DOCSLIB.ORG

A Survey of Media and Data Processing Development for Written Taiwanese

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
A Survey of Media and Data Processing Development for Written Taiwanese A Survey of Media and Data Processing Development for Written Taiwanese Iûⁿ Ún-giân Henry H. Tân-Tēⁿ Lecturer of Dahan Inst. Tech. Montclair State University [email protected] [email protected] Abstract Many proposals have been advanced for writing Taiwanese; none as yet have been designated official. Of all the proposals, Ph-ōe-jī (POJ) has the longest history and the largest corpus of didactic materials, dictionaries, and literary works. This paper surveys development in Taiwanese media and data processing as they pertain to POJ. In the former category we include the print media of books, periodicals, and newspapers, as well as the broadcast media and the Internet. In the latter we discuss the evolution of Taiwanese textual processing, segmentation, machine translation, and Unicode support. Finally we propose a preliminary program for applied computational linguistics in Taiwanese, for the purpose of revitalizing and advancing written Taiwanese. Keywords: Ph-ōe-jī (POJ), written Taiwanese, vernacular literature, media, textual processing, computational linguistics 1. Introduction Broadly speaking, “Taiwanese” refers to the languages of the Taiwanese people, including Holo1, Hakka, and the Austronesian languages. Of all the groups the Holo are the most numerous, accounting for over 70% of the population (Huang 1995). Therefore, as early as the Japanese colonial period a century ago, Holo was known as Taiwanese, as well. In this article we use the terms interchangeably. The Holo written language and literature, or Tâi-gú-bûn (TGB), can ultimately be traced to the Southern Min dramas dated 1566 (G 1995), prior to the era of mass 1 1 migration from China to Taiwan. At that time Han characters were primarily employed in the classical language, not in service of the written vernacular. The earliest orthography tailored to the language (and related dialects) is undoubtedly Ph- ōe-jī (POJ, “vernacular writing”), traceable to the 1832 A Dictionary of the Hok-këèn Dialect of the Chinese Language by the missionary Walter Henry Medhurst (Heylen 2001; Klöter 2002). Since then the romanization scheme has undergone a number of minor changes and is currently stable. It has, moreover, been adapted to provide for the minority Hakka language. POJ initially served the interests of the Protestant missionaries and local Taiwanese converts and their descendants, particularly the illiterate and semi-literate. Until the 1980s much of the POJ literature, therefore, revolved around Christian themes followed distantly by education of a more general nature. Whereas both the Japanese and Chinese Nationalist regimes on the island had a history of suppressing romanization, the post-martial law era (1987-) of democratic reforms saw the emergence of small, competing organizations seeking to promote written Taiwanese of one form or another. In this lively if sometimes fractious environment, POJ found renewed usage in a newly secularized context even as its functions in the religious domain appeared to continue to decline. Concomitant with this development was the switch from monoscript to mixed scripts within running texts; that is, among those familiar with POJ the mainstream preference today is for mixing Han (Chinese) characters and romanization (a practice known as hàn-lô), particularly in formal publication2 (TiuN 1998: 230). Many new phonetic systems and orthographies – at least 64 in one study – emerged during this period (Iûⁿ and Tiuⁿ 1999). By virtue of its long history and recent revival, POJ is presently the system with the most numerous and varied publications, 2 including didactic materials, dictionaries, and literary works. The status derived thereof is nevertheless insecure, as a number of alternative systems have sought legitimacy via endorsement by the political and academic establishments, at the same time engaging in publishing efforts of their own3. In the sections to follow we first survey the use of POJ in various types of media for the past century and beyond, in its capacity as an orthography or phonetic scheme for Holo. Other orthographic or annotative choices – for example, Han characters – are not considered. We then summarize recent efforts in the area of POJ Taiwanese computing, including both text manipulation tools, pedagogic tools, and research in applied computational linguistics. 2. Development of written Taiwanese in the media This section is divided into three portions, namely the print media (books, periodicals, newspapers), broadcast media, and the newly emerged Internet. 