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DNA Profiles
Taiwan's Glory
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Newsletters
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Blogs
Links

台灣歷史
Taiwan History
(slide presentation)
(e-book)

Taiwan Touch Your Heart (video)

History of Taiwanese Pop Songs

History of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan

Books about Taiwan

Let Taiwan be Taiwan
by Marc J. Cohen
(e-book)

Island in the Stream
by April Lin and Jerome Keating
(e-book)

Formosa Betrayed
by George Kerr
(e-book)

A Taste of Freedom
by Peng Ming-min
(e-book)

Formosa Calling
by Allan Shackleton
(e-book)

Forbidden Nation: A History of Taiwan
by Jonathan Manthorpe

Formosa Under the Dutch
by William Campbell

Spaniards in Taiwan by J.E. Borao Mateo

How Taiwan Became Chinese: Dutch, Spanish and Han Colonization in the Seventeenth Century
by Tonio Andrade
(e-book)

Is Taiwan Chinese? The Impact of Culture, Power, and Migration on Changing Identities by Melissa J. J. Brown

The Ugly Chinaman and the Crisis of Chinese Culture
by Bo Yang

台灣血統
by Sim Kiantek

Links to Articles

* 我是台灣人，不是中國人連署運動

* Han Chauvinism

* Sinocentrism

* Taiwan's Desinicization Campaign

* What's in a Name? by Gary Schmitt

* From Chinese National Identity to Taiwanese Consciousness by Jessie Ching-Ni Liu

* Political Status of Taiwan

* The Presbyterian Church in Taiwan and the Advocacy of Local Autonomy by Christine L. Lin

* Taiwan's Gift to the World by Jared M. Diamond

** New Research Forces U-Turn in Population Migration Theory by University of Leeds

** 非原住民台灣人的基因結構 by 林媽利

* Fujian (Minnan)

* 台灣族群的遺傳基因-林媽利 (videos in Taiwanese)

* 從DNA 的研究看台灣原住民的來源 by 林媽利

* Heterogeneity of Taiwan's Indigenous Population by M. Lin, et al.

* Anthropologist Asks Provocative Question by Philip Courtenay

* Taiwan: Who’s Your Mama? by Jerome F. Keating

* 基因研究己確認台灣人與中國人不同種 by Corinne W.

* 從醫學資料看臺灣的族群融合 by 陳順勝

* Diversity of HLA Among Taiwan's Indigenous Tribes and the Ivatans in the Philippines by C.C. Chu, et al.

* mtDNA Provides a Link between Polynesians and Indigenous Taiwanese by PLOS Biology

* Biological Relationships of Ethnic Groups in Taiwan by Jen-yih (Albert ) Chu

* 從免疫球蛋白看台灣人的血緣 by 朱真－

* Taiwanese Hakka: Origin--Modern Biological Studies by Albert Chu

* The Origin of Minnan & Hakka, the So-Called "Taiwanese" Inferred by HLA Study by Marie Lin

* 台灣人的來源 by 林媽利

* 考古首次證實台灣應是南島民族的發源地 by 盧太城

* 台灣人和印支半島族群的關係 by 鄭昭任

* Taiwan Muslims' Struggle to Survive by Ma Chao-Yen

* Shared Culture and Shared Ethnic Origin between the Taiwanese and the Chinese??? by Ching-chih Chen

* True History of Taiwan by Sim Kiantek

* 血統獨立 by 沈建德

* Chinese

* 中国56个民族 56 Ethnic Groups in China (video)

* Debunking China's Yellow Emperor Myth by Ching-chih Chen

* 拋棄黃帝神話 by 陳清池

* How to Define a Population: Cultural Politics and Population Genetics in the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China by Margaret Sleeboom-Faulkner

* Stratification in the Peopling of China: How Far does the Linguistic Evidence Match Genetics and Archaeology? by Roger Blench, Mallam Dendo

* China History Unravelled by Mummies by Benjamin Robertson

* China: Minority Exclusion, Marginalization and Rising Tensions by Human Rights in China

* People's Republic of China and Weapons of Mass Destruction

* Anti-Secession Law of the People's Republic of China

* The Ugly Chinese: Move Over Ugly American, Make Room for the Ugly Chinese by John Pomfret

Recommended Books

Changing Minds: The Art and Science of Changing Our Own and Other People's Minds
by Howard Gardner

Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur’s Odyssey to Educate the World’s Children
by John Wood

The Wilsonian Moment: Self-Determination and the International Origins of Anticolonial Nationalism
by Erez Manela

God and Empire: Jesus Against Rome, Then and Now
by John Dominic Crossan.

China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia
by Peter C. Perdue

The Coming China Wars: Where they Will Be Fought and How they Can Be Won
by Peter Navarro

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
by Jared Diamond

Past Human Migrations in East Asia
by Alicia Sanchez-Mazas, et al.

Chinese Dream: Is China really going to be another superpower? Probably not
by John Pomfret

Taiwan (Formosa) is an island nation located at the crossroad between Japan, China, Korea and Southeast Asia. There are common misperceptions that the Taiwanese are Chinese and that Taiwan is a part of China. Chinese immigrants brought a rich cultural heritage to Taiwan, but Taiwan is a melting pot of aborigines and immigrants from all over the world. Various colonial powers also left their genetic imprints on the people of Taiwan. And Taiwan was a province of the Chinese Empire for eight years only, from 1887 to 1895.

60% of the people in Taiwan consider themselves "Taiwanese only"

30% consider themselves "both Chinese and Taiwanese."

