Taiwan's Historical Name: From Formosa to Taiwan
The island now known as Taiwan was historically called Formosa (Portuguese for "beautiful") by European explorers and cartographers from the 16th through early 20th centuries.
Name Origins
- Formosa (Ilha Formosa): 1544, Portuguese sailors — "Beautiful Island"
- Taiwan: From Tayouan (大員), a Dutch rendering of a Sirayan (indigenous) word for the sandbar/peninsula where Fort Zeelandia was built (modern Anping, Tainan)
- Chinese names: 東寧, 台灣, 臺灣 — evolved from indigenous toponym
Historical Usage
| Period | Primary Names | Context |
|---|
| 1544-1624 | Formosa | Portuguese sighting; European maps |
| 1624-1662 | Tayouan / Formosa | Dutch VOC colony (Fort Zeelandia) |
| 1662-1683 | Tungning / Taiwan | Koxinga (Zheng Chenggong) Ming loyalist kingdom |
| 1683-1895 | Taiwan (台灣/臺灣) | Qing prefecture → province (1887) |
| 1895-1945 | Taiwan (台湾) | Japanese colony; "Formosa" still used internationally |
| 1945-present | Taiwan (台灣/臺灣) | ROC administration; "Formosa" archaic/poetic |
Modern Usage
- Official: Taiwan (Republic of China)
- International: Taiwan; "Chinese Taipei" (IOC, APEC, WTO)
- Historical/Poetic: Formosa — literature, ship names, brands (Formosa Plastics, Formosa Tea)
- Scientific: Formosan (adjective) — e.g., Formosan black bear, Formosan languages
- Indigenous: Multiple autonyms; "Taiwan" now widely adopted
Linguistic Note
Wade-Giles: T'ai-wan → Pinyin: Táiwān → IPA: [tʰaɪ˧˥wan˥]
The Portuguese "Formosa" and indigenous "Tayouan" represent two distinct naming traditions—one external/descriptive, one local/locative—that converged on the same remarkable island.
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