their “mainlander” descendants are now born in
Taiwan. In fact, more than 90 percent of Taiwanese were
born on the island.
THE “ONE CHINA” QUESTION
In 1949, Chiang Kai-shek and his two million KMT loy-
alists retreated to Taiwan where they set up what they
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