Is Taiwan a Nation-State? by Gerrit van der Wees

Is the US a Nation-State? by Gerrit van der Wees (page 7)

DNA Profiles of "Han" Taiwanese

Click for more profiles

If you have done a DNA test and would like to contribute your DNA profile to TaiwanDNA.com please write to: DNA@TaiwanDNA.com

DNA Testing Companies

DNA Tribes
is the testing company used to obtain the DNA profiles. Its database contains population data from two Taiwanese aboriginal tribes: Ami and Atayal

For information on genetic testing visit DNA Tutorial

Books on DNA

DNA: The Secret of Life
by James D. Watson

The Seven Daughters of Eve
by Bryan Sykes

Deep Ancestry: Inside the Genographic Project
by Spencer Wells

Journey of Man: A Genetic Odyssey
by Spencer Wells

Videos: 114 minutes
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

The History and Geography of Human Genes: (Abridged)
by Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, Paolo Menozzi, Alberto Piazza

* Human Migration

* Y-Chromosomal Adam Videos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

* Mitochondrial Eve

* International HapMap Project

The Human Genome Project

The Genographic Project

Celiac Disease

Most doctors assume that celiac desease is rare among Asians, but the celiac genes, DQ2 and DQ8, are not that uncommon in the Taiwanese population. Celiac disease is a hereditary intolerance to gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and oats. It is a serious disease that can lead to autoimmune disorders and cancer. Celiac disease is associated with diabetes, thyroid disease, autoimmune liver disease. Patients with celiac disease are at high-risk for thyroid cancer, adenocarcinoma of the small intestine, lymphoma. Strict avoidance of gluten is the only way to treat celiac disease (Click to read more about celiac disease).

* Health Check USA Celiac gene test.

Taiwanese Cinema

A City of Sadness
(video)

Cape No. 7
(video)

Eat Drink Man Woman 　(video)

Yi Yi
(video)

Three Times
(video)

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
(video)

1895
(video)

Formosa Betrayed, the Movie
(video)

Taiwan Film Directors: A Treasure Island
by Emilie Yueh-yu Yeh and Darrell Davi

Taiwanese Opera- "Mackay: The Black Bearded Bible Man" (video)

U.S. Sees More Beijing Missiles Aimed at Taiwan
by Richard Halloran

Blogs

敢有人知影河洛客e來源？

Taiwanese DNA Blog by socialforce.tw

DNATribes Test/Analysis Results Log
by Charles F. Kerchner

Links to Great Websites

For comments and suggestions, write to: DNA@TaiwanDNA.com

Taiwanese Aborigines

The indigenous people of Taiwan have been living on Taiwan for over 10,000 years. Emigrants from Taiwan spread the Austronesian language from Madagascar to Polynesia.

Click to read more

European Origins

Portuguese

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Portuguese DNA, history, culture

Dutch

The VOC (The Dutch East Indian Company) occupied Taiwan from 1623 to 1662.

Articles on Dutch DNA, history, culture

Spanish

The Spaniards occupied Taiwan from 1625 to 1642.

Articles on Spanish DNA, history, culture

Basque

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Basque DNA, history, culture

Western Balkans

Bosniak, Serb, Croat, Montenegrin

Articles on Western Balkans DNA, history, culture

Hungarian Minority of Romania

Székely, Csángó

Articles on Székely / Csángó DNA, history, culture

Russian

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Russian DNA, history, culture

Finnish

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Finnsh DNA, history, culture

French

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on French DNA, history, culture

German

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on German DNA, history, culture

Swiss

Swiss mercenaries served in the Spainish colonies.

Articles on Swiss DNA, history, culture

Italian

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Italian DNA, history, culture

Middle Eastern/African Origins

Armenian

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Armenian DNA, history, culture

Turkish

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Turkish DNA, history, culture

Arab

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Also refer to the articles on the Hui people

Articles on Arab DNA, history, culture

Jewish

(Ashkenazi)

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Jewish DNA, history, culture

Tunisian

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Tunisian DNA, history, culture

Central Asian Origins

Salar

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Salar DNA, history, culture

Mongolian

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Mongolian DNA, history, culture

Kyrgyz

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Kyrgyz DNA, history, culture

Evenki

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Evenki DNA, history, culture

Tibetan

Refer to DNA profiles.

Articles on Tibetan DNA, history, culture

South Asian Origins

Bhutanese

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Bhutanese DNA, history, culture

Nepali

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Nepali DNA, history, culture

Indian

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Indian DNA, history, culture

Southeast Asian Origins

Thai

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Thai DNA, history, culture

Malay

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Malay DNA, history, culture

Filipino

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Filipino DNA, history, culture

Vietnamese

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Vietnamese DNA, history, culture

Cambodian

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Cambodian DNA, history, culture

Javanese

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Javanese DNA, history, cu lture

East Asian Origins

Japanese

Japanese merchants used Taiwan as a trading base before the Dutch arrival in 1623. From 1895 to 1945, Japan ruled Taiwan as part of the Japanese Empire

Articles on Japanese DNA, history, culture

Korean

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Korean DNA, history, culture

Guangxi Minorities:

Yi

Mulao

Maolan

Miao

Click to read more

Hui

Refer to the DNA profiles.

Articles on Hui DNA, history, culture

Manchu

The Manchu Qing army invaded Taiwan in 1683. Manchu rule was nominal until 1887 when Taiwan became a province of the Qing Empire.

Articles on Manchu DNA, history, culture

Chinese

There were three waves of Chinese immigration to Taiwan: 1. during the Dutch occupation of Taiwan, 2. when Koxinga defeated the Dutch, 3. during WWII.

Click to read more

Territories Occupied by Different Dynasties as Well as Modern Political States Throughout the History of China

Excerpts from Wikipedia.org

Chinese Imperialism

In the narrow, original sense, Huaxia refers to a group (or confederation of tribes) of ancient people living along the Yellow River who formed the nucleus of what later became the Han ethnic group in China. In this sense, the term did not originally represent China or Chinese civilisation as a whole, but referred instead to a specific ethno-cultural group (the Huaxia tribe or confederacy 華夏族) that was distinct from peoples such as the Miao and the Dongyi. Subsequently, with the spread of Han culture over most of China, the term came to be used as a generic term for the Chinese nation itself, as well as for Chinese culture in general (including that shared by the overseas Chinese.

