Exhibition on the Yami, an aboriginal group from Taiwan

migueldiaz · 15th February 2010, 04:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yuanzhumin

The Shisanhang Museum of Archaeology xxx Period： From January 1st to September 5th, 2010.

Thanks for informing us, yuanzhumin!

I definitely should see this. Now what would be a good reason to persuade my wife to come along?

I also noticed in one of the links you and kukulz cited that the aboriginal Taiwanese call the spirits anito. The exact same word is used in Luzon to refer to the same thing.

And then you also use the words tao or tawu. Here at home, tao in Luzon means a man or group of people, and in the Visayas, it's tawo and it has the same meaning.

Would you know the root words of anito and tao/tawu in your native tongue?

yuanzhumin · 15th February 2010, 06:57 AM

Migueldiaz, concerning the language of the Yami:
The Yami are very special Taiwanese aborigines because, today, they depend politically from Taiwan but they are in fact coming from Luzon. Let's go back in the time : the Austronesian began their migration from Mainland Asia around 8000 years ago, reaching first Taiwan. Then, on pirogues, they spread around 6000 years ago from Taiwan towards the rest of the Pacific till the Easter Island, in the West, and some part of Madagascar, in the east. On the beginning of this long migration, they reached first Luzon, in the Philippines, and mixed with other people that were already there for more than 20 000 years. It is now known that 800 hundred years ago, Ivatan people went from the batanes Islands (today Philippines) to the north, in the Bashi Channel, and reached the Orchid Island/Botel Tobago/Lanyu (today taiwanese territory) and settled down there to become the Yami. So the Yami, coming from Luzon, brought with them their batanic language that is still an austronesian language but more closely related to the Luzon languages than the Taiwanese aboriginal languages (even if originally they are all coming from the same place/family). Yami people can understand and be understood from the Ivatan people. In fact, tao/tawu as in Tagalog if I remember well means 'people'.
-Migueldiaz, for your wife : Taiwan is definitely a nice vacations trip to do ! Good restaurants, nice shops and museums, warm people, beautiful unspotted mountains ! You have everything there and cheaper than in Honkong or Japan !
-Kukulza : Most of the plain aborigines assimilated themselves with the Han migrants. Some have been recognized as independant ethnic groups (Sakiraya...), some not (Siraya...). The Amis, the biggest aboriginal tribe in Taiwan, are often considered as plains aborigines. Whatever, the plains and mountains aborignes have always been distinct groups.

yuanzhumin · 15th February 2010, 07:34 AM

Migueldiaz, after my last post, I went to look for more infos on the sovereignity over Botel Tobago and found this article that is bringing more elements on the matter.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/edit.../23/2003204030

Nonoy Tan · 15th February 2010, 12:46 PM

yuanzhumin, thank you for those important insights.

Are there traces of the Dong Son culture influence among the Formosa aborigines? How about in terms of archaeological findings?

yuanzhumin · 15th February 2010, 04:34 PM

Hi Nonoy,
Yes, there are. The most obvious traces are the bronze knives that are considered as sacred among the Paiwan. I already displayed few of them in a previous thread titled 'Exceptionaly rare knife from Formosa/Taiwan' and posted on the 25th of March, 2006.

Nonoy Tan · 15th February 2010, 10:45 PM

Hi Yuanzhumin,

I read through your past posts with much interest. You collection is outstanding! Thank you.

migueldiaz · 16th February 2010, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yuanzhumin

Migueldiaz, after my last post, I went to look for more infos on the sovereignity over Botel Tobago and found this article that is bringing more elements on the matter.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/edit.../23/2003204030

Thanks yuanzhumin for the link. I've never heard of this before ... interesting.

yuanzhumin · 18th February 2010, 03:01 AM

Nonoy, here is an interesting link about the bronze knife and Dongson culture in Taiwan:
http://culture.teldap.tw/culture/sho...nze-knife.html

Nonoy Tan · 18th February 2010, 11:51 AM

Yuanzhumin, that was helpful of you. Thanks.

Nonoy

yuanzhumin · 24th February 2010, 02:13 AM

I visited the Yami exhibit during my Chinese New Year stay in Taiwan. For the ones interested, here are some pictures I took of this exhibit. Please, note the knives, the fish skin body armour and the rattan helmets. We can regret that there is not a silver helmet nor a coconut bark body armour on display.

migueldiaz · 16th February 2010, 12:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yuanzhumin

Migueldiaz, concerning the language of the Yami:
The Yami are very special Taiwanese aborigines because, today, they depend politically from Taiwan but they are in fact coming from Luzon. Let's go back in the time : the Austronesian began their migration from Mainland Asia around 8000 years ago, reaching first Taiwan. Then, on pirogues, they spread around 6000 years ago from Taiwan towards the rest of the Pacific till the Easter Island, in the West, and some part of Madagascar, in the east. On the beginning of this long migration, they reached first Luzon, in the Philippines, and mixed with other people that were already there for more than 20 000 years. It is now known that 800 hundred years ago, Ivatan people went from the batanes Islands (today Philippines) to the north, in the Bashi Channel, and reached the Orchid Island/Botel Tobago/Lanyu (today taiwanese territory) and settled down there to become the Yami. So the Yami, coming from Luzon, brought with them their batanic language that is still an austronesian language but more closely related to the Luzon languages than the Taiwanese aboriginal languages (even if originally they are all coming from the same place/family). Yami people can understand and be understood from the Ivatan people. In fact, tao/tawu as in Tagalog if I remember well means 'people'.