2.1 Print media: books, periodicals, newspapers We have collected a substantial bibliography of publications utilizing POJ as an orthography or phonetic annotation system for Han characters. We have additionally consulted an as-yet unpublished bibliography by Lī Heng-chhiong. 2.1.1 Books Printed books are by far the most common sources of POJ. In Table 1 several categories employing POJ are identified. In principle literary works of an overtly religious nature (e.g. The Psalms) are classified as “religious works.” 3 3 Table 1. POJ Books By Year and Type Decade Year Pre- 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 Total (%) Type N/A 1900 ~09 ~19 ~29 ~39 ~49 ~59 ~69 ~79 ~89 ~99 ~02 Religious 40 51 11 27 38 56 30 119 80 11 11 26 3 503 (60) Didactic 2 4 - - 9 5 2 20 9 3 9 58 15 136 (16) Literary - - - 1 4 - 1 9 4 - 1 71 17 108 (13) Reference - 15 1 1 5 3 2 - 1 4 2 13 2 49 (6) Specialized - 11 2 3 5 2 2 - 3 1 4 8 3 44 (5) Total (%) 42 81 14 32 61 66 37 148 97 19 27 176 40 840 (100) (5) (10) (2) (4) (7) (8) (4) (18) (12) (2) (3) (21) (5) 1. Religious works: These account for the single largest category, over 500 titles (60%) in our catalog, all Christian. Publishers no longer reprint most them. 2. Language teaching materials: Over 130 titles are known, including some bilingual textbooks in English or Japanese. 3. Literary works: Including fiction, prose, poetry, drama, translated works, and folk literature. At least 100 titles are known, the earliest indigenous fictional work being Mother’s Tears (1925) by Lōa Jîn-seng (g 2000). 4. References: Over 40 volumes, including dictionaries featuring Mandarin, English, Japanese, and Spanish. Other references concern geography, proverbs, botany. 5. Specialized texts: Covering subjects other than language pedagogy, such as mathematics, astronomy, medicine, botany, and social commentary. In addition, in recent years a few academic papers and monographs in Taiwanese have appeared in spite of the general reluctance of institutions to accept them. 2.1.2 Newspapers As of this writing no newspaper or similar publication, either religious or secular in orientation, exists in Taiwanese. Historically Taiwan Church News 4 (originally Taiwan Prefectural City Church News) published in the Holo language using POJ. Founded in 1885, it was the first newspaper of any language to publish on the island. As the longest publishing paper, as well, it is in a unique position of having documented Taiwanese society during the century of Manchurian, Japanese, and Chinese rule, and to have done so in a major language of the masses. According to the Committee on History of the Presbyterian Church of Formosa, in 1928 and 1932 it merged with three regional church newspapers also publishing in POJ (2000: 190). In 1942 the Japanese colonial authorities forced it to cease publishing. Resuming publication after 1945, it eventually succumbed to pressure from the Chinese Nationalist regime in 1970 and abandoned the traditional language in favor of the official Mandarin (see section 2.1.4). This policy was partly reversed in the 1990s with the inclusion of a “special column” consciously devoted to the mother tongue, and then mostly in hàn-lô. The space afforded it was quite limited and increasingly so; eventually this column also came to include Mandarin contents. Other historical newspapers include one regional Presbyterian weekly publishing in the early 1940s and a Catholic newspaper in the mid-1930s. We believe additional sources have yet to be unearthed. In the 1990s several mass-circulation (Mandarin) dailies featured occasional columns on language-related topics by well-known teachers or activists. Neither the front-page news nor the popular entertainment sections, however, have offered Taiwanese alternatives, even as headlines incorporating Holo catchwords have become more fashionable4. Indeed the literary pages have been devoted to works in the standard Mandarin language (the rare poem not withstanding). As is the case with periodicals (section 2.1.3), immigrant newspapers in the United States have been more willing to experiment with new forms. The Pacific 5 5 Times and particularly Taiwan Tribune have featured original and reprinted articles in Taiwanese. The historically more radical Taiwan Tribune pioneered Taiwanese language editorials in the 1990s; its literature section often carried poetry and essays in the language. Unlike the Taiwan-based papers, both of these arrange the text horizontally, a format aesthetically compatible with han3-lo5. In 2002 the trilingual Taiwanese Children’s Newspaper began soliciting subscribers. Apparently responding to the market potential partly driven by the English and local languages components of the Nine-year Comprehensive Curriculum for the Elementary and Junior High Education, it targeted elementary schoolchildren and their parents by offering contents in Mandarin, Taiwanese, and English. Even though the Taiwanese portion accounts for only a quarter of the space, the concept was unprecedented. 