The Central Plain of China (中原; Zhongyuan) refers to the area on the lower reaches of the Yellow River which formed the cradle of Chinese civilization. It forms part of the North China Plain. In its narrowest sense, the Central Plain covers modern-day Henan, the southern part of Hebei, the southern part of Shanxi, and the western part of Shandong province. A broader interpretation of the Central Plain's extent would add the Guanzhong plain of Shaanxi, the northwestern part of Jiangsu, and parts of Anhui and northern Hebei.

Historically, ancient China has been one of the world's oldest empires. In ancient Chinese political theory, relations between foreign states were governed by the tributary system. Since the Emperor of China held the Mandate of Heaven, his rule was universal and extended to All under heaven. Sometimes neighboring states were actual protectorates or vassal states over which China exerted large amounts of influence, while in other cases foreign states merely acknowledged China's nominal suzerainty in order to gain access to Chinese trade, which took place through the tributary system.

The first dynasty to expand to most of China proper was the Qin Dynasty (秦朝), which consolidated its power with efficient administration and a strong central bureaucracy, and expanded outwards, annexing the other six kingdoms of the Warring States Period as well as other territory populated by non-Chinese speaking peoples, such as the Yue. Throughout its history, Chinese territory would vary depending on the changing fortunes of successive dynasties, alternating between periods of Chinese expansion and foreign invasion or rule. Chinese civilization expanded outwards in all directions from the area around the Yellow River, but especially towards the south. Several historical migrations, driven by war, natural disasters, foreign invasions, and/or population pressures, led to Han Chinese migration and settlement of new territories to the south, assimilating or displacing local peoples. In contrast, the north was largely a frontier inhabited by militaristic steppe peoples, and protected by the Great Wall. Chinese states often engaged in military campaigns in the north, but rarely established lasting control.

China's last major period of territorial expansion was under the militaristic Qing Dynasty (清朝), whose rulers were not ethnically Han Chinese but Manchu. Their martial skills, non-Han origin and technological advantages allowed them to expand their influence in Mongolia, Central Asia, Tibet, and Taiwan. However in the 19th and early 20th century the Qing would themselves succumb to the militarily superior European powers engaging in imperialism in Asia, leading to their final collapse in 1911. During this period, China lost parts of its empire including Hong Kong (to the United Kingdom), Macau (to Portugal), Taiwan and the Pescadores (to Japan), northwestern Xinjiang and Outer Manchuria (to Russia), as well as tributaries such as Indochina (to France), Burma (to Britain), Korea and the Ryukyu Islands (to Japan). Under the Republic of China which succeeded the Chinese empire in 1912, Tannu Uriankhai was lost to Russia, while Outer Mongolia became a Soviet satellite.

The Republic of China and the People's Republic of China (established 1949) have since attempted, with varying degrees of success, to re-incorporate some areas that fell outside of Chinese control before and after the collapse of the Qing Dynasty. The PRC's control over Tibet, East Turkestan (Xinjiang), Inner Mongolia and Manchuria (the first two of which contain majority non-Han populations), is seen by some locals and outsiders as modern-day imperialism, as are subsequent organized campaigns of Han immigration into these regions. This is often described by critics as demographic swamping, aimed at destroying the uniqueness of those regions, but defended as the innocuous, routine and benevolent importing of labourers and professionals into sparsely populated and poorly developed regions by supporters. Finally, the PRC's territorial claim over Taiwan, which is still controlled by the Republic of China, is also seen as an example of imperialism by critics.

Why Taiwan?: Geostrategic Rationales for China's Territorial Integrity by Alan M. Wachman

Taiwanese Identity

Of the 23 million people in Taiwan, 98% are descendants of ethnic Han Chinese immigrants who migrated from China from the 17th to the 20th century. Of these, around 70% are descended from immigrants from Fujian and identify themselves as Hoklo whilst 15% are Hakka from Guangdong (Canton) and also Fujian. The ancestors of these people were laborers that crossed the Taiwan Strait to work on plantations for the Dutch. It is believed that these male laborers married local aborigine women, creating a new ethnic group of mixed Chinese and aborigine people. It is these descendants who identify themselves as Taiwanese and increasingly reject their identity as Chinese. The reason for this lies to a great extent with the authoritarian rule of the foreign Kuomintang (KMT) which fled mainland China during the Chinese Civil War and set up government in Taiwan. There was martial law that lasted four decades and was discriminatory against the existing inhabitants of Taiwan. Mandarin, a foreign language, was imposed as the national language (國語) and all other languages were made illegal. The harsh rule over Taiwan was lifted in 1988 and began a new era in Taiwanese history when Lee Tenghui, a Taiwanese, became president. The first transition of power from the China-centric KMT occurred in 2000 when Taiwanese Chen Shui-bian of the Democratic Progressive Party won the presidential elections. He made efforts to push for Taiwan independence with statements that there are two nations across the Taiwan Strait; a push for plebiscite on independence; and the abolishment of the National Unification Council. Taiwanese opinion on independence is split between the northern and southern half of Taiwan which interestingly also divides the "mainlander" (外省人) in the north from the "Taiwanese" (本省人) in the south.

In recent years, there has been a trend, known as the "Taiwanese localization movement", to emphasize the importance of Taiwan's culture rather than to regard Taiwanese as solely an appendage of China. The movement stems from the continued hostility displayed by the People's Republic of China towards Taiwan independence and the memory of Kuomintang dictatorship. This involves the teaching of history of Taiwan, geography, and culture from a local perspective, as well as promoting languages locally established in Taiwan, including Hoklo, Hakka and aboriginal languages.

