Languages: Official language of Taiwan is Mandarin though other local languages were also spoken in originally indifferent tribes. Mandarin is the language that is used for everyday communication in Taiwan but the origin of Mandarin started from Ching dynasty. Mandarin and other languages that were spoken in Taiwan were basically derived from Chinese language families. Indigenous people had their own languages which have survived to date. "From Taiwan to New Zealand and Madagascar to Easter Island, the Austronesian language family is made up of more than a thousand languages and dialects. (Estimates vary from 900-1200 according to how dialects are distinguished from languages)" (Austronesian Expansion).
Other languages that were spoken in Taiwan included Halo Taiwanese which is now the second most spoken language in Taiwan around 70% Taiwanese speaks Halo. The Hakka language in Taiwan developed six divisions although the Hakka language was still used within Hakka communities. Initially Taiwan was a mixture of diverse cultures and languages in different tribes and currently awareness of the importance of preserving the variety of languages spoken in Taiwan is growing and government is taking steps to preserve these languages. "To help preserve indigenous culture, the government has included the study of indigenous languages in Taiwan's compulsory education system. In 2005, more than 40,000 elementary and junior high school students took indigenous language courses, and 40 languages and dialects were taught. Since the Dutch colonial period, people have tried to Romanize indigenous languages. For example, Christian missionaries introduced a Romanization system for the language of the Siraya, a pingpu group" (Taiwan Year Book).
Arts and Handicrafts: People of different tribes played their important part in enhancing the value of arts and crafts. Due to their creativity and innovation they made their artistic values incomparable. Indigenous Taiwanese were famous for their stone work...
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