subject: A Look At The Taiwanese Language And How It All Began [print this page] Taiwanese is one among many different names for one of the most important south Chinese dialects that is spoken both in mainland China as well as in Taiwan and also in a few Southeast Asian countries as well. There are several names for this language and those who do not understand the different names can easily become confused by all these different names. This is because there are a number of differences in the languages character and the names change according to the regions where the language is spoken.
Taiwanese is spoken in Taiwan and in south and north as well as rural and urban Taiwan. It is also spoken in China and in Southeast Asia and though it comprises a number of dialects it is linguistically still one language. Many of its names are ethnically oriented and include names such as Southern Min and Hokkien.
Southern Min is basically a translated form of the Mandarin word Min3 nan2 hua4/yu3. This term is really a geographical term and refers to the language of the southern parts of Fujian while the term Min is derived from Min3 which is from China and more particularly its Fujian province.
Most people that speak Southern Min have common ancestors that are related through culture and by blood and are from the south of Fujian and from around cities such as Amoy and Zhangzhou and Quanzhou. Even today, the people in these cities still speak this language.
Taiwanese is also a translation of Tai2 yu3 which is a word that dates to around the time when the Japanese ruled this part of the world. The period when the Japanese ruled began around the year 1895 and ended around the year 1945. Furthermore, this name is originally from Taiwan and is considered a geographical name that was coined by native people of Taiwan.
Taipei, Taiwan is located in the north of Taiwan and is the largest city in the country and also the capital of Taiwan.
People that plan on visiting this part of the world will find many interesting things to do but one thing that they must ensure when making travel Taipei plans is to visit places such as the National Chiang Kai Shek Museum and also the excellent National Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall.