The place of the Taiwanese identity (台灣人) in relation to the Chinese identity (中華人) has been a matter of intense debate. While pro-reunification Taiwanese prefer to think of the Taiwanese identity as a subset of the Chinese national identity pro-independence Taiwanese place the Taiwanese identity outside the Chinese national identity.

Polls conducted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) in 2001 found that 70% of Taiwanese would support a name change of the country to Taiwan if the island could no longer be referred to as the Republic of China.

In recent years, especially after the 1990s, there has been a growth in the number of people identifying themselves as Taiwanese. In polls conducted by the National Chengchi University back in 1991, only 13.6% of respondents identified themselves as Taiwanese. This figure rose to 45.7% in 2004. In contrast, the number of respondents that identified as Chinese was 43.9% in 1991 and fell to just 6.3% in 2004. Half of respondents responded with dual-identity, both Chinese and Taiwanese.

The Academia Sinica conducted a survey between 1992 and 2004 to further explore the identity issue by asking questions such as whether people would support independence if it wouldn't result in war, and whether Taiwan should unite with China if there were no political, economic or social differences between the two sides. Results showed that a third of respondents maintained "double-identities" over the years whilst a similar number of respondents were "Taiwanese nationalists" (those that would never support unification with China even if there were no differences with China). This number doubled as a result of provocation from the PRC in the 1996 missile crisis. There has been a sharp decline in "Chinese nationalist" (those that would support unification with China if the social conditions were the same as Taiwan) from 40% to 15%. The opinion of Taiwanese continues to change, reflecting the problem of national identity which is easily affected by political, social and economic circumstances.

In a recent poll dated November 2006, over 60% of Taiwan's population consider themselves to be Taiwanese while only 34% consider themselves to be both Taiwanese and Chinese. This is consistent with the ethnic breakdown of Taiwan's population. Since most Hakka consider themselves to be Han Chinese, their number combined with the Mainlanders and a few Hoklo come close to the 34% cited. It would appear that most Hoklo consider themselves to be ethnic Taiwanese. Approximately 62% favored independence for Taiwan.

* Hypotheses on Taiwanese Nationalism: A Talk by Perry Anderson by Richard Gunde (2004)

* Men in Double Marginality--- Chinese Diaspora “at Home” by Ping Lin

* Mainlanders, Cast Off Your Shackles by Paul Lin

Taiwan: National Identity and Democratization by Alan M. Wachman

Humanity at Stake: China's Aggression, Taiwan's Democracy, and 23 Million Citizens' Human Right to Self-Determination by Abraham Young (website)

Orphan of Asia by Zhuoliu Wu, Ioannis Mentzas (Translator)

Song: 亞細亞的孤兒 by Luo Dayou

Austronesian People

The Austronesian people or Austronesian-speaking people, are a population group present in Oceania and Southeast Asia who speak, or had ancestors who spoke, one of the Austronesian languages. They form a diverse group of peoples stretching 57% around the globe west-to-east, ranging 206° from 44°E in Madagascar to 110° W on Easter Island. The territories settled primarily by Austronesian peoples are known collectively as Austronesia.

Map of Austronesia

The first Austronesian speakers are believed to have originated on the island of Taiwan following the migration of a group, or groups, of Pre-Austronesian speaking peoples from continental Asia approximately 10,000-6000 B.C. Due to a lengthy split from the Pre-Austronesian populations, the Proto-Austronesian language and cultures emerged on Taiwan.

Beginning around 5000-2500 B.C., the large scale Austronesian expansion began. Population growth primarily fueled this expansion. A society that gives prestige and a higher status to the descendants of a community's founder added more incentive to settle new lands.

These first settlers landed in northern Luzon in the Philippines. Over the next thousand years up until 1500 B.C., their descendants started to spread south to the rest of the Philippine islands, Celebes (modern-day Sulawesi), northern Borneo, Moluccas (modern-day Maluku), and Java.

The settlers in Moluccas sailed eastward and began to spread to the islands of Melanesia and Micronesia between 1200 B.C. and 500 B.C. repectively. Those that spread westward reached Sumatra, the Malay peninsula and southern Vietnam by 500 B.C.

The oceanic Austronesians had reached Remote Polynesia by 1000 B.C and spread to its three extremities Hawaii by 400 A.D. New Zealand by 1300 A.D. and Easter Island between 300 A.D. In the Indian Ocean they reached Madagascar.

Trade with India and China flourished within the first millennia A.D., which allowed the creation of Indianized states. Muslim traders began arriving during the 10th century and brought with them Islam as well as the sultanates.

Europeans in search of spices later colonized most of Austronesia, starting from the 16th century, with British and Portuguese colonization of Malaysia, Portuguese and the Dutch colonization of Indonesia and East Timor, and the Spanish colonization and, later, the American governance of the Philippines. Meanwhile, the British, Germans, French, Americans, and Japanese began establishing spheres of influence within the Pacific Islands during the 19th and early 20th centuries. The Japanese later invaded during World War II. The latter half of the 20th century initiated independence of modern day Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and many of the Pacific Island nations.

Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines enjoyed a high rate of economic growth during the authoritarian rule of Suharto and Marcos that were later established years after the independence of Indonesia and the Philippines. Due to political and economic pressures from within and outside the countries at the time, stagnation resulted for a short period. Marcos' regime was toppled in 1986 and Suharto's rule ended in 1998 and the economies of the two countries are finally recovering but problems and challenges remain.

The Asian financial crisis in the mid-to-late 1990s largely devastated the economies of the Austronesian nations in Southeast Asia. Most economic indicators are back to pre-crisis levels as of 2006.

The Sumatra-Andaman earthquake hit Indonesia in 2004, killing 130,000 individuals there and producing a worldwide total of 230,000 casualties; it also displaced at least a million people.

