Taiwan

Touch Your Heart

Overview of Taiwan

History

Taiwan was inhabited by aborigines of Malayan descent when Chinese from the areas now designated as Fukien and Kwangtung began settling it in the 7th century, becoming the majority. The Portuguese explored the area in 1590, naming it “the Beautiful” (Formosa). In 1624 the Dutch set up forts in the south, the Spanish in the north. The Dutch forced out the Spanish in 1641 and controlled the island until 1661, when Chinese general Koxinga took it over and established an independent kingdom. The Manchus seized the island in 1683 and held it until 1895, when it passed to Japan after the first Sino-Japanese War. Japan developed and exploited Formosa. It was the target of heavy American bombing during World War II, and at the close of the war the island was restored to China.

After the defeat of its armies on the mainland, the Nationalist government of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek retreated to Taiwan in Dec. 1949. Chiang dominated the island, even though only 15% of the population consisted of the 1949 immigrants, the Kuomintang. He maintained a 600,000-man army in the hope of eventually recovering the mainland. Beijing viewed the Taiwanese government with suspicion and anger, referring to Taiwan as a breakaway province of China.

The UN seat representing all of China was held by the Nationalists for over two decades before being lost in Oct. 1971, when the People's Republic of China was admitted and Taiwan was forced to abdicate its seat to Beijing.

Geography

The Republic of China today consists of the island of Taiwan, an island 100 mi (161 km) off the Asian mainland in the Pacific; two off-shore islands, Kinmen (Quemoy) and Matsu; and the nearby islets of the Pescadores chain. It is slightly larger than the combined areas of Massachusetts and Connecticut.

"Taiwan
Quick-facts "

President-elect: Tsai Ing-wen +977 14511001

Premier: Simon Chang +977 14511001

Land area: 12,456 sq mi (32,261 sq km); total area: 13,892 sq mi (35,980 sq km)

Population (2014 est.): 23,359,928 (growth rate: 0.25%); birth rate: +977 14511001; infant mortality rate: +977 14511001; life expectancy: 79.84

Capital (2014 est.): Taipei, 6,950,646 (metro. area), 2,693,672 (city proper)

Other large cities: New Taipei, 3,913,595; Kaohsiung, 2,773,855; Taichung, 2,662,770; Tainan, 1,876,706; Hsinchu, 419,384

Monetary unit: New Taiwan dollar

Republic of China

National name: Zhonghua Minguo

Current government officials

Languages: Chinese (Mandarin, official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects

Ethnicity/race: Taiwanese (including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese 14%, aborigine 2%

Religions: mixture of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%, Christian 4.5%, other 2.5%

Literacy rate: 96.1% +977 14511001

Major trading partners: China, U.S., Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore +977 14511001.

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: +977 14511001 million +977 14511001; mobile cellular: +977 14511001 million +977 14511001. Broadcast media: free-to-air nationwide television networks operating roughly 75 TV stations; about 85% of households utilize multi-channel cable TV; national and regional radio networks with about 170 radio stations broadcasting +977 14511001 Internet hosts: 6.272 million +977 14511001. Internet users: +977 14511001 million +977 14511001.

Transportation: Railways: total: 1,580 km +977 14511001. Highways: total: 41,475 km; paved: 41,033 km (including 720 km of expressways); unpaved: 442 km +977 14511001. Ports and harbors: Chilung (Keelung), Hualien, Kaohsiung, Taichung. Airports: +977 14511001.

International disputes: involved in complex dispute with Brunei, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam over the Spratly Islands, and with China and the Philippines over Scarborough Reef; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants; Paracel Islands are occupied by China, but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam; in 2003, China and Taiwan became more vocal in rejecting both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of the Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea where all parties engage in hydrocarbon prospecting.