Taiwan language policy in modern & contemporary period

Klinovskiy Vladimir A.

The article provides a study of language planning process in Taiwan since the end of 19th century till the present day. This process is divided into three basic eras: the Japanese occupation, the Kuomintang rule and the democratic reforms of the 1990s &2000s. The main attention is focused on the problem of instability of Chinese Republic’s language policy during the times when the island itself has changed its territorial affiliation several times, and the power has been disputed between different political factions. A brief look at the history of Taiwan shows that every regime tried to use language planning as a tool to build up a new Taiwanese identity for its own convenience. One specific feature of Taiwan’s modern history is that all the regimes in almost 100 years were essentially dictatorial. Because of this any political agenda depended solely on the will of the establishment. As a result the major problem eroding Taiwan’s linguistic ecology is now the inability to implement a firm course in the field of language planning, as two dominant parties express the opposing views of the further development of languages. The consequences of such opposition are the tardiness and the inconsistency of political or legal decisions.

Keywords:language policy, language planning, history of China, PRC, Taiwan, international relations.