2.1.3 Periodicals As with newspapers, all known POJ periodicals (primarily monthlies) prior to the 1970s were Church-published. Of these, the most recent new periodical appeared in 1960; the last to cease publication did so in 1969. The longest surviving periodical published for fifteen years (ah-miā ê bí-niû, 1954-68). The first known periodical of a secular nature was the Taiwanese Language and Literature Bi-monthly (1977-1979). As the domestic political milieu of the time prohibited such a publication, it was produced and published in the United States (and distributed outside Taiwan).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Thirty Years of Mission in Taiwan: the Case of Presbyterian Missionary George Leslie Mackay
    religions Article Thirty Years of Mission in Taiwan: The Case of Presbyterian Missionary George Leslie Mackay Magdaléna Rychetská Asia Studies Centre, Department of Chinese Studies, Faculty of Arts, Masaryk University, 602 00 Brno, Czech Republic; [email protected] Abstract: The aims of this paper are to analyze the missionary endeavors of the first Canadian Presbyterian missionary in Taiwan, George Leslie Mackay (1844–1901), as described in From Far Formosa: The Islands, Its People and Missions, and to explore how Christian theology was established among and adapted to the Taiwanese people: the approaches that Mackay used and the missionary strategies that he implemented, as well as the difficulties that he faced. Given that Mackay’s missionary strategy was clearly highly successful—within 30 years, he had built 60 churches and made approximately 2000 converts—the question of how he achieved these results is certainly worth considering. Furthermore, from the outset, Mackay was perceived and received very positively in Taiwan and is considered something of a folk hero in the country even today. In the present-day Citation: Rychetská, Magdaléna. narrative of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan, Mackay is seen as someone whose efforts to establish 2021. Thirty Years of Mission in an independent church with native local leadership helped to introduce democracy to Taiwan. Taiwan: The Case of Presbyterian However, in some of the scholarship, missionaries such as Mackay are portrayed as profit seekers. Missionary George Leslie Mackay. This paper seeks to give a voice to Mackay himself and thereby to provide a more symmetrical Religions 12: 190. https://doi.org/ approach to mission history.
    [Show full text]
  • Special Issue Taiwan and Ireland In
    TAIWAN IN COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE Taiwan in Comparative Perspective is the first scholarly journal based outside Taiwan to contextualize processes of modernization and globalization through interdisciplinary studies of significant issues that use Taiwan as a point of comparison. The primary aim of the Journal is to promote grounded, critical, and contextualized analysis in English of economic, political, societal, and environmental change from a cultural perspective, while locating modern Taiwan in its Asian and global contexts. The history and position of Taiwan make it a particularly interesting location from which to examine the dynamics and interactions of our globalizing world. In addition, the Journal seeks to use the study of Taiwan as a fulcrum for discussing theoretical and methodological questions pertinent not only to the study of Taiwan but to the study of cultures and societies more generally. Thereby the rationale of Taiwan in Comparative Perspective is to act as a forum and catalyst for the development of new theoretical and methodological perspectives generated via critical scrutiny of the particular experience of Taiwan in an increasingly unstable and fragmented world. Editor-in-chief Stephan Feuchtwang (London School of Economics, UK) Editor Fang-Long Shih (London School of Economics, UK) Managing Editor R.E. Bartholomew (LSE Taiwan Research Programme) Editorial Board Chris Berry (Film and Television Studies, Goldsmiths College, UK) Hsin-Huang Michael Hsiao (Sociology and Civil Society, Academia Sinica, Taiwan) Sung-sheng Yvonne Chang (Comparative Literature, University of Texas, USA) Kent Deng (Economic History, London School of Economics, UK) Bernhard Fuehrer (Sinology and Philosophy, School of Oriental and African Studies, UK) Mark Harrison (Asian Languages and Studies, University of Tasmania, Australia) Bob Jessop (Political Sociology, Lancaster University, UK) Paul R.
