Taiwan's Indigenous Peoples, Briefly Explained

Sun Yunsuan, Taiwan’s Economic Mastermind

From China to Taiwan: On Taiwan's Han Majority

Original geographic distributions of Taiwanese aboriginal peoples

Taiwan's history spans tens of thousands of years,[1] beginning with the earliest evidence of human habitation and the emergence of an agricultural culture around 3000 BCE, attributed to the ancestors of today's Taiwanese indigenous peoples.[2] The island saw contact from the <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/History-of-China" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Han Chinese</a> in the late 13th century and subsequent settlements in the 17th century. European exploration led to the naming of the island as Formosa by the <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/History-of-Portugal" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Portuguese</a>, with the <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/History-of-the-Netherlands" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Dutch</a> colonizing the south and the <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/History-of-Spain" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spanish</a> the north. The European presence was followed by an influx of Hoklo and Hakka Chinese immigrants. By 1662, Koxinga defeated the Dutch, establishing a stronghold that was later annexed by the <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/Qing-dynasty" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Qing dynasty</a> in 1683. Under Qing rule, Taiwan's population surged and became predominantly Han Chinese due to migrations from mainland China. In 1895, after the Qing lost the First Sino-Japanese War, Taiwan and Penghu were ceded to <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/History-of-Japan" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Japan</a>. Under Japanese rule, Taiwan underwent industrial growth, becoming a significant exporter of rice and sugar. It also served as a strategic base during the Second Sino-Japanese War, facilitating invasions of China and other regions during <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/World-War-II" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">World War II</a>. Post-war, in 1945, Taiwan came under the control of the Republic of China (ROC) led by the Kuomintang (KMT) following the cessation of World War II hostilities. However, the legitimacy and nature of ROC's control, including the transfer of sovereignty, remain subjects of debate.[3] By 1949, the ROC, having lost mainland China in the <a href="https://history-maps.com/story/Chinese-Civil-War" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chinese Civil War</a>, retreated to Taiwan, where Chiang Kai-shek declared martial law and the KMT established a single-party state. This lasted for four decades until democratic reforms took place in the 1980s, culminating in the first direct presidential election in 1996. During the post-war years, Taiwan witnessed remarkable industrialization and economic progress, famously termed the "Taiwan Miracle", positioning it as one of the "Four Asian Tigers".

Visual Timelines

History of Taiwan Timeline

History of Taiwan Timeline

First human inhabitants of Taiwan

Han Chinese contact with Taiwan

First Written account of Taiwan

Taiwan's Early Trade and Pirate Era

First Europeans on Taiwan

An Account of the Eastern Barbarians

Tokugawa Shogunate Invasion of Taiwan

Dutch and Spanish colonies

Dutch Formosa

Spanish Formosa

Hakkas in Taiwan

Battle of Liaoluo Bay

Dutch Pacification Campaign

Guo Huaiyi Rebellion

End of Dutch Influence in Taiwan

Kingdom of Tungning

Sinicization

Qing Conquest of Taiwan

Qing Rule

Qing Taiwan: Men, Migration, and Marriage

Aboriginal Rebellions

British Failed Invasion of Taiwan

Formosa Expedition

Mudan Incident

Acculturation and Resistance: Taiwan's Aborigines under Qing Rule

Keelung Campaign

Japanese Empire

Qing Dynasty cedes Taiwan to Japan

Taiwan under Japanese rule

Japanese invasion of Taiwan

Armed Resistance to Japanese Rule

Chinese Civil War

Kominka

Republic of China

Taiwan Retrocession Day

February 28 Incident

Martial law in Taiwan

White Terror

Battle That Saved Taiwan: Battle of Guningtou

Kuomintang's Retreat to Taiwan

Economic Development

Land reform in Taiwan

American Aid

Treaty of San Francisco

First Taiwan Strait Crisis

Second Taiwan Strait Crisis

Taiwan expelled from the United Nations

Ten Major Construction Projects

Taiwan Relations Act

Taiwan's rise in the key semiconductor industry

Wild Lily Student Movement

1996 Taiwanese Presidential Election

End of the Kuomintang (KMT) rule

Anti-Secession Law

Sunflower Student Movement

2020 Taiwanese Presidential Election

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