Geographic Distribution of Austronesian peoples consist of the following groupings by name and geographic location:

Formosan: Taiwan. ex. Amis, Atayal, Bunun, Paiwan.
Malayo-Polynesian groups
- Borneo Groups, Kadazan, Iban, Murut,
- Central Filipino: Central and Southeastern Luzon. ex. Tagalog, Bicolano
- Chamic group: Cambodia, Hainan, Vietnam. ex. Chams, Jarai, Utsuls.
- Igorot: Cordilleras. ex. Balangao, Ibaloi, Isneg, Kankanaey.
- Lumad: Mindanao. ex. Kamayo, Manobo, Tasaday, T'boli.
- Malagasy: Madagascar. ex. Betsileo, Merina, Sakalava, Tsimihety.
- Malays: Malaysia, Brunei, Pattani, Singapore, Sumatra.
- Melanesians: Melanesia. ex. Kanak, Ni-Vanuatu.
- Micronesians: Micronesia. ex. Carolinian, Chamorros, Palauan.
- Moken: Myanmar, Thailand.
- Moro: Bangsamoro (Mindanao, Sulu archipelago). ex. Maguindanao, Maranao, Tausug.
- Northern Filipino: Northern Luzon. ex. Ilocano, Kapampangan, Pangasinan
- Polynesians: Polynesia. Fijians, Māori, Native Hawaiians, Samoans.
- Visayans: Visayas. ex. Aklanon, Cebuano, Hiligaynon, Waray.

According to a recent Stanford University study, there is wide variety of paternal ancestry among the Austronesian peoples. Aside from few European introgression found in the Malay Archipelago (especially in Borneo and the Philippines) as well as in French Polynesia, the vast majority of Austronesian peoples are of autochthonous descent.

They constitute the dominant ethnic group in Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines, the Pattani region of Thailand, and East Timor inside the Malay Archipelago, in Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia inside Oceania, in Madagascar, and in the Cham areas of Vietnam, Cambodia, and China (the remnants of the Champa kingdom which covered central and southern Vietnam).

An estimated 380,000,000 people around the world are thought of to be of Austronesian descent.

*** New Research Forces U-Turn in Population Migration Theory by University of Leeds

*** Pacific Islanders' Ancestry Emerges in Genetic Study by John Noble Wilford

Map of Human Language Families

(Austronesian People and Language Family in Pink)

The Silk Road

The Silk Road, or Silk Route, refers to a trade route through regions of the Asian continent connecting East and West Asia. Geographically, it is an interconnected society of ancient trade routes connecting Chang'an (today's Xi'an) to Europe and the Near East. It was central to cultural transmission by linking traders, merchants, pilgrims, monks, soldiers, nomads and urban dwellers from China to the Mediterranean Sea for thousands of years.

The route enabled people to transport trade goods, especially luxuries such as silk, satins, musk, rubies, diamonds, pearls and rhubarb from different parts of the country in China, India, and Asia Minor to the Mediterranean, extending over 8,000 km (5,000 miles). Trade on the Silk Road was a significant factor in the development of the great civilizations of China, Egypt, Persia, Arabia, India, Rome, and Byzantium and helped to lay the foundations for the modern world in several respects. Although the term the Silk Road implies a continuous journey, very few travelers traveled the route from end to end. For the most part, goods were transported by a series of agents on varying routes and trade took place in the bustling mercantile markets of the oasis towns.

Chinese and Central Asian Contacts

From the 2nd millennium BC nephrite jade was being traded from mines in the Yarkand and Khotan regions (modern day Xinjiang) to China. Significantly, these mines were not very far from the lapis lazuli and spinel ("Balas Ruby") mines in Badakhshan and, although separated by the formidable Pamir Mountains, routes across them were, apparently, in use from very early times.

The Tarim mummies, apparently Caucasoid, have been found in the Tarim Basin, in the area of Loulan located along the Silk Road 200 km east of Yingpan, dating to as early as 1600 BC and suggesting very ancient contacts between East and West. It has been suggested that these mummified remains may have been of people related to the Tocharians whose Indo-European language remained in use in the Tarim Basin (Xinjiang) until the 8th century.

Following contacts of metropolitan China with nomadic western border territories (East Turkestan) in the 8th century BC, gold was introduced from Central Asia, and Hotan Kashteshi Hotan jade carvers began to make imitation designs of the steppes, adopting the Scythian-style animal art of the steppes (descriptions of animals locked in combat). This style is particularly reflected in the rectangular belt plaques made of gold and bronze with alternate versions in jade and steatite.

Iranian and Scythian Connections

The expansion of Scythian Iranian cultures stretching from the Hungarian plain and the Carpathians to the Chinese Kansu Corridor and linking Iran, and the Middle East with Northern India and the Punjab, undoubtedly played an important role in the development of the Silk Road. Soghdian Scythian merchants played a vital role in later periods in the development of the Silk Road.

The Roman Empire

Soon after the Roman conquest of Egypt in 30 BC, regular communications and trade between India, Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka, China, the Middle East, Africa and Europe blossomed on an unprecedented scale. The party of Maës Titianus became the travellers who penetrated farthest east along the Silk Road from the Mediterranean world, probably with the aim of regularizing contacts and reducing the role of middlemen, during one of the lulls in Rome's intermittent wars with Parthia, which repeatedly obstructed movement along the Silk Road. Land and maritime routes were closely linked, and novel products, technologies and ideas began to spread across the continents of Europe, Asia and Africa. Intercontinental trade and communication became regular, organized, and protected by the 'Great Powers.' Intense trade with the Roman Empire followed soon, confirmed by the Roman craze for Chinese silk (supplied through the Parthians), even though the Romans thought silk was obtained from trees. This belief was affirmed by Seneca the Younger in his Phaedra and by Virgil in his Georgics. Notably, Pliny the Elder knew better. Speaking of the bombyx or silk moth, he wrote in his Natural Histories "They weave webs, like spiders, that become a luxurious clothing material for women, called silk."

