Tainan: The 400-year-old cradle of Taiwanese culture
Known as "the birthplace of Taiwan", the island's oldest city is celebrating its quartercentennial by highlighting its multicultural past.
In 1624, a ragged fleet of ships owned by the Dutch East India Company arrived at a forested island off the coast of China. The Dutch merchants were looking for a foothold to trade with China's Ming dynasty, but had failed to seize the Portuguese enclave of Macau. The rugged, uncharted island to which they retreated was a place of last resort. They established a base on a long sandbank and built a fort, naming it Fort Zeelandia. They called the place where they settled Tayouan – or Taiwan.
The Dutch traded with the local Siraya people who spoke an Austronesian language more closely related to contemporary Malay, Tagalog and Māori than modern-day Mandarin. Some scholars argue that the word "Taiwan" itself has Indigenous roots – deriving from "tavo-an," meaning "meeting-place" in Siraya.
This year marks the 400th anniversary of the founding of both Fort Zeelandia and the city of Tainan that developed around the fort. And here in Taiwan's oldest city, celebrations are in full swing. The Tainan 400 celebrations, which began in January with the hosting of the Taiwan Lantern Festival and will continue into December, are dedicated to exploring Tainan's many stories, told in many languages. Under the slogan "Tainan, Where You Belong", a full year's worth of concerts, exhibitions and public celebrations are highlighting how the city has evolved as a melting pot of different cultures.
