THE LIFE OF THE MOUNTAIN PEOPLE IN FORMOSA.
BY SHINJI ISHII, F.R.A.I.
(Read before the Society on 17th January, 1917.)
The subject of this paper is the life of the mountain people in Formosa or Taiwan[1] as we call it. There are seven tribes—Taiyal, Bunun, Tsuwō, Paiwan, Ami, Saisett and Yami—in Formosa, the last occupying the small island of Botel Tobago, off the east coast. These people number roughly 130,000, the Paiwan being the most numerous. The tribes are distinguished one from the other by differences of language and custom. The Taiyal, Bunun, Tsuwo, a portion of the Paiwan, and the small Saisett tribe live in the mountain districts, while the remainder of the Paiwan and the Ami are in the plains, the latter occupying a belt on the east coast. These two tribes have attained to a considerable degree of culture under Japanese and Chinese influence, and it seems likely that before long their peculiar customs will disappear. Two tribes of the Piyuma[2] and the Ami on the east coast possess a peculiar social organization involving the age-grade system and the matri-local family. These I propose to discuss in a separate paper.
- ↑ For a brief historical and topographical sketch of this island, see my paper "The Island of Formosa and its Primitive Inhabitants" (Trans. Japan Society, London, vol. xiv. 1916).
- ↑ The Piyuma, on account of their linguistic affinity, are included under the Paiwan in the Government statistics, but ethnologically they are distinct.
