Taiwan’s former capital has reached a historic milestone, inviting visitors far and wide to a year of events and activities that reflect on the city’s rich history and diverse influences. Marking its 400th anniversary since the Dutch East India Company’s (VOC) arrival, Tainan is celebrating its quadricentennial with a series of yearlong events under the…
Despite the prevalence of satellite data, traditional map-makers continue to tell remarkable stories with historical and contemporary images of Taiwan. In the age of smartphones, satellite data shows us the world in real-time to an accuracy of up to 30 centimeters per pixel with just the tap of an app. How can traditional maps, produced…
Not known for being a particularly international city, Tainan has nonetheless been influenced by foreigners for hundreds of years. Contemporary visitors can still see and experience a number of their lasting contributions. It’s been almost 400 years since Dutch traders disembarked in present-day Tainan, kicking off a long history of foreign interaction and influence. In…
Despite its gloomy reputation, Yunlin County – rich in culture and history – can provide a tranquil escape from the bustle of big city life. Photo credit: Steven Crook Situated just over 200 kilometers southwest of Taipei by freeway, Yunlin County suffers from a reputation for being flat, uninteresting, and insignificant. It has none of…
— By Jane Rickards and Don Shapiro Ming and Qing Dynasty soldiers described Taiwan as a place where “disease is rampant.” Yet before large numbers of Han people began arriving in the mid-17th century, the island’s indigenous peoples had managed to live generally healthy lives. Japanese researchers later documented how the Austronesian peoples used local medicinal plants to cure various…
Much of what is now downtown Taipei was once enclosed within city walls, with access through five gates. The area has a lot to tell about the city’s history. The Taipei city wall was completed by the Qing Dynasty in 1884. Although it survived for only 16 years, its influence on modern Taipei is still…
By Steven Crook and Katy Hui-Wen Hung “My father was born in 1926 in Tamsui. My mother was born in 1930 in Tokyo, where my grandfather (who was from Banqiao; my maternal grandmother was from Tainan) worked as a financial advisor until 1946. During the war, both of my parents ate hiromaru lunchboxes, with the…
Katy Hui-wen Hung and Steven Crook discuss their newly published book. Katy Hui-wen Hung: I grew up in Taipei, studied in the U.S. from 1984 to 1986, and have lived in the UK since the late 1980s. Some years ago in the UK, I got to know Marlena Spieler, the acclaimed cookbook writer. Marlena, an…
Around the time the Mengjia Longshan Temple (艋舺龍山寺) was founded in 1738, a grim aphorism was circulating on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. Cha̍p lâng lâi tâi saⁿ tī la̍k bông chi̍t hôe thâu (the Holo pronunciation of 十人來台 六亡三在一回頭) translates as: “Of every ten people who have reached Taiwan, just three remain; six…
Taiwan is known as an excellent place to study the Mandarin language and is also home to the world-class National Palace Museum with its breathtaking collection of Chinese treasures. But Taiwan is not a purely Han Chinese society. Prior to the 17th century, the island was dominated by indigenous people of Austronesian origin. Before the…