The Senate issued, in vain, several edicts to prohibit the wearing of silk, on economic and moral grounds: the importation of Chinese silk caused a huge outflow of gold, and silk clothes were considered to be decadent and immoral:

"I can see clothes of silk, if materials that do not hide the body, nor even one's decency, can be called clothes… Wretched flocks of maids labour so that the adulteress may be visible through her thin dress, so that her husband has no more acquaintance than any outsider or foreigner with his wife's body" (Seneca the Younger (c.3 BC–65, Declamations Vol. I).

The Hou Hanshu records that the first Roman envoy arrived in China by this maritime route in 166, initiating a series of Roman embassies to China.

Radhanites

The Radhanites were medieval Jewish merchants. Jewish merchants dominated trade between the Christian and Islamic worlds during the early Middle Ages (approx. 600–1000 AD). Many trade routes previously established under the Roman Empire continued to function during that period largely through their efforts. Their trade network covered much of Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and parts of India and China.

Ibn Khordadbeh described the Radhanites as sophisticated and multilingual. He outlined four main trade routes utilized by the Radhanites in their journeys. All four began in the Rhône Valley of France and terminated in China. The commodities carried by the Radhanites were primarily those which combined small bulk and high demand, including spices, perfumes, jewelry, and silk. They are also described as transporting oils, incense, steel weapons, furs, and slaves (in particular, Saqāliba).

During the Early Middle Ages the Islamic policies of the Middle East and North Africa and the Christian kingdoms of Europe often banned each others' merchants from entering their ports. Corsairs of both sides raided the shipping of their adversaries at will. The Radhanites functioned as neutral go-betweens, keeping open the lines of communication and trade between the lands of the old Roman Empire and the Far East.

While most trade between Europe and East Asia had historically been conducted via Persian and Central Asian intermediaries, the Radhanites were among the first to establish a trade network which stretched from Western Europe to Eastern Asia. More remarkable still, they engaged in this trade regularly and over an extended period of time, centuries before Marco Polo and ibn Battuta brought their tales of travel in the Orient to the Christians and the Muslims, respectively.

The fall of the Tang Dynasty of China in 908 and the destruction of the Khazar Khaganate some sixty years later led to widespread chaos in Inner Eurasia, the Caucasus and China. Trade routes became unstable and unsafe, a situation exacerbated by Turkic invasions of Persia and the Middle East, and the Silk Road largely collapsed for centuries. Moreover, the fragmentation of the Islamic world (and to a lesser extent, Christendom) into small states provided more opportunities for non-Jews to enter the market. This period saw the rise of the mercantile Italian city-states, especially Genoa, Venice, Pisa, and Amalfi, who viewed the Radhanites as unwanted competitors.

The economy of Europe was profoundly affected by the disappearance of the Radhanites. For example, documentary evidence indicates that many spices in regular use during the early Middle Ages completely disappeared from European tables in the 900s. Jews had previously, in large parts of Western Europe, enjoyed a virtual monopoly on the spice trade.

Routes Taken

As it extends westwards from the commercial centers of North China, the continental Silk Road divides into north and south routes to avoid the great Central Asian deserts, the Taklamakan Desert, the Gobi Desert and Lop Nur.

The northern route travels northwest through the Chinese province of Gansu, and splits into three further routes, two of them passing north and south of the Taklamakan Desert (through modern day Kyrgyzstan and jiang) to rejoin at Kashgar; and the other going north of the Tien Shan mountains through Turfan, Talgar and Almaty (in what is now southeast Kazakhstan).

All routes join up at Kokand in the Fergana Valley, and the roads continue west across the Karakum Desert towards Merv, joining the southern route briefly.

One of these routes turns northwest along the Amu Darya river to Bukhara and Samarkand, the center of Silk Road trade, to the Aral Sea then through ancient civilizations under the present site of Astrakhan, and on to the Crimean peninsula. From there it crosses the Black Sea, the Marmara Sea and the Balkans to Venice; another route crosses the Caspian Sea and proceeds across the Caucasus to the Black Sea in Georgia, and thence to Constantinople.

Yet another route starts at Xi'an, passes through the Western corridor beyond the Yellow Rivers, Xinjiang, Fergana (in present-day eastern Uzbekistan), Persia (Iran), Kurdistan , and Tajik (Iraq), before joining the western boundary of the Roman Empire. A route for caravans, the northern Silk Road brought to China many goods such as "dates, saffron powder and pistachio nuts from Persia; frankincense, aloes and myrrh from Somalia; sandalwood from India; glass bottles from Egypt, and other expensive and desirable goods from other parts of the world." In exchange, the caravans sent back bolts of silk brocade, lacquer ware and porcelain.

The southern route is mainly a single route running through northern India, then the Turkestan–Khorasan region into Mesopotamia and Anatolia; having southward spurs enabling the journey to be completed by sea from various points. It runs south through the Sichuan Basin in China and crosses the high mountains into northeast India, probably via the Ancient tea route. It then travels west along the Brahmaputra and Ganges river plains, possibly joining the Grand Trunk Road west of Varanasi. It runs through northern Pakistan and over the Hindu Kush mountains, into Afghanistan, to rejoin the northern route briefly near Merv.

It then follows a nearly straight line west through mountainous northern Iran (Kurdistan) and the northern tip of the Syrian Desert to the Levant. From there, Mediterranean trading ships plied regular routes to Italy, and land routes went either north through Anatolia or south to North Africa.

Another branch road travels from Herat through Susa to Charax Spasinu at the head of the Persian Gulf and across to Petra and Alexandria where ships carried the cargoes to Rome and other Mediterranean ports.

