In that title is hidden a lot of life and rewritten history, hope, misery, love, and outright lies. To know the real history of the people of Taiwan (Formosa) you would need to have a dozen books each written from a different prejudicial perception. What I will attempt to do is in a short way bring out some of the qualities that show what is the real Taiwanese people.

Like with most peoples by looking at their folk tales you can see a lot of the makeup. But as you read through this collection of Folk Tales, there are a few things that you should keep in the back of your mind.

One of the first self-descriptions that I was told by a Taiwanese was that they are nicknamed "Potatoes". Of course you can see a picture of Taiwan Island and it looks like a sweet potato. But, this person expounded that they were thought of as potatoes because they were always just picked up by anyone passing by, chewed on till they were full and tossed away what ever was left. A non-intrusive thing that is defenseless so is just kicked around.

Most of the people of Taiwan migrated to the island from the Fukian province, many say to get away from the conscription labor of building the Great Wall. The island was inhabited by native Indians that were well known as vicious warriors and even headhunters. So, a farmer coming here would have to live in a stockade type of fort much like the settlers in the U.S. Others that were more inclined to not work as hard joined the thriving Pirate trade.

Yes, one of the last Pirate strongholds. The island was positioned perfectly off the China coast. A ship traveling in the area would choose to go through the straights using the island as a shield to block storms or typhoons. But this would place them in easy reach of the pirate ships that would plunder them at will. The other route would run the risk of being blown onto the eastern shore where the Indians would happily pick up the remains.

A few times China would take hold of a small portion of the island just like it did to all other neighboring countries. But, they never lasted very long or had much effect on the people. That is until they gave the island to Japan.

When Japan was given Taiwan (Formosa) the Japanese rule of one punishment for all crimes and the swift execution of that law made a very fast difference. No one in the world said a thing about Taiwan and very little was heard until Chiang Kai-shek needed a place to run from Mao. Over the centuries China took parts of many countries like Korea, Viet Nam, Cambodia, Thailand, Burma, and so on. But they were always allowed by the rest of the world to take their country back.

Since 1949 there has been lots of rhetoric and propaganda thrown around saying that the Chiang Kai-shek was going to take back China, and references to there being only ONE China. Do the writers of such stuff really think that people are really that stupid and that they can't see through the dung??? What, because there are a lot of Chinese immigrants here in the US, that China has a claim to here also??

Enough about that... Lets take a look at some of the Folk Tales of Taiwan (Formosa)

Ban Pin Shan the "Half-faced Mountain" The Tigress Witch, the strange ability of animals to change themselves into humans. The Little Frog in the well, what it's like to be in your own little world. Why the Sea is Salty, Originally the sea was NOT salty.

The Legend of Muddy River "Chou Shui Hsi" the largest river in Taiwan No Monkey, No Wife A term used to describe a man with no wife. The Nose Master, see how this "Get Rich Quick" schemer gets ahead. Return Deer Antlers to Uncle Dog! Long ago dogs had antlers, not deer.

    

Help support our site... Visit this sponsor