Episode 24 – Dominican Hermosa

The mendicant religious orders within the Catholic church, started in the 13th Century, were products of the highly religious and meant to rebuild the church’s failing image. Over the centuries rivalries grew between these orders and, although they had generally the same goals and often worked together, they also vied with one another for power and influence.
The Order of St. Dominic led the Catholic charge into Hermosa, partly to counter the protestant Dutch in the south, but mostly with an eye to forging new pathways to China and Japan. Here we look at a few of the most prominent of these Dominicans and their actions in Taiwan.

LINKS
The Catholic Church in Taiwan (extract)
The Catholic Dominican Missionaries in Taiwan (1626-1646)
La Isla Hermosa (How Taiwan Became Chinese, Ch. 4)
Peter Kang (Academia Sinica)

Episode 23 – Isla Hermosa

Flag with the Cross of Burgundy, used by the Spanish Empire.

From 1624 the Dutch were encamped in southern Formosa (their name for Taiwan) and heavily disrupting trade in the region for the Spanish and Portuguese. By 1626 the Spanish had decided to take action and sent an expedition to form a colony in northern Hermosa (their name for Taiwan). After finding an apparently perfect place, complete with a village ready and waiting for them to occupy, they began experiencing difficulties. Supplies were in short demand, as Hermosa was the most distant outpost of the Spanish empire.

(above left) an image of Keelung Bay from 1626 showing what is today known as Heping (Peace) Island in the north.
(above right) an image of Taiwan from the late 1630s showing the Dutch in the south and the Spanish in the north.

Episode 21 – Among the Head-Hunters of Formosa, Part II

In this episode we discuss the religion of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan, including their gods and ancestors, the duties of the priestesses and how they deal with illness and death. We also look at their architecture, their various arts and crafts, including pottery and fabric, as well as their styles of tattoos.

People squatting in the same manner that men do during courtship rituals.
Note the slate walls and roofing of the Paiwan buildings, including the artwork above the door indicating it to be a chief’s house.

The people in the picture are children, showing you how low the Paiwan houses are. Most of the house is subterranean.

(left) A carving of a Paiwan ancestor on a slate in front of a chief’s house.
(right) People from the Yami [Tao] of Orchid Island before a bachelor-house.

(left) A Yami man and woman in ceremonial dress to celebrate the Spring Festival.
(right) A Yami woman from the Yami tribe showing the differences in facial features and dress.

(left) An Ami family stands in front of their home.
(right) Men from the Bunun tribe, with Japanese officers standing in the background.

An example of women’s facial tattoos in Tayal culture, 2006. Here the tattoos cover the entire space below the bottom lip, as opposed to only partially, as Janet McGovern observed in 1916.

For those of you interested in reading McGovern’s work for yourself, here are some links to online versions of it.
One long scrolling page from Project Gutenberg or as a flip book from Archive.org or another flip book by Manybooks.

Prof. C.J.’s Alliance of Throne & Altar

Episode 20 – Among the Head-Hunters of Formosa, Part I

Janet Blair Mongomery McGovern was an anthropologist and explorer who visited Formosa from 1916-1918 during the first phase of the Japanese colonial period. While ostensibly working as an English teacher, she spent her free time travelling the countryside to meet and learn about the indigenous peoples of Formosa. Using the information in her book, which has the same title as this episode, we will learn all we can about the Taiwanese indigenous and compare it to Dutch records from the 17th Century.