    [Show full text]
  • Settler Nationalism and Hero Narratives in a 2001 Exhibition of Taiwan Aboriginal Artefacts
    Aborigines Saved Yet Again: Settler Nationalism and Hero Narratives in a 2001 Exhibition of Taiwan Aboriginal Artefacts by Mark Eric Munsterhjelm BA, Carleton University, 1992 A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS in the Indigenous Governance Program We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard _________________________________________________ Dr. Jeff Corntassel, Supervisor (Indigenous Governance Program) _________________________________________________________________ Dr. Avigail Eisenberg, Departmental Member (Department of Political Science) _________________________________________________________________ Dr. Matt James, Outside Member (Department of Political Science) _________________________________________________________________ Dr. James Tully, External Examiner (Department of Political Science) © Mark Munsterhjelm, 2004 University of Victoria All rights reserved. This thesis may not be reproduced in whole or in part, by photocopy or other means, without the permission of the author. ii ABSTRACT Drawing upon field work, mass media accounts, and Canadian government internal documents, this thesis considers how settler/Aboriginal power relations were reproduced when Taiwan Aboriginal artefacts owned by the Royal Ontario Museum were used in a 2001 exhibition in Taipei to commemorate the centennial of the death of the Taiwanese nationalist hero, George Leslie Mackay (1844-1901). I argue that this exhibition and related Taiwan-Canada state Aboriginal exchanges
    [Show full text]
  • The Presbyterian Church in Taiwan and the Advocacy of Local Autonomy
    SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS Number 92 January, 1999 The Presbyterian Church in Taiwan and the Advocacy of Local Autonomy by Christine Louise Lin Victor H. Mair, Editor Sino-Platonic Papers Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305 USA [email protected] www.sino-platonic.org SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS is an occasional series edited by Victor H. Mair. The purpose of the series is to make available to specialists and the interested public the results of research that, because of its unconventional or controversial nature, might otherwise go unpublished. The editor actively encourages younger, not yet well established, scholars and independent authors to submit manuscripts for consideration. Contributions in any of the major scholarly languages of the world, including Romanized Modern Standard Mandarin (MSM) and Japanese, are acceptable. In special circumstances, papers written in one of the Sinitic topolects (fangyan) may be considered for publication. Although the chief focus of Sino-Platonic Papers is on the intercultural relations of China with other peoples, challenging and creative studies on a wide variety of philological subjects will be entertained. This series is not the place for safe, sober, and stodgy presentations. Sino-Platonic Papers prefers lively work that, while taking reasonable risks to advance the field, capitalizes on brilliant new insights into the development of civilization. The only style-sheet we honor is that of consistency. Where possible, we prefer the usages of the Journal of Asian Studies. Sinographs (hanzi, also called tetragraphs [fangkuaizi]) and other unusual symbols should be kept to an absolute minimum. Sino-Platonic Papers emphasizes substance over form.
    [Show full text]
  • Communiqué No
    Taiwan Communiqué Published by: Formosan Association for Public Affairs 552 7th St. SE, Washington, D.C. 20003 Tel. (202) 547-3686 International edition, April / May 2013 Published 5 times a year 141 ISSN number: 1027-3999 Congressmen visit President Chen in jail On 2 May 2013, two prominent U.S. Congressmen, Mr. Steve Chabot (R-OH) and Mr. Eni Valeomavaega (D-Samoa) visited former President Chen in his cell in Pei-teh prison hospital Taichung, in central Taiwan. Chabot serves as the Chairman of the Subcommit- tee Asia & Pacific in the House Foreign Affairs Committee, while Valeomavaega is the Ranking Member. The visit came on the heels of Chen’s sudden transfer from the Veteran’s General Hospital in Taipei to the prison in Taichung on 19 April 2013 (see below). After the visit to Taichung, the Congressmen expressed concern about Chen’s health condition, and urged that Chen’s human rights should be respected. Chabot stated: “we think there is a humanitarian way to resolve the situation, and we would like to see that happen.” The visit came after several Photo: Liberty Times tumultuous weeks, which saw a groundswell of expressions of support for medical parole for Chen, both in Taiwan itself and overseas. This was supple- mented by medical reports from the team treating him at Taipei Veterans General Hospital TVGH), indicating that the best solution would be home care or treatment in a hospital near his home in Kaohsiung, which would have a specialized Congressmen Chabot and Faleomavaega after their psychiatry department. visit to Chen Shui-bian in Pei-teh Prison Hospital Taiwan Communiqué -2- April / May 2013 This led to the general expectation that the Ministry of Justice of the Ma government would grant a medical parole in the near future.
