"Chapter 2: People And Language".pdf

Taiwan's population is over 95% Han Chinese, with the remainder being indigenous Austronesian peoples and recent immigrants. The Han Taiwanese are descendants of immigrants who arrived in two main waves, while Austronesian peoples have inhabited the island for millennia. The country has a diverse linguistic environment, with Mandarin as the official language, and many people also speaking Taiwanese and Hakka. Indigenous groups have their own Austronesian languages, and immigrants have brought their mother tongues, adding to the linguistic diversity. The Han population is divided into Holo and Hakka groups, each with their own culture and traditions. The Holo people are the largest Han group, accounting for approximately 70% of the population, while the Hakka make up about one-fifth of the Han population. Indigenous peoples have lived on the island for thousands of years, with 14 officially recognized groups, and a population of around 504,500, or about 2% of the total population.