Recording available: Yizhou, Liuqiu and Taiwan in History
February 18, 2025: The recording of the virtual roundtable on Yizhou, Liuqiu and Taiwan in History – as part of the Taiwan Lecture Series – is now available on ISDP’s YouTube channel.
Yizhou and Liuqiu were ancient islands east of China’s modern Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. They may be names unfamiliar to a broader audience. However, they are central to an academic debate about Taiwan’s historical alignment. Competing historical interpretations have identified these two islands as corresponding to Taiwan or as part of the Ryukyu islands. This question is still relevant today as these two islands appear at the beginning of the People’s Republic of China’s White Paper concerning unification with Taiwan, stating that “Taiwan has been part of China since ancient times; its ancient names are Yizhou and Liuqiu”.
In their article “Yizhou 夷洲’ and ‘Liuqiu 流求’ in Historical Chinese Texts: International Relations on the Northeast Asian Seas (3rd-17th Centuries)”, Professor Lin Man-houng and co-author Huang Yi-chen have advanced this long-standing academic debate. Through the comprehensive use of electronic databases, their findings indicate that Yizhou and Liuqiu do not correspond to ancient Taiwan. Instead, they were more likely to be part of the Ryukyu Islands. The entrepot position Ryukyu assumed up to the 14th century on the East Asian seas was crucial for establishing the Ryukyu Kingdom’s golden period from that century to the 16th century. Likely, Taiwan’s central position by 1945 on the East Asian seas was vital for the relocation of the Republic of China to this island afterwards.
ISDP’s Stockholm Taiwan Center organized a virtual roundtable discussion chaired by Professor Torbjörn Lodén. In the online event, Professor Lin Man-houng presented her article sharing insights with the audience. After the presentation, the article’s findings and their relevance for academia and policymaking were be discussed among the participants and culminate in an open Q&A with the audience tuning in.