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The Sakizaya (native name: Sakuzaya, literally "real man"; ; occasionally Sakiraya or Sakidaya) are
Taiwanese indigenous peoples Taiwanese indigenous peoples (formerly Taiwanese aborigines), also known as Formosan people, Austronesian Taiwanese, Yuanzhumin or Gaoshan people, are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous peoples of Taiwan, with the nationally recogni ...
with a population of approximately 1,000. They primarily live in Hualien (formerly known as ''Kiray''), where their culture is centered. The Sakizaya are an
Austronesian people The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Au ...
, mostly related to other
Taiwanese indigenous peoples Taiwanese indigenous peoples (formerly Taiwanese aborigines), also known as Formosan people, Austronesian Taiwanese, Yuanzhumin or Gaoshan people, are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous peoples of Taiwan, with the nationally recogni ...
and have cultural, linguistic, and genetic ties to other Austronesian ethnic groups, such as those from the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
,
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...
,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...
,
Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Afric ...
, and
Oceania Oceania (, , ) is a geographical region that includes Australasia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Spanning the Eastern and Western hemispheres, Oceania is estimated to have a land area of and a population of around 44.5 million ...
. The Sakizaya traditionally practiced
ancestor worship The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fortune of t ...
, which includes the worship of a
pantheon Pantheon may refer to: * Pantheon (religion), a set of gods belonging to a particular religion or tradition, and a temple or sacred building Arts and entertainment Comics *Pantheon (Marvel Comics), a fictional organization * ''Pantheon'' (Lone St ...
of gods and ancestral spirits. However, most have converted to
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...
. Their society is mostly
matrilinear Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's lineage – and which can involve the inheritance o ...
, and women often have the authority. On 17 January 2007, the Taiwan government recognized the community as a distinct ethnic group. Before this, the people was previously classified as Amis, the group where they "hid" after they, and their Kavalan allies, fought a devastating battle against Qing invaders during the late 19th century.


History

Due to their intermingling within other peoples, the original genetic identity of the Sakizaya is uncertain. According to one study, they are intimately related to the Northern and Middle Amis. They also seem to share certain genetic traits with other indigenous groups, as well as with the Taiwanese Han, though this may have been a result of intermarriage. The C2 and C3
haplogroups A haplotype is a group of alleles in an organism that are inherited together from a single parent, and a haplogroup (haploid from the el, ἁπλοῦς, ''haploûs'', "onefold, simple" and en, group) is a group of similar haplotypes that share ...
are absent in their population.


Early history

Much of the history of the Sakizaya is unknown. It is unclear when the Sakizaya, or their ancestors, first arrived in Taiwan. According to some experts, the first human inhabitants of the island arrived 15,000 years ago and were dependent on marine life for survival.Rolett, Barry V., Jiao, Tianlong & Lin, Gongwu (2002). "Early seafaring in the Taiwan Strait and the search for Austronesian origins." ''
Journal of Early Modern History The ''Journal of Early Modern History'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal focusing on the early modern period. It is the official journal of the University of Minnesota Center for Early Modern History, and is published by Brill since 1997. The ...
''. 4.1:307–319.
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several pa ...
peoples began arriving 6,000 years ago, which allowed the advent of agriculture, domestic animals, polished stone adzes, and pottery. The presence of these adzes imply a relation with the
Penghu The Penghu (, Hokkien POJ: ''Phîⁿ-ô͘''  or ''Phêⁿ-ô͘'' ) or Pescadores Islands are an archipelago of 90 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait, located approximately west from the main island of Taiwan, covering an area ...
islands, where these objects are common.


Colonial era

The first contact with the community outside of
Formosa Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territori ...
occurred during the 17th century, when the
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
and the
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
arrived. It was during this time when a 1636 Spanish document was written about the name and activities of the people. Since then, there were not any reports of external contact until the 19th century.


