Taiwan

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Taiwan is a small island separated from the mainland of South China by the 100-mile

Taiwan strait in the Pacific Ocean and is the seat of the Republic of China’s Government.
The capital of Taiwan is Taipei and other major cities include Kaohsiung, Tainan, Taichong, and Chilung. About one quarter of Taiwan’s land is cultivated including rice, wheat, sugarcane and sweet potatoes. Taiwan is officially known as the Republic of China and the estimated population is around 21,299,000 and the area’s landmass is around 13,885 square miles.

Taiwan was created a long time ago when the Philippine ocean plate and the Chinese ocean plate crushed together to form the early shape of Taiwan, which was a long skinny island filled with peaks of mountains. After years of weathering conditions like winds and rains, Taiwan gradually flattened out into a smoother land. During that time, a small volcanic island on the Philippine ocean plate moved towards Taiwan and the two islands gradually came together. The land was fertilized by the waste of many sea birds and produced many plants and trees. During the ice age, the sea level dropped down almost 140 feet! So during that time a land bridge was formed between Taiwan and China, so before the ice melted again, many animals and some humans migrated to Taiwan by using the land bridge. After the ice melted the sea level rose again and many animals and humans were trapped in Taiwan.

Taiwan was inhabited by aborigines of Malayan descent when Chinese from the areas now designated as Fukien and Kwangtung began settling it in the 7th century, becoming the majority. The Portuguese explored the area in 1590, naming it “the Beautiful” (Formosa). In 1624 the Dutch set up forts in the south, the Spanish in the north. The Dutch forced out the Spanish in 1641 and controlled the island until 1661, when Chinese general Koxinga took it over and established an independent kingdom. The Manchus seized the islan...