TAIWAN HISTORY - Formosa Files Episodes

As you likely know, Chinese writing comes in two main forms: traditional (fántǐzì) and simplified (jiǎntǐzì). Taiwan uses traditional characters and China uses simplified characters. Taiwan is a peace-loving democracy and China is an authoritarian state; ergo – traditional characters …

After serving eight months behind bars for libel, Chen Shui-bian is released in February 1987, and enters the fray of a newly-liberalized political landscape. In 1986, the Democratic Progressive Party became Taiwan’s first real opposition party, and Chen’s wife is …

Part of the landscape, but not really given much thought, paifang 牌坊, also known as a pailou 牌樓, are a part of traditional Chinese architecture. They are generally an arch used as a gateway. But they are not just decorative, …

With a new intro and ending, this is a rerelease of one of our more popular episodes: the story of the decision by former U.S. president Jimmy Carter (1924-2024) to follow through with previous administration commitments to recognize the People’s …

This was a breakout year for Formosa Files, for which we thank our highly intelligent, "people of quality" listeners and supporters. John and Eryk wrap up the year with a "bits & pieces/Xmas hotpot" episode that includes everything from a …

Harold and Alice Focht. He was an educator, she came along to keep him away from the geishas (well, some said). Hear how two middle-aged Americans saw Taiwan at, arguably, the peak of the Japanese colonial era. Lots of civilizing …

He’s a rockstar in Taiwan; swarmed by the media as he grabs a snack at a local night market while wearing his trademark leather jacket – there’s almost no chance you’ve never heard of him: Jensen Huang 黃仁勳, co-founder and …

If you've been to a Taiwanese wedding this century, it was likely a much toned-down version of what these boisterous events could once be like. John (who apologizes for having a cold) recounts watching a wedding and a funeral 20 …

Today, the small island roughly 13 kilometers off the coast of Pingtung County is called Xiaoliuqiu 琉球嶼. Some 400 years ago, however, many called it Lamay Island. Shipwrecks in the seas around Formosa were common, and survivors who made it …

From a couple of morons who dismember themselves in a bid to scam insurance companies, to the infamous “Demon of Chiayi” serial killer Chen Jui-chin 陳瑞欽 (plus the story of the only woman on death row in Taiwan), this week …

400 Years: Dutch Formosa - part two: Roughly 80% of Dutch (or other European) men settling in Taiwan as part of the Dutch East India Company's (VOC) presence on Taiwan married Indigenous Taiwanese women! Learn more about Dutch-era Taiwan through …

400 Years: Dutch Formosa - part one: Of course, Chen Di was not actually the first person from China to visit Taiwan. What makes him special is that he wrote an account of what he saw here in 1603, and …

Need a break from typhoons (Taiwan)? Need to escape the non-stop election-related noise (USA)? Or maybe you simply would like to hear John and Eryk babble about a couple of strange out-of-print books with a Taiwan connection (everyone)? This week …

She loved opium, handsome pirates, and spoke English... plus she allegedly (it's almost certainly not true) sometimes went into battle topless! He was a pirate warlord who, at one point, had hundreds of ships and tens of thousands of men …

Taiwan in 1946. How will post-war Formosa turn out? Will the KMT be successful in managing the local economy? Will there be strife between the new Chinese rulers and – until very recently – Japanized Taiwanese people? Who knows? Well, …

Did you know? Joseph Stalin saved Chinese characters. (um… sort of) In Qing-era Taiwan, two men sometimes SHARED a wife! John has done 10 episodes of our other podcast, “Bookish Asia.” Plum Rain Press, the new publishing arm of Formosa …

To celebrate Oscar-winning director Ang Lee (李安) being named the winner for theater/film of the 2024 Praemium Imperiale, a global arts prize awarded annually by the Japan Art Association, we thought we'd reprise our Ang Lee bio episode from Formosa …

What does AI have to do with footbinding in Taiwan? Well, it's a 13-min mini episode, so you're just gonna have to listen and find out. Check the show notes for more info.

Did you know that when the United Nations voted to admit “Red China” in 1971, then-California Governor Ronald Reagan called up President Richard Nixon and suggested that the United States quit the UN and become an “observer” in protest? To …

This forgotten father of Taiwan democracy sacrificed his comfortable life (he came from a rich family and had a PhD from the US in Chemical Engineering) to fight for Taiwanese independence in the post-WW2 decades. In 1956 he was elected …

Lonely Planet travel guidebooks provided some of best info on a new destination in the pre-internet era, and the late Robert Storey (1954-2017) wrote quite a few of them... including the first four editions for Taiwan. Robert Storey’s Lonely Planet …

Lai Dongjin 賴東進 was born into a “beggar family.” His dad is blind, his mom has a mental illness. He has 11 siblings! Many born into such a disadvantaged position would throw up their hands, blame fate, and quit the …

Did you know that all the water buffalo in Taiwan are the descendants of a group of these bovines from Indonesia (formerly the Dutch East Indies)? These poor water buffalo were put on a sailing ship by the Dutch in …

The incredible story of Amis Taiwanese Olympic decathlete Maysang Kalimud, better known as CK Yang (楊傳廣), was one of the first stories featured in the first season of Formosa Files (December 2021). At that time, John and Eryk bemoaned how …