The sea route: As much as fourteen hundred years ago, during China's Eastern Han Dynasty, the sea route although not part of the formal Silk Route, led from the mouth of the Red River near modern Hanoi, through the Malacca Straits to Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka and India, and then on to the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea kingdom of Axum and eventual Roman ports. From ports on the Red Sea goods, including silks, were transported overland to the Nile and then to Alexandria from where they were shipped to Rome, Constantinople and other Mediterranean ports. Another branch of these sea routes led down the East African coast (called "Azania" by the Greeks and Romans and "Zesan" by the Chinese) at least as far as the port known to the Romans as "Rhapta," which was probably located in the delta of the Rufiji River in modern Tanzania.

The Silk Road extends from southern China to present day Brunei, Thailand, Malacca, Ceylon, India, Pakistan, the Philippines, Iran and Kurdistan. In Europe it extends from Israel, Lebanon (Collectively, the Levant), Egypt, and Italy (Historically Venice) in the Mediterranean Sea to other European ports or caravan routes such as the great Hanseatic League fairs via the Spanish road and other Alpine routes.

The Great Explorers: Europe Reaching for Asia

The disappearance of the Silk Road following the end of the Mongols was one of the main factors that stimulated the Europeans to reach the prosperous Chinese empire through another route, especially by sea. Tremendous profits were to be obtained for anyone who could achieve a direct trade connection with Asia.

When he went West in 1492, Christopher Columbus reportedly wished to create yet another Silk Route to China. It was initially a great disappointment to have found a continent "in-between" before recognizing the potential of a "New World."

In 1594, Willem Barents left Amsterdam with two ships to search for the Northeast passage north of Siberia, on to eastern Asia. He reached the west coast of Novaya Zemlya and followed it northward, being finally forced to turn back when confronted with its northern extremity. By the end of the 17th century, the Russians re-established a land trade route between Europe and China under the name of the Great Siberian Road.

The desire to trade directly with China was also the main driving force behind the expansion of the Portuguese beyond Africa after 1480, followed by Spain, the Netherlands and Great Britain from the 17th century. Leibniz, echoing the prevailing perception in Europe until the Industrial Revolution, wrote in the 17th century that: Everything exquisite and admirable comes from the East Indies... Learned people have remarked that in the whole world there is no commerce comparable to that of China.

In the 18th century, Adam Smith declared that China had been one of the most prosperous nations in the world, but that it had remained stagnant for a long time and its wages always were low and the lower classes were particularly poor:

China has been long been one of the richest, that is, one of the most fertile, best cultivated, most industrious, and most populous countries in the world. It seems, however, to have been long stationary. Marco Polo, who visited it more than five hundred years ago, describes its cultivation, industry, and populousness, almost in the same terms as travellers in the present time describe them. It had perhaps, even long before his time, acquired that full complement of riches which the nature of its laws and institutions permits it to acquire. (Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations, 1776; e-book).

In effect, the spirit of the Silk Road and the will to foster exchange between the East and West, as well as the lure of huge profits attached to doing so has affected much of the history of the world during these last three millennia.

The Silk Road: Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia by Frances Wood

Life along the Silk Road by Susan Whitfield

Silk Road: Monks, Warriors & Merchants by Luce Boulnois

Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu by Laurence Bergreen

The Travels of Marco Polo by Marco Polo (e-book: vol.1, vol. 2)

Videos - Marco Polo in Xinjiang: 1, 2, 3

Foreign Devils on the Silk Road: The Search for the Lost Cities and Treasures of Chinese Central Asia by Peter Hopkirk

Shadow of the Silk Road by Colin Thubron

Mandarins, Jews, and Missionaries: Jewish Experience in the Chinese Empire by Michael Pollak

The Horse, the Wheel, and Language: How Bronze-Age Riders from the Eurasian Steppes Shaped the Modern World by David W. Anthony

Tarim Mummies: Ancient China and the Mysteries of the Earliest Peoples from the West by J. P. Mallory, Victor H. Mair; Videos:China's Tocharian Mummies

The Dead Tell a Tale China Doesn’t Care to Listen To by Edward Wong

China's Mystery Mummies by National Geographic

A Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World by William J. Bernstein

Vermeer's Hat: The Seventeenth Century and the Dawn of the Global World by Timothy Brook

Central Asia and Non-Chinese Peoples of Ancient China by Edwin G. Pulleyblank

Extreme mtDNA Homogeneity in Continental Asian Populations by Hiroki Oota, et al.

Tw (Taiwan Han Chinese) Ca (Cantonese) - Finns - Kirghiz Lowlander - British - Kazakh - Turks - Basques - Sardinian

Tw (Taiwan Han Chinese) Ca (Cantonese) - Finns - Indian - Ainu - Aboriginal Australian - Anatolia Turks - Borneo

Tw (Taiwan Han Chinese) Ca (Cantonese) - Korean - Philippines - Uighurs - Changsha - Taiwanese (aborigines) - Vietnamese - Vanuata - Indonesian - PNG

Tw (Taiwan Han Chinese) Ca (Cantonese) - Xi'an - Tottori (Japanese) - Kirghiz Highlander - Mongolian - Ngoebe - Altai of Siberia - Amerind - Argentina - Siberians

Worldwide Frequency Distribution of Haplogroup O from Learn about Y-DNA Haplogroup O by Wendy Tymchuk, Genebase.com

(The red area within each pie chart indicates the frequency of Haplogroup O within that location)

Map of Asian Regions from Asian Ancestry Based on Studies of Y-DNA Variation: Part 1 Early origins – roots from Africa and emergence in East Asia by Mark S. Lechner, Genebase.com

Asian Population Tree from Genetic Origins of the Ainu Inferred from Combined DNA Analyses of Maternal and Paternal Lineages by Atsushi Tajima, et al.

