The first settlements
Archaeologists believe that Taiwan was first settled at least 20,000 BC, thanks to the discovery of the skeleton of "Zuozhen Man". The Formosa Strait was dry at the time, which may have enabled the island to be colonized as early as the end of the Pleistocene. Historians have only limited knowledge of these prehistoric people, since the first fossils and tools found in caves in the south of the island date back to 15,000 BC. In 2014, a genetic analysis of an 8,000-year-old skeleton found in Taiwan validated the archipelago as the origin of Austronesian languages, spoken from Madagascar to Easter Island. Genetic filiations thus make it possible to trace the migrations of Austronesian peoples. They would have left Chinese Fujian at the end of the last great ice age to colonize Taiwan. Over the following millennia, the island found itself isolated from the mainland due to rising sea levels. Inhabitants were therefore forced to rapidly master the art of navigation, which may have led to migrations to various islands in the Pacific and Indian Oceans from the 6th millennium onwards. Although this hypothesis is now accepted by a large number of linguists, geneticists and historians, the almost total absence of archaeological sources leaves many doubts. It wasn't until the 4th millennium that archaeological remains were finally found to define the cultural and societal framework of the island's first aborigines. Named after an excavation site discovered near Taipei, the Dapenkeng culture appeared abruptly between -4000 and -3000 B.C. This population, speaking an Austronesian language and probably originating from south-eastern China, mastered agriculture and animal husbandry, as well as elementary pottery techniques, examples of which are found in the Philippines, further validating the hypothesis of Taiwan as the starting point for Austronesian migrations in the Pacific.
Dapenkeng culture
In 2500 BC, the Dapenkeng culture spread from the north to the south of the island, leaving many historical traces, such as their monoliths, signs of a particular religious life. There is much to suggest that these early inhabitants of Taiwan are the ancestors of today's indigenous peoples. However, the absence of written sources remains one of the main obstacles to understanding these indigenous societies. Until the 17th century, they were almost completely self-sufficient. Before the arrival of Chinese, European and Japanese settlers, the aborigines lived mainly on the west coast, where the vast, well-irrigated plains were ideal for farming. They grew millet and legumes, as well as sugar and rice (generally reserved for alcohol production).
It was mainly the women who tended the crops, while the men went hunting or fishing. This social organization was based on a network of villages, where up to 1,500 people could live. The tribes who lived in the mountains had a reputation for head-hunting, and regularly led raids against the inhabitants of the plains. While there is evidence of maritime trade between the Philippines, Taiwan and China, the island's inhospitable geography forced tribes to be self-sufficient and sometimes to wage war on each other to survive.
Formosan languages
This double isolation (from the continent and between the tribes themselves) gave rise to the Formosan languages, one of the most important features of aboriginal culture. But of the 26 known aboriginal languages, at least 10 have completely disappeared and 5 are threatened with extinction. This decline can be largely explained by the various waves of colonization the island has undergone. In the 12th century, Chinese population growth and advances in navigation led many Hans peasants to seek a better life in the Taiwanese archipelago. For several centuries, the number of these immigrants remained very limited (just a few thousand), and therefore did not change the situation of the indigenous peoples, even though these new arrivals mixed with the population and brought with them new agricultural techniques. When the Dutch established their first trading post in Tayouan in 1624, they made contact with the Siraya tribe, whom they considered to be true "savages". Although they initially allied themselves with certain villages, the massacre of Dutch soldiers in 1629 forced the men of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) to retaliate severely. In 1635, a military campaign exterminated the rebel tribes. An uneasy peace followed, and the Dutch attempted to evangelize the aborigines. Trade in hunted deer skins guaranteed commercial relations between the tribes and the settlers. But over-hunting caused deer stocks to dwindle. It was at this time that the Dutch encouraged the immigration of Hans from southeast China to develop agriculture.
The arrival of the Chinese
Following Koxinga's victory over the VOC in 1662 and the creation of the Tungning kingdom, the Chinese flocked to Taiwan in such numbers that the new Qing dynasty had to ban emigration to the archipelago in order to halt the demographic hemorrhage. Koxinga redistributed the land of the aborigines to his compatriots (estimated at 120,000), forcing the tribes to flee to the mountains, where they remained until the 20th century. In 1683, Koxinga's grandson abdicated and Taiwan became Chinese. The Han population began to immigrate again in the 18th-19th centuries, and by 1860, the Chinese already numbered over three million. The natives regularly rebelled, but were unable to compete. In 1895, prior to the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki granting Taiwan to the Japanese Empire, the natives isolated themselves by living in mountainous regions unsuitable for agriculture, while many tribes had no choice but to assimilate and interbreed with the Chinese population. The Chinese call the former sheng fan (raw barbarians) and the latter shu fan (cooked barbarians): proof of the settlers' contempt for native cultures.
Japan's dual policy
When the Japanese reclaimed Taiwan, they adopted a double-edged policy: military repression coupled with anthropological studies to learn more about their new subjects. Although the Japanese Empire was already largely multi-ethnic, the new settlers remembered the massacre of Japanese shipwrecked sailors in 1871. The report that followed this incident described the aborigines as a "violent, vicious and cruel people who must be got rid of". Soldiers of the imperial army did not hesitate to commit numerous atrocities whenever the indigenous peoples revolted. The one at Wushe in 1930 was one of the most terrible: after an attack on a Japanese garrison, 644 people were killed in reprisals. Aware that they could not hold the country by force alone, the Japanese set up several scientific expeditions to learn more about their new constituents and create a land registry to better exploit the island's resources. Anthropologists scoured the island and met with the various tribes. The results of their research, now on display at the National Palace Museum, form the basis of much of today's scientific knowledge. Thanks to this legacy of Japanese colonization, a first ethnic subdivision was established. The Japanese counted nine: Atayal, Saisat, Bunun, Tsou, Rukai, Paiwan, Puyuma, Amis and Da'o. The Japanese policy of cultural assimilation rapidly transformed the island's native culture. Schools throughout the country taught only in Japanese, tribal tattoos were banned and tribes adopted Japanese customs. Many aborigines whose parents had been killed during the repression campaigns fought with the Japanese in the Second World War.
Aborigines today
The Japanese surrender, followed by the exile of the Koumintang (KMT) in 1949, finally destabilized Taiwan's fragile indigenous culture. Chiang Kai-shek landed on the island with over 1.3 million Chinese refugees. The aborigines, already a minority, found themselves marginalized and subjected to a centralized policy of assimilation: the KMT tried to transform them into perfect Chinese citizens. Schools in the aboriginal territories offer classes in Chinese, and schoolchildren learn about the history of the Middle Kingdom. Intermarriage is rife, and as indigenous status is only passed down through the mother, their population is rapidly dwindling. In the 1980s, indigenous peoples took part in the opposition to the KMT. In 1983, the magazine Gaoshan Qing , published clandestinely by aboriginal students, sought to challenge the marginal status of these populations. One of the authors, Icyang Parod, became Minister of Indigenous Affairs under President Chen Shui-bian. With the opening up of democracy, the Aborigines won 3 seats in Parliament, as well as the recognition of 7 new tribes. Today, between 500,000 and 800,000 aborigines live in Taiwan, and face severe economic difficulties; many have benefited from a mediocre education, with the result that unemployment hits them harder than the rest of the population. And many have had to leave their mountains to find work in the city, mainly in construction. In recent years, efforts have been made to rehabilitate their culture, such as their increased participation in the tourism industry and the annual Austronesian Culture Festival in Taitung.
