Culture of Taiwan

The culture of Taiwan is a hybrid blend of Confucianist Han Chinese cultures, Japanese, European, American, global, local and indigenous influences, which are often perceived in both traditional and modern understandings (Harrell/Huang 1994:1–5). The common socio-political experience in Taiwan gradually developed into a sense of Taiwanese cultural identity and a feeling of Taiwanese cultural awareness, which has been widely debated domestically (Yip 2004:230-248; Makeham 2005:2-8; Chang 2005:224). Reflecting the continuing controversy surrounding the political status of Taiwan, politics continues to play a role in the conception and development of a Taiwanese cultural identity, especially in the prior dominant frame of a Taiwanese-Mainlander dualiism. In recent years, the concept of Taiwanese multiculturalism has been proposed as a relatively apolitical alternative view, which has allowed for the inclusion of mainlanders and other minority groups into the continuing re-definition of Taiwanese culture as collectively held systems of meaning and customary patterns of thought and behavior shared by the people of Taiwan(Hsiau 2005:125–129);(Winckler 1994:23-41).

State Cultural Policy Overview

see:Taiwanese Aborigines

see:History of Taiwan

Historical context

Taiwan’s culture and cultural legacy has been largely shaped by the processes of imperialism and colonization as the structural and psychological effects of successive colonial projects have been integral to developing Taiwan’s self-image and the evolution of both official and unofficial Taiwanese culture (Yip 2004:2–5). For most of its colonized existence, Taiwan remained on the cultural margins, far from the centers of civil and cultural life of each regime, and with every regime change, Taiwan’s cultural center shifted. At various times Taiwan’s cultural center has been Indigenous Taiwan, Amsterdam, Xiamen (Amoy), Qing era Beijing, Imperial Japan, postwar China and even, arguably, the United States (Morris 2004:7–31);(Winkler 1994:28–31).

Before the Qing Empire ceded Taiwan to Japan in 1895, Taiwan’s culture was characterized by Qing frontier societies of Han farmers and highland Aborigines. Due to Taiwan’s strategic location along East Asian trade routes, Taiwanese were also exposed to cosmopolitan influences and the effects of European commerce. By the middle of the Japanese era (1895-1945), Taiwan had begun to shift from local to contemporary global culture, under the guidance of Japanese style “westernization”. Beginning during Japan’s build up for war (Wachman 1994:6–7), Japan invigorated its policies to Japanize Taiwan for mobilization against the Allies. Japan’s effort taught Taiwan’s elite, Japanese culture and language, but did not largely interfere in religious organization. When Japan’s suppressive wartime policies were lifted following WWII, Taiwanese were eager to continue with their prewar cosmopolitan activities (Mendel 1970:13–14). Japan’s colonial legacy has shaped many of the customs and mannerisms of Taiwanese. Japan’s colonial legacy is still visible, due to Japan’s massive effort in constructing Taiwan’s economic infrastructure and industrial base, which is often cited as a major factor in Taiwan’s rapid economic development (Gold 1986:21–32)

See:Taiwan under Japanese rule

KMT Era Cultural Policy

History of KMT cultural policy

During the early postwar period the Chinese Nationalist Party “Kuomintang” (KMT) suppressed localism and barred Taiwanese from cosmopolitan life except in the spheres of science and technology (1994 & Winckler:29). The authoritarian KMT dominated public cultural space and Chinese nationalist networks became a part of cultural institutions, leaving little resource for cultural autonomy to grow (Phillips 2003:10–15).

Under the early KMT, Taiwan was realigned from a Japanese imperial center to a Chinese nationalist center, under the influence of KMT and American geo-political interests (Gold 1994:47). Although American cultural activities were modest, they played a significant role in Taiwan’s developing cultural scene. The KMT claimed a loss of morale led to “losing the Mainland” and thus the state issued a series of ideological reforms aimed to “retake the mainland, which became the major state cultural program or the time, The immediate preoccupation with losing China diverted long term investment in the humanities and social sciences. On another level, the state’s main objective was to “sinicize” the Taiwanese by teaching them Mandarin Chinese and Nationalist ideology through compulsory primary education (Wachman 1994:82–88).

By the late 1940’s the KMT had eliminated dissent for its cultural policies. When Taiwanese had resumed the cultural activities, which were outlawed by the Japanese in 1937, the Nationalist attitude was that Taiwanese had been Japanese “slaves” and would therefore have to complete a period of moral and ideological tutelage before they could enjoy their full rights as citizens of the Republic of China (Kerr 1965:72, 266). The February 28 Incident destroyed Taiwan’s urban elite and the arrival of the mainlander elite ensured Nationalist domination of urban cultural centers (Gates 1981:266–269).

