Ep. 315 | The History of Taiwan (Part 6)

The History of Taiwan continues with the Japanese colonial period during the 1920s. Despite all the transformational things the Japanese were carrying out on the island, not everyone was signing up for allegiance to the emperor. The Beipu Uprising, the 2nd Truku War, Ta-Pa-Ni Incident, and the horrific Musha Incident were all evidence of anti-Japanese resistance and retribution. We also look at Jiang Weishui and Lin Xiantang, two important figures in the movement to establish a Taiwanese Parliament. No one was trying to kick out the Japanese. By the 1920s they began to ask for more representation in government affairs in Taiwan. This was going to be a long struggle.

Listen On Your Favorite Podcast Player


Terms in Episode

Pinyin/TermChineseEnglish/Meaning
Táng Jǐngsōng唐景崧Chinese general and statesman who commanded the Yunnan Army in the Sino-French War (August 1884–April 1885),and made an important contribution to Qing dynasty China's military effort in Tonkin by persuading the Black Flag leader Liu Yongfu to serve under Chinese command. He later became governor of the Chinese province of Taiwan. Following China's cession of Taiwan to Japan at the end of the First Sino-Japanese War he became president of the short-lived Republic of Formosa
Qiū Féngjiǎ丘逢甲1864-1912, a protégé of Táng Jǐngsōng and came from one of the many landed gentry families in Taiwan. Qiū’s people were Hakkas from just north of Méizhōu
Qing Dynasty清朝Last imperial dynasty of China 1644-1912
Kodama Gentarō兒玉 源太郎1852-1906, Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and a government minister during the Meiji period. He was instrumental in establishing the modern Imperial Japanese military.
Gotō Shinpei後藤 新平1857-1929, Doctor of Medicine, Japanese politician and cabinet minister of the Taishō and early Shōwa period Empire of Japan. He served as the head of civilian affairs of Taiwan under Japanese rule, the first director of the South Manchuria Railway, the seventh mayor of Tokyo City, the first Chief Scout of Japan, the first Director-General of NHK, the third principal of Takushoku University, and in a number of cabinet posts. Gotō was one of the most important politicians and administrators in Japanese national government during a time of modernization and reform in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
Běipǔ Uprising北埔事件November 1907, the first instance of an armed local uprising against the Japanese rule of the island of Taiwan. In response to oppression of the local population by the Japanese authorities, a group of insurgents from the Hakka subgroup of Han Chinese and Saisiyat indigenous group in modern-day Beipu, Hsinchu County, attacked Japanese officials and their families
Hakka客家A Han Chinese subgroup whose ancestral homes are chiefly in the Hakka-speaking provincial areas of Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangxi, Guangxi, Sichuan, Hunan, Zhejiang, Hainan, Guizhou in China, as well as in parts of Taiwan. Unlike other Han Chinese subgroups, the Hakkas are not named after a geographical region in China. The word Hakka or "guest families" is Cantonese in origin and originally refers to the Northern Chinese refugees fleeing social unrest, upheaval and invasions in northern parts of China who migrated to the south.
Sàixià賽夏The Saisiyat indigenous people
Xīnzhú新竹City on the northwest coast of Taiwan
Miáolì County苗栗县a county in western Taiwan. Miaoli is adjacent with Hsinchu County and Hsinchu City to the north, Taichung to the south, and borders the Taiwan Strait to the west
Cài Qīnglín蔡清琳Organizer of a small militia of fellow Hakka’s and local Sàixià tribesmen who rose up against the Japanese
Count Sakuma Samata佐久間 左馬太1844-1915, a general in the Imperial Japanese Army, and 5th Governor-General of Taiwan from 11 April 1906 to May 1915
Gāoshān高山Literally means tall mountains. So the Gaoshan people were those aboriginals who resided in the mountainous two thirds of the island