Karewan Incident

In 1878, the Sakizaya, and their Kavalan allies, fought a devastating battle against
Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
invaders. This event ended in disaster for both communities causing many of their members to be slaughtered in an event called the "" (also known as the “Galeewan Incident” or “Kalyawan Battle”). Others were displaced by Han settlers.Sakizaya Geographic Distribution
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
ese Council of Indigenous Peoples. Retrieved on February 28, 2008
The remaining Sakizaya, meanwhile, were forced to blend with other peoples, such as the Ami, with the intention of protecting their identity. When the Japanese ruled
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
in 1895, anthropologists classified the people as a subgroup of the Amis. The people, however, discreetly maintained their own culture and language which continued during the next century.Taiwan recognises 'lost' people
.
BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadc ...
. Retrieved on January 19, 2007


Modern times

In 2004, the community presented a petition for official ethnic group status to the
Council of Indigenous Peoples The Council of Indigenous Peoples (CIP; ), formerly known as the Council of Aboriginal Affairs, is a ministry-level body under the Executive Yuan in Taiwan (Republic of China). It was established to serve the needs of the country's indigenous ...
based on historical, linguistic and cultural data.Sakizaya ratified as thirteenth indigenous tribe
. ''The China Post'' Vol. XLI, No.18,5484. p.19. Retrieved on January 17, 2007
This was officially filed on 13 October 2005. Eventually, the petition was approved on 17 January 2007, recognizing them as a distinct ethnic group. Like other Taiwanese Aborigines, the Sakizaya face contemporary social and economic challenges.Hsu, Mutsu (1991). "Culture, Self and Adaptation: The Psychological Anthropology of Two Malayo-Polynesian Groups in Taiwan". Institute of Ethnology, Academia Sinica. . These include urbanization of the youth, a phenomenon that may affect their culture.


Language

The Sakizaya language was classified as a dialect of Nataoran Amis,Tokyo University Linguistic Papers Vol. 13 : Abstracts
.
Tokyo University , abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project by ...
. Retrieved on June 1, 2007
a
Formosan language The Formosan languages are a geographic grouping comprising the languages of the indigenous peoples of Taiwan, all of which are Austronesian. They do not form a single subfamily of Austronesian but rather nine separate subfamilies. The Taiwa ...
that belongs to the Austronesian language family.Amis, Nataoran: A language of Taiwan
.
Ethnologue ''Ethnologue: Languages of the World'' (stylized as ''Ethnoloɠue'') is an annual reference publication in print and online that provides statistics and other information on the living languages of the world. It is the world's most comprehensi ...
. Published in 2005. Retrieved on June 1, 2007
However, the
National Chengchi University National Chengchi University () is a public research university in Taipei. The university is also considered as the earliest public service training facility of the Republic of China. First established in Nanjing in 1927, the university was subs ...
opened the classification to debate, stating that Sakizaya remains 60–70 percent different from the
Amis language Amis ( or ) is a Formosan language of the Amis (or Ami), an indigenous people living along the east coast of Taiwan. Currently the largest of the Formosan languages, it is spoken from Hualien in the north to Taitung in the south, with another ...
despite the two groups living together. Currently, there are about 2,000 speakers of the language.The Secret's Out
. ''Taiwan Review''. Published on April 4, 2007. Retrieved on May 5, 2007
The people also speaks several other languages. These include languages spoken by the peoples where they have hidden such as Amis, and Mandarin, the official language of the
country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...
.Taiwan People
.
CIA Factbook ''The World Factbook'', also known as the ''CIA World Factbook'', is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official print version is available ...
. Retrieved on June 11, 2007


Religion

The Sakizaya practice a variety of religions. These include traditional beliefs that mixes aspects of ancestor worship and animism. Some may also practice Christianity. The traditional religious beliefs of the Sakizaya are currently experiencing external pressures since many of the tribesmen may have converted to
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...
.Stainton, Michael (2006). "Hou Shan/Qian Shan Mugan: Categories of Self and Other in a Tayal Village" in Yeh Chuen-Rong (ed.) ''History, Culture and Ethnicity: Selected Papers from the International Conference on the Formosan Indigenous Peoples''.
Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
: SMC Publishing Inc.
The threat is heightened by the increasing importance of Christianity to the community.