In 1953, Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek issued his first major opinion on culture to complete Sun Yat-sen’s Three Principles of the People, which included prescribing Nationalist curriculum for education, building facilities for intellectual and physical recreation and the major state cultural program of promoting anti-communist propaganda (Winckler 1994:30). In regard to Taiwanese cultural life, the major thrust was for “universalization” of education in Mandarin. Despite the hard-line nationalist control over culture, the Soviet advances in technology led to a new Nationalist focus on building closer cooperation with American universities and developing engineering programs (Wilson 1970). The American presence in Taiwan also encouraged Taiwanese to resume some politically benign cultural activities, which was expressed in a flourishing Taiwanese language media market (Winckler 1994:32). Media:Example.ogg

Between the 1960’s and the 1980’s Taiwan’s culture was commonly described in contrasts between Taiwan (Free China) and China (Communist China), often drawing from the official tropes of Taiwan as a bastion of traditional Chinese culture, which had preserved “true” Chinese values and culture against the “false” Chinese culture of post Communist China. The KMT fostered a myriad of programs designed to promote a Chinese ‘”cultural renaissance”. These programs involved subsidized publication of Chinese Classics, the symbolic functions of the National Palace Museum, promoting famous prewar scholars to prominent positions in government and academic institutions, textbook and curriculum design with a focus on the official view of “traditional” Chinese culture and involvement in social and community events and the exemplification of Confucian ideology intertwined with Sun Yat-sen thought(Chen 2000:11–12).

Bentuhua (Taiwanese localization)

After 1975

Bentuhua or Taiwanese localization/indigenization has become, arguably, the most important symbol of cultural change over the past twenty years. Bentuhua describes the social and cultural movement by the people of Taiwan to identify with Taiwan’s unique historical and cultural legacy and, it has been argued, to reject the prior many of the prior symbols of “authentic” Chineseness the KMT promoted as an authoritarian government. Bentuhua has often been associated with Taiwan Independennce and Taiwanese nationalism.

Religion

A majority of the Taiwan's population can be considered religious believers, most of whom identify themselves as Buddhists or Taoists. At the same time there is a strong belief in Chinese folk religion throughout the island including ancestral worship. These are not mutually exclusive, and many people practice a combination of the three. Confucianism also is an honoured school of thought and ethical code. Christian churches have been active on Taiwan for many years, a majority of which are Protestant and with Presbyterians playing a particularly significant role (with only 4%).

Food

Taiwanese culture has also influenced the west: Pearl milk tea is a popular tea drink available in both Europe and the North America.

Language

Most people in Taiwan speak both Mandarin Chinese and Taiwanese (a variant Minnan dialect of southern Fujian province, China). Mandarin is taught in schools, however most spoken media is split between Mandarin and Taiwanese. Speaking Taiwanese under the localization movement has become a way for the pro-independence Taiwanese to distinguish themselves from the Mainlander. The Hakka, who make about 10 percent of the population, have a distinct Hakka dialect. The Aboriginal Taiwanese still speak their native languages, but most of them can also speak Mandarin, Taiwanese, and English.

Some Japanese words have remained in common day use such as:

一極棒 (yijibang) from 一番 (ichiban) which means "the best".
歐巴桑 (oubasang) from おばさん or おばあさん (obasan / obaasan) which means "auntie" or "granny". The usage of this term can be offensive to women as it implies their youth has faded or refers to the term obatalian (an annoying bossy middle-aged woman).
歐吉桑 (oujisang from おじさん or おじいさん (ojisan / ojiisan) which means "uncle" or "gramps".
卡拉OK (kala OK) from カラオケ (karaoke) which is an amalgamation of "kara (empty) and orchestra". The usage of this term is in decline in favor of "KTV".

Media

The Taiwanese movie director Ang Lee is popular in the West. Taiwan is well known for its many artistes such as Jay Chou, Jolin Tsai and David Tao to name a few. Some of these artistes have even gained international fame by having concerts at Asian countries like Japan, Malaysia and Singapore. Taiwan is also home to many game shows like Guess. These game shows are so popular that it has airing on local television and cable televison in many Western and Eastern countries. Since Taiwan is well known for its entertainment scene, some of its TV station has organised talent search to search for new and young talents to join the big family of pop culture here. Some bands like S.H.E are formed in the talent search.