Very interesting, thanks for that background

Yes, tao (or tawo/ tawu) in the Philippines also means people or person.

In the study of swords (or any ethnic object for that matter), I'm sure all will agree that it helps a lot if we can also understand the wars fought, the trading and migration patterns, etc.

But a lot of history was not written. But thanks to linguistics we can see who really influenced whom and to what extent.

As for the Taiwanese aborigine word, anito (referring to gods and/or the spirits of departed ones), it's not only in the Philippines (i.e., anito or anitu) where the word and its derivatives are still being used --

antu (Sea Dyak), nitu (east Indonesia), nitu (Fiji), aitu (Samoa), etua (Mangreva, French Polynesia), akua (Hawaii), otua (Tonga), atua (generic Polynesian), atua (Rotuma, south Pacific), atua (Easter Is.), etc.

A prominent Filipino scholar (Dr. Zeus A. Salazar) has published a book by the way, related the subject -- Ang Pilipinong Banwa/ Banua sa Mundong Melano-Polynesiano (loosely, The Filipino concept of motherland in the Melano-Polynesian [Austronesian] world).

In summary, in the study of the sword, it helps a lot studying words!

Quote:

Originally Posted by yuanzhumin

-Migueldiaz, for your wife : Taiwan is definitely a nice vacations trip to do ! Good restaurants, nice shops and museums, warm people, beautiful unspotted mountains ! You have everything there and cheaper than in Honkong or Japan !

Ok, you convinced me. But alone or with her, I'm definitely seeing that exhibit! A man has to know his priorities, you see

15th February 2010, 07:34 AM	#3
yuanzhumin Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Ex-Taipei, Taiwan, now in Shanghai, China Posts: 180	Philippines/Taiwan and in the middle, Botel Tobago. Migueldiaz, after my last post, I went to look for more infos on the sovereignity over Botel Tobago and found this article that is bringing more elements on the matter. http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/edit.../23/2003204030

18th February 2010, 03:01 AM	#8
yuanzhumin Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Ex-Taipei, Taiwan, now in Shanghai, China Posts: 180	Bronze knife and Dongson culture in Taiwan Nonoy, here is an interesting link about the bronze knife and Dongson culture in Taiwan: http://culture.teldap.tw/culture/sho...nze-knife.html

24th February 2010, 02:13 AM	#10
yuanzhumin Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Ex-Taipei, Taiwan, now in Shanghai, China Posts: 180	Yami exhibit pictures I visited the Yami exhibit during my Chinese New Year stay in Taiwan. For the ones interested, here are some pictures I took of this exhibit. Please, note the knives, the fish skin body armour and the rattan helmets. We can regret that there is not a silver helmet nor a coconut bark body armour on display.

15th February 2010, 06:57 AM	#2
yuanzhumin Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Ex-Taipei, Taiwan, now in Shanghai, China Posts: 180	Migueldiaz, concerning the language of the Yami: The Yami are very special Taiwanese aborigines because, today, they depend politically from Taiwan but they are in fact coming from Luzon. Let's go back in the time : the Austronesian began their migration from Mainland Asia around 8000 years ago, reaching first Taiwan. Then, on pirogues, they spread around 6000 years ago from Taiwan towards the rest of the Pacific till the Easter Island, in the West, and some part of Madagascar, in the east. On the beginning of this long migration, they reached first Luzon, in the Philippines, and mixed with other people that were already there for more than 20 000 years. It is now known that 800 hundred years ago, Ivatan people went from the batanes Islands (today Philippines) to the north, in the Bashi Channel, and reached the Orchid Island/Botel Tobago/Lanyu (today taiwanese territory) and settled down there to become the Yami. So the Yami, coming from Luzon, brought with them their batanic language that is still an austronesian language but more closely related to the Luzon languages than the Taiwanese aboriginal languages (even if originally they are all coming from the same place/family). Yami people can understand and be understood from the Ivatan people. In fact, tao/tawu as in Tagalog if I remember well means 'people'. -Migueldiaz, for your wife : Taiwan is definitely a nice vacations trip to do ! Good restaurants, nice shops and museums, warm people, beautiful unspotted mountains ! You have everything there and cheaper than in Honkong or Japan ! -Kukulza : Most of the plain aborigines assimilated themselves with the Han migrants. Some have been recognized as independant ethnic groups (Sakiraya...), some not (Siraya...). The Amis, the biggest aboriginal tribe in Taiwan, are often considered as plains aborigines. Whatever, the plains and mountains aborignes have always been distinct groups.

15th February 2010, 12:46 PM	#4
Nonoy Tan Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 293	yuanzhumin, thank you for those important insights. Are there traces of the Dong Son culture influence among the Formosa aborigines? How about in terms of archaeological findings?

15th February 2010, 04:34 PM	#5
yuanzhumin Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Ex-Taipei, Taiwan, now in Shanghai, China Posts: 180	Hi Nonoy, Yes, there are. The most obvious traces are the bronze knives that are considered as sacred among the Paiwan. I already displayed few of them in a previous thread titled 'Exceptionaly rare knife from Formosa/Taiwan' and posted on the 25th of March, 2006.

15th February 2010, 10:45 PM	#6
Nonoy Tan Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 293	Hi Yuanzhumin, I read through your past posts with much interest. You collection is outstanding! Thank you.

18th February 2010, 11:51 AM	#9
Nonoy Tan Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 293	Yuanzhumin, that was helpful of you. Thanks. Nonoy