    [Show full text]
  • Freedom of Religion? a Law Against Religious Organizations
    Published by: International Committee for Human Rights in Taiwan Europe : P.O. Box 31, 3984 ZG ODIJK, The Netherlands U.S.A. : P.O. Box 45205, SEATTLE, Washington 98105-0205 European edition, August 1983 Published 6 times a year ISSN number: 1027-3999 13 Freedom of Religion? A law against religious organizations Once again the Taiwan authorities are trying to find a way to restrict the activities of religious organizations: on June 3, 1983 the Ministry of Interior announced that it is planning to introduce a law designed to “protect” freedom of religion. As was aptly stated in a recent article in a major Dutch newspaper (TROUW, August 10, 1983), only the first article of the law talks about protecting freedom of religion: the remaining 24 articles show the opposite. It is clear that this measure is particularly aimed at the Presbyterian Church, the largest Christian denomina- tion on Taiwan, which has always taken a strong stance on human rights and democracy on the island. On the following pages we present: 1. an analysis of the major provisions of the proposed law. The full text of the law is available upon request from Taiwan Communiqué; 2. a brief history of the Presbyterian Church; 3. the text of the Church’s 1977 Declaration on Human Rights; 4. background information on the imprisoned General Secretary, Dr. Kao Chun-ming. “Down comes a law to protect us...” Taiwan Communiqué -2- August 1983 “The Law to Protect Religion” Two key provisions of the proposed Act are contained in articles no. 2 and 8: . Article no.
    [Show full text]
  • 白話字的起源與在台灣的發展the Origins of Pe̍h-Ōe-Jī and Its
    國立台灣師範大學台灣語文學系 博士論文 指導教授：賀安娟（Ann Heylen）博士 白話字的起源與在台灣的發展 The Origins of Pe̍ h-ōe-jī and Its Development in Taiwan 研究生：陳慕真 撰 2015 年 12 月 本論文獲得科技部 104 年度獎勵人文與社會科學 領域博士候選人撰寫博士論文獎勵，謹此誌謝。 摘要 本文以白話字為研究主題，探討白話字從十九世紀至今百餘年來的發展，分 析白話字在麻六甲的起源，在中國廈門的形成，以及在台灣從清末、日治時期， 到戰後的發展。透過白話字於不同時期的歷史梳理與分析，本文指出，白話字在 台灣的發展主要呈現兩條主要的脈絡：一為從 1865 年開始，由英國長老教會的 宣教師所發展的白話字運動 ── 這條主線在教會內穩定的發展，從日治時期延 續到戰後，直到 1969 年國民黨政府全面禁止白話字為止；另一條脈絡源於日治 時期的 1920 年代，白話字運動與台灣文化啟蒙運動相結合，並在戰後 1950 年代 由台灣省議員所接續，此後因為高壓的國語政策而沉寂，直到 1980 年代才在政 治解嚴的風潮下，隨著台語文運動而再次出現於台灣社會。這兩條脈絡顯示出白 話字在台灣的發展轉變為：（一）推動者：從西方宣教師轉變為台灣本地知識份 子，（二）訴求對象：從長老教會的信徒，擴及至台灣社會大眾，（三）推動目 的：從傳揚基督教，達成信仰教育，改變為以普及知識，達成社會教育，（四） 認同取向：從對基督教的信仰認同，發展為對台灣民族的認同。從這些轉變的過 程顯示出白話字一開始作為西方宣教師創制的文字系統在台灣本土化的痕跡。 從 1885 年《台灣府城教會報》創刊開始，台灣基督長老教會就開創了以白 話字閱讀、書寫、出版、傳播的時代，直到戰後的 1969 年為止。在長老教會的 推動下，白話字已經穩固的成為基督徒社群共通的文字。在 1885 年至 1969 年這 段台灣的「白話字時代」中，以白話字出版之書籍、刊物，總數量至少近千冊， 內容涵蓋了文學藝術、宗教信仰、歷史文化、兒童教育、醫學知識等領域。