TaiwanDNA.com

Origins and Diversity of the Taiwanese People

台灣歷史 Taiwan History (slide presentation) (e-book)

Taiwan Touch Your Heart (video)

Books about Taiwan

Let Taiwan be Taiwan by Marc J. Cohen (e-book)

Island in the Stream by April Lin and Jerome Keating (e-book)

Formosa Betrayed by George Kerr (e-book)

A Taste of Freedom by Peng Ming-min (e-book)

Formosa Calling by Allan Shackleton (e-book)

Forbidden Nation: A History of Taiwan by Jonathan Manthorpe

Formosa Under the Dutch by William Campbell

Spaniards in Taiwan by J.E. Borao Mateo

How Taiwan Became Chinese: Dutch, Spanish and Han Colonization in the Seventeenth Century by Tonio Andrade (e-book)

Is Taiwan Chinese? The Impact of Culture, Power, and Migration on Changing Identities by Melissa J. J. Brown

The Ugly Chinaman and the Crisis of Chinese Culture by Bo Yang

台灣血統 by Sim Kiantek

Links to Articles

Recommended Books

Changing Minds: The Art and Science of Changing Our Own and Other People's Minds by Howard Gardner

Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur’s Odyssey to Educate the World’s Children by John Wood

The Wilsonian Moment: Self-Determination and the International Origins of Anticolonial Nationalism by Erez Manela

God and Empire: Jesus Against Rome, Then and Now by John Dominic Crossan.

China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia by Peter C. Perdue

The Coming China Wars: Where they Will Be Fought and How they Can Be Won by Peter Navarro

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond

Past Human Migrations in East Asia by Alicia Sanchez-Mazas, et al.

Chinese Dream: Is China really going to be another superpower? Probably not by John Pomfret

60% of the people in Taiwan consider themselves "Taiwanese only"

30% consider themselves "both Chinese and Taiwanese."

Is Taiwan a Nation-State? by Gerrit van der Wees

Is the US a Nation-State? by Gerrit van der Wees (page 7)

DNA Profiles of "Han" Taiwanese

* Rachel Huang

* Becky Lee

* David Chen

* Jong Lin

* Allen Hwang

* Amanda Huang

If you have done a DNA test and would like to contribute your DNA profile to TaiwanDNA.com please write to: DNA@TaiwanDNA.com

DNA Testing Companies

DNA Tribes is the testing company used to obtain the DNA profiles. Its database contains population data from two Taiwanese aboriginal tribes: Ami and Atayal

For information on genetic testing visit DNA Tutorial

Books on DNA

DNA: The Secret of Life by James D. Watson

The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes

Deep Ancestry: Inside the Genographic Project by Spencer Wells

Journey of Man: A Genetic Odyssey by Spencer Wells

Videos: 114 minutes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

The History and Geography of Human Genes: (Abridged) by Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, Paolo Menozzi, Alberto Piazza

Celiac Disease

* Health Check USA Celiac gene test.

Taiwanese Cinema

A City of Sadness (video)

Cape No. 7 (video)

Eat Drink Man Woman (video)

Yi Yi (video)

Three Times (video)

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (video)

1895 (video)

Formosa Betrayed, the Movie (video)

Taiwan Film Directors: A Treasure Island by Emilie Yueh-yu Yeh and Darrell Davi

Taiwanese Opera- "Mackay: The Black Bearded Bible Man" (video)

U.S. Sees More Beijing Missiles Aimed at Taiwan by Richard Halloran

Blogs

Taiwanese DNA Blog by socialforce.tw

DNATribes Test/Analysis Results Log by Charles F. Kerchner

Taiwanese Aborigines

European Origins

Portuguese

Dutch

Spanish

Basque

台灣歷史
Taiwan History
(slide presentation)
(e-book)

Let Taiwan be Taiwan
by Marc J. Cohen
(e-book)

Island in the Stream
by April Lin and Jerome Keating
(e-book)

Formosa Betrayed
by George Kerr
(e-book)

A Taste of Freedom
by Peng Ming-min
(e-book)

Formosa Calling
by Allan Shackleton
(e-book)

Forbidden Nation: A History of Taiwan
by Jonathan Manthorpe

Formosa Under the Dutch
by William Campbell

How Taiwan Became Chinese: Dutch, Spanish and Han Colonization in the Seventeenth Century
by Tonio Andrade
(e-book)

The Ugly Chinaman and the Crisis of Chinese Culture
by Bo Yang

台灣血統
by Sim Kiantek

Changing Minds: The Art and Science of Changing Our Own and Other People's Minds
by Howard Gardner

Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur’s Odyssey to Educate the World’s Children
by John Wood

The Wilsonian Moment: Self-Determination and the International Origins of Anticolonial Nationalism
by Erez Manela

God and Empire: Jesus Against Rome, Then and Now
by John Dominic Crossan.

China Marches West: The Qing Conquest of Central Eurasia
by Peter C. Perdue

The Coming China Wars: Where they Will Be Fought and How they Can Be Won
by Peter Navarro

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
by Jared Diamond

Past Human Migrations in East Asia
by Alicia Sanchez-Mazas, et al.

Chinese Dream: Is China really going to be another superpower? Probably not
by John Pomfret

DNA Tribes
is the testing company used to obtain the DNA profiles. Its database contains population data from two Taiwanese aboriginal tribes: Ami and Atayal

DNA: The Secret of Life
by James D. Watson

The Seven Daughters of Eve
by Bryan Sykes

Deep Ancestry: Inside the Genographic Project
by Spencer Wells

Journey of Man: A Genetic Odyssey
by Spencer Wells

Videos: 114 minutes
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

The History and Geography of Human Genes: (Abridged)
by Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, Paolo Menozzi, Alberto Piazza

A City of Sadness
(video)

Cape No. 7
(video)

Eat Drink Man Woman 　(video)

Yi Yi
(video)

Three Times
(video)

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
(video)

1895
(video)

Formosa Betrayed, the Movie
(video)

Taiwan Film Directors: A Treasure Island
by Emilie Yueh-yu Yeh and Darrell Davi

U.S. Sees More Beijing Missiles Aimed at Taiwan
by Richard Halloran

DNATribes Test/Analysis Results Log
by Charles F. Kerchner