Taiwan's Indigenous group is a branch of the Austronesian Linguistic Family, an ethnic group that shares a similar language style and is spread throughout the Pacific and Indian Ocean. The exact timeline when these different indigenous ethnic groups migrated to Taiwan varies, they range from at least a thousand years or more(e.g. Atayal) to one or two thousand years or less(e.g. Amis and Yami). However, entering the 16th and 17th centuries they faced the conflict of imperialism of Western nations. European merchants and missionaries emerged to spread religion and trade for the valuable raw materials on this piece of land. First was the Portuguese in the late 1500s. Followed by the Dutch East India Company’s(VOC) occupation of northern Taiwan and the Spanish occupation of southern Taiwan during the mid-1600s. Under the ruthless old imperialism of Western nations, with guns and violence, Taiwanese indigenous people faced conflicts such as territorial, cultural, and manual loss. Many were forced to convert to Christianity and other Western cultures; indigenous traditions were abolished eventually. Entering the 1660s, Koxinga replaced the Dutch in Northern Taiwan, the Qing dynasty later on included Taiwan as part of its territories in 1683. Yet the situation did not improve as the Chinese moved in. There were still many unfair territorial trade and business between the indigenous people and the foreigners; yet, those who got the advantage were usually the outsiders.
Followed by the Dutch East India Company’s(VOC) occupation of northern Taiwan and the Spanish occupation of southern Taiwan during the mid-1600s. Under the ruthless old imperialism of Western nations, with guns and violence, Taiwanese indigenous people faced conflicts such as territorial, cultural, and manual loss. Many were forced to convert to Christianity and other Western cultures; indigenous traditions were abolished eventually. Entering the 1660s, Koxinga replaced the Dutch in Northern Taiwan, the Qing dynasty later on included Taiwan as part of its territories in 1683. Yet the situation did not improve as the Chinese moved in. There were still many unfair territorial trade and business between the indigenous people and the foreigners; yet, those who got the advantage were usually the outsiders.
Portuguese and Ming Dyansty in Taiwan
The Dutch East India(VOC) company was the first to discover Taiwan, which named it Formosa. After this, merchants from the Dutch, Portuguese, and even Spain came to Taiwan to create their trading post, while also competing with its competitors. However, once Zheng Cheng Gong came to Taiwan, he led the army, he quickly defeated these foreign powers from seizing Taiwan, making Taiwan under the rule of the Ming Dynasty, and also a place for his dream of revenge against the Qing Dynasty.
Early rule of Qing Dynasty
This period saw a more discouraged Qing government to govern Taiwan. Despite this, many of the geologists still mapped out a map for Taiwan. However, after acknowledging the importance of Taiwan's geographical position, the Qing government turned to a more progressive way of administering Taiwan, which allowed people to migrate to Taiwan without credentials like before. Most of the people who come to Taiwan are from Guangzhou and Fujian.
Taiwan under the Qing Dynasty
During this period of time, Taiwan was under the rule of the Qing Dynasty after the Ming Dynasty fell. This period saw the first street lights being lit up in Taipei and also saw the first railroad being constructed to better boost the economy. Qing rule of Taiwan ended when they lost the Sino-Japanese war. They gave Taiwan to Japan as a payment to the debt of the war.
Japanese rule
In 1895, the Quing dynasty ceded Taiwan to Japan through the Treaty of Shimonoseki. Many tribes submitted to the Japanese due to its advanced technologies. Yet, some mountain tribes took advantage of geography and resisted Japanese colonialism. These mountain tribes would often resist Japanese rule, and cause chaos in the mountains. However, with its advanced technology, Japan was able to bring Taiwan to another level of industrialization. In 1945, after Japan lost WWII, they gave Taiwan back to the Republic of China.
The 2000s to present
The economy in Taiwan started to thrive, people were seeing mass improvements in society. Moreover, people living in the country saw more democracy, as the first time that there was another party than the Chinese Nationalist Party. At this time, Taiwan also tried to connect with other countries by joining the World Trade Organization(WTO), further thriving its economy potential.