這些 成果顯示，以白話字所構築的知識體系已然健全，並成熟的體現在各領域。白話 字除了是教會信徒領受基督信仰的文字工具外，也是台灣人以台語獲取各種現代 化知識的重要途徑。 本文的另一個重點，在於指出「白話字傳播圈」的概念 ── 從十九世紀白 話字的傳播路線來看，首先是從南洋的麻六甲（1820 年代），繼而到中國廈門 （1850 年代），最後來到台灣（1865 年代）。就歷史的進程而言，台灣居於「白 話字傳播圈」的末端。然而，經過百餘年來歷史的發展，隨著東南亞華人和中國 閩南人的政治情勢、族群結構、語言式微、宗教信仰等主客觀因素，福建話和閩 南話的白話字在當地並未有穩定和長足的發展。相較於此，1980 年代後，隨著 台語文運動的成果，使得台灣在白話字上取得優勢和主導權，逐漸躍居為新加坡、 馬來西亞和中國閩南的白話字輸入中心。換言之，台灣從歷史上「白話字傳播圈」 的末端，逐漸發展成為具有「白話字傳播圈」中心的條件。 關鍵詞：白話字、台語、教會羅馬字、台語文運動、台灣基督長老教會、《台 灣教會公報》、台灣宣道社、白話字時代（1885-1969）、台灣文學 Abstract The purpose of this thesis is to study the development of Pe̍ h-ōe-jī since the nineteenth century and to analyze its origins in Malacca, its formation in Amoy, and its development in Taiwan from the sunset of the Qing dynasty to the post‐war period. The survey results of the development of Pe̍ h-ōe-jī indicate that the development of Pe̍ h-ōe-jī in Taiwan has two major contexts.
    [Show full text]
  • Torn Between Two Worlds: Rev. Shoki Coe, Domesticity and the Taiwanese Self-Determination Movement
    Torn Between Two Worlds: Rev. Shoki Coe, Domesticity and the Taiwanese Self-Determination Movement I am now living on “borrowed time”. It is in “borrowed time” that I am now trying to write a memoir of “my” existence, which began in 1914 and may end any time. Is there a point in my trying to do this? It all depends on the philosophical and, for me, especially, the theological question “Is there any meaning at all in time and history? Shoki Coe (1988).1 Unborn generations will think it strange that the vastness, the completeness, the pervasive force of missionary enterprise, made so small an impression on the public mind [...] Like leaven, [the Christians] are hid among the people. They are the scattered lights of a country-side. In this village, where we stand, there is but one Christian. Yonder, half a mile to the north, live thirty worshippers; in a village two miles south, about a dozen; in that hamlet, half a mile to the east, are two Christian families.2 These words were written by Campbell Moody, a missionary of the Presbyterian Church of England (PCE), who arrived in Taiwan on 18 December 1895.3 His arrival coincided with a moment of great change not only for the mission enterprise but also for the island and its peoples. Only two months prior to his arrival had the Japanese formally declared the island pacified following its incorporation into the Japanese Empire as a condition of the Treaty of Shimonoseki.4 The growth and future influence of the Presbyterian Mission were largely underestimated by Moody.
