Links Page on Taiwan

Outline

  1. Historical Setting
    • A historical overview
    • Government
    • Relations with China
  2. Physical Environment
    • Map of the region
    • Chungyang Sahnmo
    • Rivers
  3. Cultural Environment
    • Population
    • Daily Life
    • Religion

Historical Setting

Taiwan’s history in the past 400 years as a quick overview, is a bit vague but it provides some good oversight into how Taiwan has progressed through out its existence as a country.  Taiwan belonged to Japan until World War II when ownership was ‘temporarily’ transferred to the Chinese.  This temporary agreement has become rather permanent as the Chinese still occupy the country. 

Government in Taiwan is that of a democratic country despite the fact that China is a communist country.  Their current President Chen Shui-bian has served for 11 terms along with his Vice President Lu Hsiu-lien.  The five branches of government, known as yuan’s, are the legislative, executive, judicial, examination, and control.  Some information about each of these branches and the organizations that fall underneath them are found at this website.

Cross-strait relations can sometimes be a little tense between Taiwan and China with their governmental views being so different.  This site provides a look into just what their relationship consists of and many of the issues that they’ve dealt with in the past two years. 

Physical Environment

Taiwan is located in East Asia off mainland China. Taiwan is separated by the Taiwan Strait and borders many other bodies of water such as the South China Sea, East China Sea, and the Pacific Ocean. The total area of Taiwan is 13,000 sq. miles (36,000 sq. km).  

Chungyang Sahnmo (Central Mountain Range) is Taiwan’s most well known feature. This mountain range stretches 167 miles of the island's length and was formed by ancient tectonic movement. The tallest peak in Taiwan, Yu Shan (Jade Mountain), is 12,959 feet. Off one side of Taiwan’s coast cliffs drop off into the ocean which creates some of Taiwan's beautiful scenery. On the other coast there are vast plains which support Taiwan’s agriculture and population.

Taiwan has several rivers however water pollution remains a problematic issue. Nearly 90% of sewage waste in Taiwan is dumped into waterways untreated. Taiwan also has numerous forests. However, most forests were harvested during Japanese rule for the construction of shrines and has only recovered slightly since then. The remaining forests nowadays do not contribute to significant timber production mainly because of concerns about production costs and regulations of environmental protection.

Cultural Environment

Population Pyramid of Taiwan for 2006.   The population of Taiwan as of July 2006 is estimated to be just over 23,000,000 people.  The majority (70.8%) of the population are between the ages of fifteen and sixty-four.  The population density of Taiwan is 685 persons per square kilometer.  The growth rate of Taiwan is 0.61%.  The life expectancy for males living in Taiwan is 74.67 years, while females is 80.47 years.

Types of eating venues and night life.  Taiwan has restaurants, cafes, and street vendors literally on every corner in urban areas, and many of them stay open 24 hours a day.  Taiwan has almost every type of food available from almost every country in the world.  Since Taiwan is an island, seafood is naturally a popular food item.  There are food courts in almost every shopping and entertainment center; these courts offer an alternative to the traditional restaurants.

Religious practices in Taiwan.  Three major religions in Taiwan that affect its culture are Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism.  Most Taiwanese think of themselves as part Buddhist-Taoist-Confucianist.  The temples in Taiwan show a mixture of the three religions.  4.9 million Taiwanese are Buddhist.  4.5 million people in Taiwan practice Taoism.  Since Taiwan has freedom of religion, other religions in Taiwan include Catholicism, Judaism, and Islam. 

Submitted by Jessica Boehle, Kristen Buker, and Zach Lage on February 1, 2007.