Sports

Popular sports in Taiwan include:

Recreation

Karaoke is incredibly popular in Taiwan, where it is termed KTV (Karaoke Television). This is an example of something the Taiwanese have drawn, on scale, from contemporary Japanese culture. Pachinko is another example. During typhoons, many young Taiwanese will spend the day away singing karaoke or playing mahjong. Many people enjoy watching miniseries collectively called Taiwanese drama.

Since 1999 hot springs, known as wēnquán in Chinese and onsen in Japanese, has been making a comeback thanks to efforts by the government. Over 100 hot springs have been discovered since the Japanese introduced their rich onsen culture to Taiwan, with the largest concentration to the northernmost part of Taiwan island.

Anime and manga, is very popular in Taiwan. About 92 percent of teenagers read mangas on a daily basis. Manga are called Manhua in Taiwan. It is common to see a Manga rental shop or an Manga store every couple of street in larger cities.

Convenience store culture

Boasting 8,058 convenience stores in an area of 35,980 km² and a population of 22.9 million, Taiwan has the Asia Pacific’s and perhaps the world’s highest density of convenience stores per person: one store per 2,800 people or .000357 stores per person Cite error: A <ref> tag is missing the closing </ref> (see the help page).. In Taipei, it is not unusual to see two 7-Elevens across the street or several of them within a few hundred meters of each other.

Because they are found everywhere, convenience stores in Taiwan provide services on behalf of financial institutions or government agencies such as collection of the city parking fee, utility bills, traffic violation fines, and credit card payments. Eighty-one percent of urban household shoppers in Taiwan visit a convenience store each week. ^[1] The idea of being able to purchase food items, drink, fast food, magazines, videos, computer games, and so on 24 hours a day and at any corner of a street makes life easier for Taiwan’s extremely busy and rushed population.

Convenience stores include:

Circle K (Called OK in Taiwan)
FamilyMart
Hi-Life
NikoMart
7-11

Cram school culture

Taiwan, like Hong Kong, mainland China, Japan, and South Korea, is well-known for its buxiban (補習班), often translated as cram school, and literally meaning "make-up class" or "catch-up class" or to learn more advanced classes. Nearly all students attend some sort of buxiban, whether for mathematics, computer skills, English, other foreign languages, or exam preparation (college, graduate school, TOEFL, GRE, etc). This is perpetuated by a meritocratic culture that measures merit through testing, with entrance into college, graduate school, and government service decided entirely on testing. This has also led to a remarkable respect for degrees, including Ph.D.s and overseas Western degrees (US and Great Britain).

English teaching is a big business in Taiwan, with Taiwan, as part of its project to reinvigorate the Taiwan miracle, aiming to become a trilingual country--fluent in Mandarin, Taiwanese, and English. Many teachers come from English-speaking countries, such as the US, Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and New Zealand, and enjoy salaries of about $30,000-$50,000 per year at a low cost-of-living, with opportunities to manage or open one's own school and make several times that amount a year.

Popular culture

Cell phones are very popular in Taiwan. It is not uncommon for people to have two cell phones. Taiwan has one of the worlds highest rate of cell phones per people. It is referred to as the Shou ji which translate roughly to handset. Because of their high use, phones in Taiwan have many functions and are becoming cheaper.

Internet cafes, also known as Wang ka, are very popular with teenagers. They often sell food. Many gamers eat while using the internet. Many parents and teachers are concerned with the amount of time youth spend in the internet cafes.

Hip-hop culture from the United States also flourishes in Taiwan. NBA superstars especially Allen Iverson, Kevin Garnett, Chauncey Billups, Andre Iguodala, Jason Williams, etc. make periodic visits to Taiwan. G-Unit and Eminem are also very popular. In this process, Taiwan produced several world-renowned hip-hop artists, including Dog G, MC HotDog, Machi, and L.A. Boyz. Many young Taiwanese can be seen in throwback jersey, bling-bling, and baggy jeans which shows the effect of hip hop fashion in Taiwan.

Localization of the culture of Taiwan has been a trend since the island's first-ever democratic change of political parties occurred in 2000, with the election of Chen Shui-bian as president. Chen and his Democratic Progressive Party administration have made Taiwanese awareness a major party platform, both by revising textbooks and changing school curricula to focus more on the island's own history rather than the history of the mainland. The island's previous administration, the Chinese Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, sought to emphasize the island's cultural, historical and political ties to China. In recent years, localization, or ben tu hua in Mandarin Chinese, has seen the advent of Taike culture, in which Taiwanese proud of their heritage adapt their wardrobe, language and cuisine to emphasize the uniqueness of popular modern Taiwanese culture.