Republic of China

{{Infobox country
| native_name                = <div class="center">Chunghwa Minkuo'ㄓㄨㄥㄏㄨㄚˊㄇㄣˊㄍㄨㄛˊZhōnghuá Mínguó</div>
| conventional_long_name                = Republic of China
| common_name                = Taiwan
| image_flag                = Flag of the Republic of China.svg
| alt_flag                = A red flag, with a small blue rectangle in the top left hand corner on which sits a white sun composed of a circle surrounded by 12 rays.
| image_coat                = National Emblem of the Republic of China.svg
| symbol_type                = Emblem
| alt_coat                = A blue circular emblem on which sits a white sun composed of a circle surrounded by 12 rays.
| image_map                = LocationTaiwan.svg
| map_caption                = red area shows territories controlled by ROC
| national flower                = plumflower.jpg
| alt_map                = A map depicting the location of the Republic of China in East Asia and in the World.
| national_anthem                = "National Anthem of the Republic of China"《中華民國國歌》
“National Flag Anthem of the Republic of China”《中華民國國旗歌》
| capital                = Taipei
| latd                = 25
| latm                = 02
| lats                = 00
| latNS                = N
| longd                = 121
| longm                = 38
| longs                = 00
| longEW                = E
| largest_city                = New Taipei
| official_languages                = none
| ethnic_groups                = 
| government_type                = Presidential republic
| leader_title1                = President
| leader_name1                = Tsai Ing-wen
| leader_title2                = Vice President
| leader_name2                = Chen Chien-jen
| leader_title3                = Premier
| leader_name3                = Su Tseng-chang
| area_km2                = 36,191.4667
| area_sq_mi                = 13,973.6
| area_rank                = 136th
| percent_water                = 10.34
| population_estimate                = 23,174,528
| population_estimate_year                = 2011
| population_estimate_rank                = 49th
| population_density_km2                = 640
| population_density_sq_mi                = 1,658
| population_density_rank                = 16th
| demonym                = Taiwanese or Chinese or both
| GDP_PPP                = $900,210 billion
| GDP_PPP_rank                = 19th
| GDP_PPP_year                = 2011
| GDP_PPP_per_capita                = $39,245
| GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank                = 20th
| GDP_nominal                = $489.387 billion
| GDP_nominal_rank                = 24th
| GDP_nominal_year                = 2011
| GDP_nominal_per_capita                = $21,832
| GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank                = 37th
| sovereignty_type                = Establishment
| sovereignty_note                = Xinhai Revolution
| established_event1                = Wuchang Uprising
| established_date1                = 10 October 1911
| established_event2                = Republic established
| established_date2                = 1 January 1912
| established_event3                = End of Japanese rule in Taiwan
| established_date3                = 25 October 1945
| established_event4                = Constitution
| established_date4                = 25 December 1947
| established_event5                = Government relocated to Taipei
| established_date5                = 7 December 1949
| established_event6                = Withdrawal from the UN
| established_date6                = 29 January 1962
| established_event7                = First direct presidential election
| established_date7                = 23 March 1996
| HDI                = 0.868
| HDI_change                = increase
| HDI_ref                = http://www.dgbas.gov.tw/public/Attachment/11715383471.doc
| HDI_year                = 2010
| HD1_rank                = 18
| HDI_category                = 
| Gini                = 34.1
| Gini_ref                = 
| Gini_year                = 2008
| Gini_category                = medium
| currency                = New Taiwan dollar (NT$)
| currency_code                = TWD
| country_code                = TPE
| time_zone                = CST
| utc_offset                = +8
| time_zone_DST                = not observed
| utc_offset_DST                = +8
| date_format                = yyyy-mm-dd  yyyy年m月d日  (CE; CE+2697) or 民國yy年m月d日
| drives_on                = right
| cctld                = .tw, .台灣, .台湾
| calling_code                = +886
| footnotes                = a.  See also Names of China.
b.  Nanking (now Nanjing) was the seat of the government from 1928 until 1949 except during wars, when the government retreated to Taipei.
c.  Population and density ranks based on 2008 figures.
}}

The Republic of China (), also known as Taiwan, is a island country in East Asia. The People's Republic of China (PRC) is located to the northwest; Japan is to the northeast; the Philippines is to the south. The Chinese Nationalists lost the Chinese Civil War to the Communists in 1949 and moved the government of the Republic of China from Nanjing to Taipei. Constitutionally, it still claims the ownership of all of China, including Mainland China, however this is rarely noted in recent years.