Truku太鲁阁族Also known as Taroko people, are an Indigenous Taiwanese people. Taroko is also the name of the area of Taiwan where the Taroko reside. The Executive Yuan, Republic of China has officially recognized the Taroko since 15 January 2004. The Taroko are the 12th aboriginal group in Taiwan to receive this recognition.
Atayal泰雅族Also known as the Tayal and the Tayan. The Atayal people number around 90,000, approximately 15.9% of Taiwan's total indigenous population, making them the third-largest indigenous group. The preferred endonym is "Tayal", although the Taiwanese government officially recognizes them as "Atayal"
Bunun (Bùnóng)布農族a Taiwanese indigenous people. They speak the Bunun language. Unlike other aboriginal peoples in Taiwan, the Bunun are widely dispersed across the island's central mountain ranges
Huālián花莲a county on the east coast of Taiwan. It is the largest county by area, yet due to its mountainous terrain, has one of the lowest populations in the country. The county seat and largest city is Hualien City.
Hoko System保甲制度Known as the Bǎojiǎ System in China, Hokō was an institution of administrative control, adopted by the Japanese colonial government between 1898 and 1945 in Taiwan. The model was based on placing responsibility on every level of the community hierarchy. The system was an effective mechanism in producing domestic stability and social order for the Japanese government
Xīnchéng Incident新城事件November 1896, Karenkō Prefecture, Taiwan, Empire of Japan. The chief of the Truku tribe, Holok Naowi, led 20 aboriginal warriors against the Japanese forces, killing 13 Japanese soldiers. Xīnchéng is a township on the east coast of Taiwan in Huālián County
Páiwān排湾族An indigenous people and language. In 2014, the Paiwan numbered 96,334. This was approximately 17.8% of Taiwan's total indigenous population, making them the second-largest indigenous group. They fought many skirmishes against foreigners in the 18th and 19th century
Baron Andō Teibi安東 貞美1853-1932),a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and 6th Governor-General of Taiwan from 30 April 1915 to 6 June 1918.
Jiaòbānián Shìjìan噍吧哖事件The Tapani incident[4] or Tapani uprising in 1915 was one of the biggest armed uprisings by Taiwanese Han and Aboriginals, including Taivoan, against Japanese rule in Taiwan. Alternative names used to refer to the incident include the Xilai Temple Incident after the Xilai Temple in Tainan, where the revolt began, and the Yu Qingfang Incident after the leader Yu Qingfang
Yú Qīngfāng余清芳One of the leaders of the Ta-Pa-Ni Incident
Jiāng Dìng江定The other leader of the Ta-Pa-Ni Incident
Gāoxióng高雄The city of Kaohsiung on the southwest coast of Taiwan
Táinán台南Located on the southwest coast of Taiwan, this is where the earliest recorded history began with the arrival of the Dutch in 1624. Tainan was where the Dutch built Fort Provintia and Fort Zeelandia
Xīlái Temple Incident西來庵事件See above Ta-Pa-Ni Incident. This was an alternative name
Baron Den Kenjirō田 健治郎1855-1930, a Japanese politician and cabinet minister in the pre-war government of the Empire of Japan. He was also the 8th Japanese Governor-General of Taiwan from October 1919 to September 1923, and the first civilian to hold that position
Hirohito昭和天皇1901-1989, Emperor Showa, commonly known in English-speaking countries by his personal name Hirohito (裕仁). The 124th emperor of Japan, ruling from 25 December 1926 until his death in 1989
Táiběi Zhōu台北州Taihoku Prefecture
Jīlóng基隆Officially known as Keelung City. It's a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. The city is a part of the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with its neighbors, New Taipei City and Taipei.
