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Taiwan (Chinese language: 臺灣 or 台湾 pinyin tái wān) is an island off the coast of Mainland China in the Pacific Ocean. It is also known by its Portuguese name Formosa, which means "beautiful". Taiwan, as well as several smaller islands of Fujian, such as Quemoy and Matsu, have been administered since 1945 by a government called the Republic of China (ROC), the former government of mainland China before its 1949 defeat by the Communist Party of China. Whether the island is or is not part of China and the meaning of "China" in this context is an extremely complex and controversial issue. The ROC government continues to claim sovereignty over mainland China (including Tibet) and outer Mongolia, although President Lee Teng-hui in 1991 stated that the government no longer challenges communist rule on the mainland.
Although it is common to use the terms "Taiwan" and "Republic of China" synonymously, Taiwan is still technicially administered as a province of the Republic of China and the ROC government also has jurisdiction over two counties of Fujian province. Offically, the ROC claims sovereignty over Mainland China (including Tibet) and outer Mongolia. The mention of politics in this article refer to the government of the Republic of China, and not to the Taiwan provincial government.
See also: Provinces of China
GeographyMain article: Geography of TaiwanThe island of Taiwan lies some 200 km off the southeastern coast of Mainland China across the Taiwan Strait, with the East China Sea to the north, the Philippine Sea to the east, the Luzon Strait directly to the south and the South China Sea to the southwest. The island is characterised by the contrast between the eastern two-thirds that consist mostly of rugged mountains, running in five ranges from the northern to the southern tip of the island, and the flat to gently rolling plains in the west that are also home to most of Taiwan's population. Taiwan's highest point is the Yu Shan[?] at 3,997 m. Taiwan's climate is marine tropical[?]. The rainy season lasts from June to August during the southwest monsoon, though cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year. Natural hazards include typhoons and earthquakes. See also: Geography of China
EconomyMain article: Economy of TaiwanTaiwan has a dynamic capitalist economy with gradually decreasing guidance of investment and foreign trade by government authorities. In keeping with this trend, some large government-owned banks and industrial firms are being privatised. Real growth in GDP has averaged about 8% during the past three decades. Exports have provided the primary impetus for industrialisation. The trade surplus is substantial, and foreign reserves are the world's third largest. Agriculture contributes 2% to GDP, down from 35% in 1952. Traditional labour-intensive industries are steadily being moved offshore and replaced with more capital- and technology-intensive industries. Taiwan has become a major investor in China, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Vietnam; 50,000 Taiwanese businesses are established in Mainland China. Because of its conservative financial approach and its entrepreneurial strengths, Taiwan suffered little compared with many of its neighbours from the Asian financial crisis in 1998-1999. The global economic downturn, however, combined with poor policy coordination by the new administration and increasing bad debts in the banking system, pushed Taiwan into recession in 2001, the first whole year of negative growth since 1947. Unemployment also reached a level not seen since the 1970s oil crisis. See also: East Asian Tigers
DemographicsMain article: Demographics of TaiwanThe aboriginal population of Taiwan, divided into ten main tribes, now numbers only 2%. The remainder consists of Han Chinese, who themselves consist of early Han immigrants who are referred to as "Ben-sheng-ren" (84%) and later immigrants which are referred to as "Wai-sheng-ren" or "Mainlanders" (14%) that came with the ROC government in 1949. The Ben sheng ren on their part consist chiefly of Southern Fujianese, as well as the Hakka, who are concentrated in several counties throughout Taiwan. However, some claim that these official figures are innaccurate, since children with Han fathers and aboriginal mothers passed themselves off as Han. The majority of people on Taiwan speak Mandarin Chinese, which has been the medium of instruction in the schools for more than four decades. A large fraction of people in also speak one of the Southern Fujianese dialects, Min-nan, also known as Taiwanese. The Hakka have a distinct Hakka dialect. Between 1900 and 1945 the population also spoke Japanese. Chinese romanisation on Taiwan remains chaotic with many different systems, some ad-hoc, in use. In 2002, Taiwan authorities announced adoption a form of pinyin, but this has not resolved the chaos as there is a large and mostly political controversy about which pinyin system to use, with different localities now using different systems. About half of the Taiwanese population can be considered religious believers, most of whom identify themselves as Buddhists or Taoists. At the same time there is a strong belief in folk religion throughout the island. These are not mutually exclusive, and many people practice a combination of the three. Confucianism also is an honoured school of thought and ethical code. Christian churches have been active on Taiwan for many years, a majority of which are Protestant and with Presbyterians playing a particularly significant role.
CultureMain article: Culture of Taiwan[?]
See also: Culture of China
Miscellaneous topics
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