It’s an Island with an area under 14,000 square miles. But it’s only around 100 miles from the Chinese mainland, meaning it’s important. Here are 10 numbers you should know about Taiwan to help you process the news.
6,000 years ago
An approximation of when ancestors of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan settled on the island. These Austronesians are thought to have also populated many other parts of Asia and Oceania.
400 years ago
As in the 1600s, when large numbers of Han Chinese (the dominant ethnic group in mainland China) began arriving on the island, first as part of a Dutch colony and later as part of the Qing dynasty.
1895
The year Japan took control of Taiwan after the former’s victory in the First Sino-Japanese War.
1911
The year the Qing dynasty was overthrown by the Republic of China (abbreviated ROC, not to be confused with the airport code in Rochester, NY). Upon Japan’s 1945 surrender in World War II, the ROC took control of Taiwan.
1949
The year the ROC suffered a defeat in the Chinese Civil War to Communist forces, who established the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and forced the ROC to retreat to Taiwan and surrounding islands.
In 1971, the UN voted to recognize the PRC as the official China, leaving the status of Taiwan in limbo. For decades, the ROC governed Taiwan via one-party martial law, though the 1980s and 1990s saw a transition to a multi-party democracy. Meanwhile, the PRC continues to view Taiwan merely as a self-governing province.
168
The total number of islands controlled by the ROC, some just a few miles from the Chinese mainland.
12
The number of UN members that formally recognize Taiwan as a country (this number is occasionally listed as 13 if the non-member Vatican City is included). Most other countries have not taken this step for fear of pissing off China. Many, however, do maintain less formal diplomatic and trade relations.
23.9 million
The approximate population of Taiwan (compared to 1.4 billion on the mainland). In a 2022 poll, 60.8% of respondents on the island identified as Taiwanese, 2.7% as Chinese, and 32.9% as both, meaning the issue of independence versus reunification is not as straightforward as advertised.
65%
The proportion of the global production of computer chips that takes place in Taiwan, explaining why the world cares so much about a dot on the map. It just so happens that the same dot—along with US-allied countries like Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines—is also important in keeping Chinese influence over the Pacific Ocean in check.
13
The position of Taiwan on a list of entities by GDP (PPP) per capita, yet another reason that wealthy nations are paying attention.
Stay tuned.
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