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Article: Crafting the Taiwanese: the ambivalence of Taiwan's national identity.(WORLD IN REVIEW)
- Article from:
- Harvard International Review
- Article date:
- March 22, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Harvard International Relations Council, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Taiwan is a land of diversity. Travelers on Taipei's Rapid Transit Metro hear announcements in four different languages: English, Mandarin Chinese, Hakka, and Holo. For metro travelers and statesmen alike, this diversity is both a blessing and a burden. With its many ethnic groups and languages, and without a long history as an independent country, Taiwan is finding it difficult to create a tangible national identity that encompasses all of its 23 million residents. For Taiwan's current leaders, there has never been a more important time to construct a distinctly "Taiwanese" national identity.
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Many members of the ruling Democratic ...