New Taipei City新北市A special municipality located in northern Taiwan. The city is home to an estimated population of 3,974,683 as of 2022, making it the most populous city of Taiwan, and also the second largest special municipality by area, behind Kaohsiung. New Taipei City neighbours Keelung to the northeast, Yilan County to the southeast, and Taoyuan to the southwest, and completely encloses the city of Taipei
Taipei台北Called Taihoku City in Japanese, Taipei is located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about 25 km (16 mi) southwest of the northern port city of Keelung. Most of the city rests on the Taipei Basin, an ancient lakebed. The basin is bounded by the relatively narrow valleys of the Keelung and Xindian rivers, which join to form the Tamsui River along the city's western border
Yílán County宜兰县A county in northeastern Taiwan, just southeast of Taipei
Jiǎng Wèishuǐ蒋渭水1890-1931, a Taiwanese physician and activist. He was a founding member of the Taiwanese Cultural Association and the Taiwanese People's Party. He is seen as one of the most important figures in Taiwan's resistance movement against Japanese rule
Lín Xiàntáng林献堂1881-1956, a Taiwanese-born politician and activist who founded several political organizations and sat on the Japanese House of Peers.
Tái Dà台大National Taiwan University, founded in 1928 as Taihoku Imperial University.
Táizhōng台中City on the west coast of Taiwan that also served as the provincial capital
Dàdàochéng大稻城It was also known as Twatutia (a transliteration of the Taiwanese Hokkien Tōa-tiū-tiâⁿ),Daitōtei during Japanese rule, and Tataocheng during the Kuomintang era. Dadaocheng was an important trading port in the 19th century, and is still a major historical tourist attraction and shopping area. The district is known for the local Taiwanese cuisine
Xīn Mín Huì新民会the Shin Min Kai or New People Society
Táiwān Mínzhòngdǎng台湾民众党Taiwanese People’s Party, Taiwan’s first political party
Mukden Incident九一八The Mukden or Manchurian Incident, known in Chinese as the 9.18 Incident, was a false flag event staged by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for the 1931 Japanese invasion of Manchuria.
Shěnyáng沈阳City in Liaoning Province
Hokkien福建In the Minnan dialect, the people, language and culture of southern Fujian
Qín Shǐhuáng秦始皇Founding emperor of the Qin Dynasty, the First Emperor
Xiè Wéndá谢文达1901-1983, also known as Tsia Bun-tat, Taiwan’s first aviator
Wùshè Shìjiàn雾社事件the Musha Incident of October 27
Seediq賽德克族a Taiwanese indigenous people who live primarily in Nantou County and Hualien County. Their language is also known as Seediq. They were officially recognized as Taiwan's 14th indigenous group on 23 April 2008. Previously, the Seediq, along with the closely related Truku people, were classified as Atayal
Mònà Lǔdào莫那 鲁道1880–1930, he was the son of a chief of the Seediq tribe of Taiwanese aborigines. In 1911, he made a visit to Japan. He succeeded his father as a chief of the village of Mahebo and became one of the most influential chiefs of the area of Wushe. Mona Rudao was from the Tgdaya group of the Seediq. He became famous for orchestrating the Wushe incident in what is now Nantou County in 1930
Sòng宋朝The Song Dynasty 960-1279
Yuán元朝The Yuan Dynasty 1279-1368
Míng明朝The Ming Dynasty 1368-1644
Rén’ài Township仁爱乡A mountain indigenous township in Nantou County, Taiwan
Nántóu County南投县The second largest county of Taiwan, located in the central part of the island. Nantou is also the only non-coastal county in Taiwan. Its name derives from the Hoanya Taiwanese aboriginal word Ramtau
John Woo吴宇森Legendary Hong Kong filmmaker and producer of this movie, directed by Wèi Déshèng 魏德圣. It came out in September 2011. The English title is Warriors of the Rainbow - Seediq Bālái 赛德克-吧莱. And it’s a four and a half hour filmic dramatization of the Musha Incident and these events I’ve just described

Enjoy the show and want to support the CHP?

Join the Teacup Patreon

Make a Direct Donation

Buy Laszlo a Cup of Coffee


Previous
Previous

Ep. 316 | The History of Taiwan (Part 7)

Next
Next

The Great Wall with William Lindesay