    [Show full text]
  • View, China’S Offer of Reunification Connotes a Return to a Backward Regime
    SECTION 2 SELF-FULFILLMENT InternationalBeyond China’s Journal Threat: Contextual of China Theology Studies of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan 279 Vol. 11, No. 2, December 2020, pp. 279-297 Beyond China’s Threat: The Contextual Theology of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan Chih-yu Shih* and Samantha Wan-Yu Tseng** Department of Political Science, National Taiwan University The Graduate Institute for Legal Sciences, National Cheng Kung University Abstract Colonial relations have remained inspiring and vivid in the 21st century. They have provided powerful morale for the Taiwan Independence Movement. In the quest for independent statehood, Taiwan can easily see China’s territorial ambition, economic invasion, and violation of liberalism. To regain self- respect, the postcolonial elite could rely best and conveniently on the colonial modernity brought by Japan. This perspective enabled the persistence of the image of inferior China. However, a particular string in the postcolonial relations did not assume Chinese inferiority. Rather, self-reflection on one’s practical conditions, which was independent from relations with China, inspired the effort to re-constitute Taiwan’s identity. This string of thought is the Presbyterian Church. Contextual theology resulted from the critical reflection and determination emerged to guide the Church’s subsequent approach to China. For the independence advocacy informed by colonial relations, the issue of human rights immediately suggests the image of inferior China. However, for the Church, the issue connotes a mission in China that the Church should have cared about equally. This construction of a non-inferior/threatening China is how religion has brought to the intellectual perspective of Taiwan independence.
    [Show full text]
  • Romanization and Language Planning in Taiwan
    1 Romanization and Language Planning in Taiwan The University of Texas at Arlington P.O. Box 2485 Arlington, TX 76004, USA Email: [email protected] Abstract Chiung, Wi-vun Taiffalo. 2001. Romanization and Language Planning in Taiwan. The Linguistic Association of Korea Journal 9(1). Although Taiwan is currently a Hancha (Han characters)-dominated society, romanization was in fact the first writing system used in Taiwan. The first romanized orthography is the Sinkang manuscripts introduced by the Dutch missionaries in the first half of the seventeenth century. Thereafter, Han characters were imposed to Taiwan by the Sinitic Koxinga regime that followed in the second half of the seventeenth century. As the number of Han immigrants from China dramatically increased, Han characters gradually became the dominant writing system. At present, romanization for Mandarin Chinese is an auxiliary script simply used for transliteration purpose. As for Taiwanese romanization, it is mainly used by particular groups, such as church followers and the Taiwanese writing circle. This paper provides readers an overall introduction to the history and current development of romanization in Taiwan from the perspectives of literacy and sociolinguistics. The University of Texas at Arlington. Chiung, Wi-vun Taiffalo. 2001. Romanization and language planning in Taiwan. The Linguistic Association of Korea Journal 9(1), 15-43. 2 Romanization and Language Planning in Taiwan1 1. Introduction Although Taiwan is currently a Hancha (Han characters)-dominated society, romanization once was the unique and first writing system used in Taiwan. This system of romanization was introduced by the Dutch missionaries in the first half of the seventeenth century.
