Sixteen recognised Indigenous tribes and more than 600,000 new immigrants
Background
The island whose factories and ports are in today's news has a population of unusual composition.
Nearly 95 percent of the population claims Han ancestry, but that heritage covers several Han subgroups with mutually unintelligible languages.
There are 16 officially recognized Austronesian-speaking Indigenous tribes, which constitute just over 2.6 percent of the population.
The number of new immigrants, most from China and Southeast Asia, is over 600,000.
Efforts to revive Indigenous languages and cultures include the launch of the Taiwan Indigenous Television channel and the passage of the Indigenous Peoples Basic Act.
Successive waves of Chinese immigration began in the 17th century and settled alongside the Indigenous tribes.
In plain words
Austronesian Austronesian — A language family stretching from Taiwan through island Southeast Asia to the Pacific.
Indigenous Peoples Basic Act Indigenous Peoples Basic Act — The Taiwan law that sets out the rights of recognised Indigenous peoples.