Taiwan Area Art / Culture Profile 2012

The culture of Taiwan is a hybrid blend of Confucianist Han Chinese cultures, Japanese, European, American, global, local and indigenous influences, which are often perceived in both traditional and modern understandings (Harrell/Huang 1994:1-5). The common socio-political experience in Taiwan gradually developed into a sense of Taiwanese cultural identity and a feeling of Taiwanese cultural awareness, which has been widely debated domestically (Yip 2004:230-248; Makeham 2005:2-8; Chang 2005:224). Reflecting the continuing controversy surrounding the political status of Taiwan, politics continues to play a role in the conception and development of a Taiwanese cultural identity, especially in the prior dominant frame of a Taiwanese-Mainlander dualism. In recent years, the concept of Taiwanese multiculturalism has been proposed as a relatively apolitical alternative view, which has allowed for the inclusion of mainlanders and other minority groups into the continuing re-definition of Taiwanese culture as collectively held systems of meaning and customary patterns of thought and behavior shared by the people of Taiwan(Hsiau 2005:125-129); (Winckler 1994:23-41).

Religion

The prevalent form of religious belief in Taiwan is the traditional Chinese blend of Buddhism, Taoism, and Chinese folk religion, including ancestor worship. However, there are also large numbers of devotees to each of these belief systems . Confucianism remains a major influence on personal philosophy and ethics. The government on Taiwan has continued the tradition of honouring Confucius and his lineal descendants .

Christian churches have been active in Taiwan for many years, a majority of which are Protestant (with 2.6% of the population identifying themselves as Protestant ) with Presbyterians playing a particularly significant role.

A number of Taiwanese religious organisations have extended their operations beyond the island. Several organisations, especially Buddha's Light International Association and Tzu Chi, have extended their operations around the world. There are frequent contacts between Matsu temples in Taiwan and those in Fujian on the mainland. Likewise, there are close contacts between Buddhist organisations in Taiwan and those on the mainland.

Food

Taiwanese culture has also influenced the west: Pearl milk tea is a popular tea drink available in many parts of the world.

Media

The Taiwanese movie director Ang Lee is popular in the West. Taiwan is well known for its many artists such as Jay Chou, Alan Luo, Jolin Tsai and David Tao. Some of these artists have gained international fame by having concerts at Asian countries like Japan, Malaysia and Singapore. Taiwan is also home to many game shows like Guess. These game shows are so popular that it has airing on local television and cable television in many Western and Eastern countries. Since Taiwan is well known for its entertainment scene, some of its TV station has organised talent search to search for new and young talents to join the big family of pop culture here. Some bands like S.H.E are formed in the talent search.

Recreation

Karaoke is incredibly popular in Taiwan, where it is termed KTV (Karaoke Television). This is an example of something the Taiwanese have drawn, on scale, from contemporary Japanese culture. Pachinko is another example. During typhoons, many young Taiwanese will spend the day away singing karaoke or playing mahjong. Many people enjoy watching miniseries collectively called Taiwanese drama.

Since 1999 hot springs, known as wēnquán in Chinese and onsen in Japanese, has been making a comeback thanks to efforts by the government. Over 100 hot springs have been discovered since the Japanese introduced their rich onsen culture to Taiwan, with the largest concentration to the northernmost part of Taiwan island.

Anime and manga, is very popular in Taiwan. Manga are called Manhua in Taiwan. It is common to see a manga rental shop or a manga store every couple of streets in larger cities.

Popular culture

Cell phones are very popular in Taiwan. It is not uncommon for people to have two cell phones. Taiwan has one of the world's highest rate of cell phones per people. It is referred to as the Shou ji which translate roughly to handset. Because of their high use, phones in Taiwan have many functions and are becoming cheaper.

Internet cafes, also known as Wang ka, are very popular with teenagers. They often sell food. Many gamers eat while using the internet. Many parents and teachers are concerned with the amount of time youth spend in the internet cafes.

Hip-hop culture from the United States also flourishes in Taiwan. NBA superstars especially Allen Iverson, Kevin Garnett, Chauncey Billups, Andre Iguodala, Jason Williams, etc. make periodic visits to Taiwan. G-Unit and Eminem are also very popular. In this process, Taiwan produced several hip-hop artists, including Dog G, MC HotDog, Machi, and L.A. Boyz. Many young Taiwanese can be seen in throwback jersey, bling-bling, and baggy jeans which shows the effect of hip hop fashion in Taiwan.

Localization of the culture of Taiwan has been a trend since the island's first-ever democratic change of political parties occurred in 2000, with the election of Chen Shui-bian as president. Chen and his Democratic Progressive Party administration have made Taiwanese awareness a major party platform, both by revising textbooks and changing school curricula to focus more on the island's own history rather than the history of the mainland. The island's previous administration, the Chinese Nationalist Party, or Kuomintang, sought to emphasize the island's cultural, historical and political ties to China. In recent years, localization, or ben tu hua in Mandarin Chinese, has seen the advent of Taike culture, in which Taiwanese proud of their heritage adapt their wardrobe, language and cuisine to emphasize the uniqueness of popular modern Taiwanese culture.