    [Show full text]
  • 白話字的起源與在台灣的發展the Origins of Pe̍h
    國立台灣師範大學台灣語文學系 博士論文 指導教授：賀安娟（Ann Heylen）博士 白話字的起源與在台灣的發展 The Origins of Pe̍ h-ōe-jī and Its Development in Taiwan 研究生：陳慕真 撰 2015 年 12 月 本論文獲得科技部 104 年度獎勵人文與社會科學 領域博士候選人撰寫博士論文獎勵，謹此誌謝。 摘要 本文以白話字為研究主題，探討白話字從十九世紀至今百餘年來的發展，分 析白話字在麻六甲的起源，在中國廈門的形成，以及在台灣從清末、日治時期， 到戰後的發展。透過白話字於不同時期的歷史梳理與分析，本文指出，白話字在 台灣的發展主要呈現兩條主要的脈絡：一為從 1865 年開始，由英國長老教會的 宣教師所發展的白話字運動 ── 這條主線在教會內穩定的發展，從日治時期延 續到戰後，直到 1969 年國民黨政府全面禁止白話字為止；另一條脈絡源於日治 時期的 1920 年代，白話字運動與台灣文化啟蒙運動相結合，並在戰後 1950 年代 由台灣省議員所接續，此後因為高壓的國語政策而沉寂，直到 1980 年代才在政 治解嚴的風潮下，隨著台語文運動而再次出現於台灣社會。這兩條脈絡顯示出白 話字在台灣的發展轉變為：（一）推動者：從西方宣教師轉變為台灣本地知識份 子，（二）訴求對象：從長老教會的信徒，擴及至台灣社會大眾，（三）推動目 的：從傳揚基督教，達成信仰教育，改變為以普及知識，達成社會教育，（四） 認同取向：從對基督教的信仰認同，發展為對台灣民族的認同。從這些轉變的過 程顯示出白話字一開始作為西方宣教師創制的文字系統在台灣本土化的痕跡。 從 1885 年《台灣府城教會報》創刊開始，台灣基督長老教會就開創了以白 話字閱讀、書寫、出版、傳播的時代，直到戰後的 1969 年為止。在長老教會的 推動下，白話字已經穩固的成為基督徒社群共通的文字。在 1885 年至 1969 年這 段台灣的「白話字時代」中，以白話字出版之書籍、刊物，總數量至少近千冊， 內容涵蓋了文學藝術、宗教信仰、歷史文化、兒童教育、醫學知識等領域。這些 成果顯示，以白話字所構築的知識體系已然健全，並成熟的體現在各領域。白話 字除了是教會信徒領受基督信仰的文字工具外，也是台灣人以台語獲取各種現代 化知識的重要途徑。 本文的另一個重點，在於指出「白話字傳播圈」的概念 ── 從十九世紀白 話字的傳播路線來看，首先是從南洋的麻六甲（1820 年代），繼而到中國廈門 （1850 年代），最後來到台灣（1865 年代）。就歷史的進程而言，台灣居於「白 話字傳播圈」的末端。然而，經過百餘年來歷史的發展，隨著東南亞華人和中國 閩南人的政治情勢、族群結構、語言式微、宗教信仰等主客觀因素，福建話和閩 南話的白話字在當地並未有穩定和長足的發展。相較於此，1980 年代後，隨著 台語文運動的成果，使得台灣在白話字上取得優勢和主導權，逐漸躍居為新加坡、 馬來西亞和中國閩南的白話字輸入中心。換言之，台灣從歷史上「白話字傳播圈」 的末端，逐漸發展成為具有「白話字傳播圈」中心的條件。 關鍵詞：白話字、台語、教會羅馬字、台語文運動、台灣基督長老教會、《台 灣教會公報》、台灣宣道社、白話字時代（1885-1969）、台灣文學 Abstract The purpose of this thesis is to study the development of Pe̍ h-ōe-jī since the nineteenth century and to analyze its origins in Malacca, its formation in Amoy, and its development in Taiwan from the sunset of the Qing dynasty to the post‐war period. The survey results of the development of Pe̍ h-ōe-jī indicate that the development of Pe̍ h-ōe-jī in Taiwan has two major contexts.
    [Show full text]
  • Religion in Modern Taiwan
    00FMClart 7/25/03 8:37 AM Page i RELIGION IN MODERN TAIWAN 00FMClart 7/25/03 8:37 AM Page ii TAIWAN AND THE FUJIAN COAST. Map designed by Bill Nelson. 00FMClart 7/25/03 8:37 AM Page iii RELIGION IN MODERN TAIWAN Tradition and Innovation in a Changing Society Edited by Philip Clart & Charles B. Jones University of Hawai‘i Press Honolulu 00FMClart 7/25/03 8:37 AM Page iv © 2003 University of Hawai‘i Press All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America 08 07 0605 04 03 65 4 3 2 1 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA Religion in modern Taiwan : tradition and innovation in a changing society / Edited by Philip Clart and Charles B. Jones. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8248-2564-0 (alk. paper) 1. Taiwan—Religion. I. Clart, Philip. II. Jones, Charles Brewer. BL1975 .R46 2003 200'.95124'9—dc21 2003004073 University of Hawai‘i Press books are printed on acid-free paper and meet the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Council on Library Resources. Designed by Diane Gleba Hall Printed by The Maple-Vail Book Manufacturing Group 00FMClart 7/25/03 8:37 AM Page v This volume is dedicated to the memory of Julian F. Pas (1929–2000) 00FMClart 7/25/03 8:37 AM Page vi 00FMClart 7/25/03 8:37 AM Page vii Contents Preface ix Introduction PHILIP CLART & CHARLES B. JONES 1. Religion in Taiwan at the End of the Japanese Colonial Period CHARLES B.
    [Show full text]