 Territory 
The territory the Republic of China (ROC) controls is known by most people as the island of Taiwan. Most places on Taiwan Island are called "Taiwan Province" by the government of the Republic of China for official business, except the two largest cities of Taipei and Kaohsiung. West of Taiwan Island, there are three small groups of islands that also belong to ROC. They are:
 The Pescadores (Penghu, 澎湖列島): They also are part of Taiwan Province.
 Quemoy (Kinmen, 金門): A part of Fujian province, called Kinmen County(金門縣).
 Matsu (馬祖列島): the smallest county, called Lienchiang County(連江縣), also part of Fujian province
 Diaoyutai Islands:The Diaoyutai Islands (釣魚臺列嶼|Diàoyútái Lièyû|ㄉㄧㄠˋㄩˊㄊㄞˊㄌㄧㄝˋㄩˊ) are a group of islands where nobody lives that the Republic of China (ROC) claims it belong to them, but also claimed by the People's Republic of China (PRC) and Japan. In Japanese, the islands are known as the Senkaku Islands (尖閣諸島, Senkaku Shotō?). The islands are now under the control of Japan.
 Dong-Sha Islands:The Pratas Islands or Dong-Sha Islands (東沙羣島) consists of three islands in the northeastern South China Sea, 340 km southeast of Hong Kong.
 Taiping (Traditional Chinese: 太平島|Tàipíngdǎo|ㄊㄞˋㄆㄧㄥˊㄉㄠˇ), also known as Itu Aba, is the largest of the Nansha Islands (Spratly Islands) in the South China Sea.

The ROC used to govern Mainland China too, from 1911 - 1949, and was a founding member of the UN (as China) in 1945. Today, Mainland China is governed by the Communist People's Republic of China; see History and Political problems of China. However, ROC still declares Mainland China as its territory officially. The Republic of China also used to govern Mongolia.

Administrative divisions

There are administrative divisions in different levels and types.

Provinces (省 shěng ㄕㄥˇ)(1st level):
Taiwan Province
Fujian Province

Special municipalities (直轄市 zhíxiáshì ㄓˊㄒㄧㄚˊㄕˋ)(1st and 2nd level):
Kaohsiung City
New Taipei City
Taipei City
Taichung City
Tainan City
Taoyuan City

Provincial cities (市 shì ㄕˋ)(2nd level):
Keelung City
Hsinchu City
Chiayi City

Counties (縣 xiàn ㄒㄧㄢˋ)(2nd level):
Changhua County
Chiayi County
Hsinchu County
Hualien County
Kinmen County
Lienchiang County
Miaoli County
Yilan County
Yunlin County

157 Districts (區 qū ㄑㄩ), 17 Country-controlled cities (縣轄市 xiànxiáshì ㄒㄧㄢˋㄒㄧㄚˊㄕˋ), 41 Urban Townships (鎮 zhèn ㄓㄣˋ), and 153 Rural Townships (鄉 xiāng ㄒㄧㄤ) stand the 3rd level. Districts stand under either Special municipalities or Provincial cities; Country-controlled cities, Urban Townships, and Rural Townships stand under Counties.

Villages (里 lǐ ㄌㄧˇ or 村 cūn ㄘㄨㄣ) stand the 4th level, and Neighborhoods (鄰 lín ㄌㄧㄣˊ) stand the 5th level.

 History 

The Nationalists, led by Dr. Sun Yat-sen, got rid of the Qing Dynasty ruled by the Manchus, then they established the ROC and ended Imperial Dynastic Rule in late-1911. The ROC at that time had Mainland China and all of what is now called Mongolia.

After the Japanese were defeated by the Allies during World War II, Taiwan was controlled by the ROC.

In 1949, the Chinese Communists fought a war against the Nationalists and won. They established the People's Republic of China. The Nationalists left mainland China and arrived in Taiwan.

 Politics 
After the ROC created a base on Taiwan, it hoped one day to capture the Mainland. But Chinese Communists grew stronger, so the Nationalists never did go back. The Communists say they replaced the ROC as the only government of China and also calls Taiwan their own.

Polls show a majority of people in Taiwan want to never be a part of the People's Republic of China. Some of these people believe in complete Taiwan independence and want to rename the ROC (Taiwan) to "Republic of Taiwan" so Taiwan can participate in international affairs. Most others want the status quo'', which means keeping everything the way it is now. A small minority wish to someday unite with the People's Republic of China; they want Chinese reunification.

Language 
Most Taiwanese people speak the Standard Chinese language known as Mandarin, and others speak local dialects such as Min Nan (Taiwanese) or Hakka. The Cantonese language, spoken in parts of southern China (for example, the province of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau), is not spoken in Taiwan. A small percentage of Aboriginal Taiwanese speak aboriginal languages, but the rest of the Chinese people have treated them badly, and many of these people, and their languages, struggle to survive. Some older Taiwanese people who went to school while the country was under Japanese rule can speak Japanese.

After the Nationalist government fled the Mainland in 1949, they brought Mandarin and promoted it in Taiwan. Then everyone in the ROC had to learn Mandarin. But, unlike the people in Mainland China, the Taiwanese never changed to simplified Chinese characters and so they have always used traditional Chinese characters. In the past, students were not allowed to speak their mother tongue in school and were expected to speak only Mandarin. Taiwanese, Hakka, and native languages were considered bad until the early 1990s, when education in these languages began to be taught in some school systems. They were promoted, but by this time, many young people could speak only Mandarin.

Currently, nearly one third of Taiwanese report knowing some amount of English. Full English fluency is not common, however. The government plans to expand English education and make it an official language by 2030.

Notes

References

 
1949 establishments in Asia