Ancestor worship/animism


Dito

The people are known to practice
ancestor worship The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fortune of t ...
. They believe on a pantheon of ancestral spirits and deities known as ''dito'', similar to the ''kawas'' of the Amis,Sakizaya Religion and Belief
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
ese Council of Indigenous Peoples. Retrieved on February 28, 2008
as well as the ''
anito ''Anito'', also spelled ''anitu'', refers to ancestor spirits, nature spirits, and deities in the indigenous Philippine folk religions from the precolonial age to the present, although the term itself may have other meanings and associa ...
'' of the
Filipinos Filipinos ( tl, Mga Pilipino) are the people who are citizens of or native to the Philippines. The majority of Filipinos today come from various Austronesian ethnolinguistic groups, all typically speaking either Filipino, English and/or other ...
. They are considered to be "fickle as the weather" so priests or ''mapalaway'' are necessary to communicate with them. They are invisible to most people though they are known to wear red. Several beliefs are associated with these spirits, such as pregnancy and death. The homeland of the ''dito'' is Meilun Mountain in Hualien, which is also the place where the deceased pass through before finally resting in the sea.


Gods and rituals

The Sakizaya have several gods. A few examples include Malataw‧Otoki, the deity the spirit of the world, Olipong, the god that "drives away illnesses", and Talaman or Takonawan, the god of the poor. An individual's personal ''dito'' become the god of death once they have died. Rituals are practiced to appease the ''dito'' and often mimic rituals performed by other Austronesian peoples.Sakizaya Rituals and Legend
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
ese Council of Indigenous Peoples. Retrieved on February 28, 2008
The practice of these are dictated according to the seasons: spring or ''pasavaan'', summer or ''ralod'', fall or ''sadinsing'', and winter or ''kasinawan''. An example of these is the ''Palamal'' or the "Worship of the Fire God". According to a Japanese document, several rituals are associated with the main staples,
millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets a ...
or ''havay'' and dry rice or ''tipus''. These included the "Millet Sowing Ritual", "Fishing Ritual", "Collecting Ritual", "Harvest Ritual", and "Storing Ritual", which are all based on the growth of the millet.


Christianity

Another religion practiced by some Sakizaya is
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...
. The religion first arrived in Formosa during the age of
European colonization The historical phenomenon of colonization is one that stretches around the globe and across time. Ancient and medieval colonialism was practiced by the Phoenicians, the Greeks, the Turks, and the Arabs. Colonialism in the modern sense be ...
. Its formal arrival occurred in 1627, during the arrival of Georgius Candidius, the first ordained minister to set foot on the island.''Formosa under the Dutch, Described From Contemporary Records'', 2nd Edition According to this missionary, the conversion of the natives was effective. The conversion was so successful that native clergymen soon became a necessity. This success, however, was short-lived since Christians faced persecution after the arrival of the Chinese. It was not until late in the 20th century that this religion began to achieve its resurgence. Currently, almost 70 percent of Taiwanese Aborigines practice Christianity, though the exact number of Sakizaya practicing this religion is uncertain. The religion has become effective in maintaining social unity, which has been held by traditional practices.


Society and culture

Only a few aspects of the Sakizaya's society and culture have been revealed. It is known that they have a
matrilinear Matrilineality is the tracing of kinship through the female line. It may also correlate with a social system in which each person is identified with their matriline – their mother's lineage – and which can involve the inheritance o ...
society. Women often have the authority in the household.Sakizaya Cultural Feature
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
ese Council of Indigenous Peoples. Retrieved on February 28, 2008
In terms of survival,
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from fish stocking, stocked bodies of water such as fish pond, ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. ...
and
hunting Hunting is the human activity, human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, or killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to harvest food (i.e. meat) and useful animal products (fur/hide (skin), hide, ...
are important.
Rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...
cultivation also forms a significant aspect of their food production. This practice is thought to have been acquired through the Kavalan.
Millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets a ...
is important as a food source and as a way in determining the occasions of festivals. Golden robes are usually worn by important community leaders during special celebrations.Sakizaya becomes the 13th indigenous group
Taiwan Journal. Published on January 26, 2007. Retrieved on May 5, 2007.
Headhunting Headhunting is the practice of hunting a human and collecting the severed head after killing the victim, although sometimes more portable body parts (such as ear, nose or scalp) are taken instead as trophies. Headhunting was practiced in h ...
was once prevalentHsu, Mutsu (1991). "Culture, Self and Adaptation: The Psychological Anthropology of Two Malayo-Polynesian Groups in Taiwan." Institute of Ethnology, Academia Sinica. . pp.29–36 but has fallen out of practice.Montgomery-McGovern, Janet B. (1922). ''Among the Head-Hunters of Formosa''.
Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
: Small Maynard and Co. Reprinted 1997,
Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
: SMC Publishing.
The culture of the Sakizaya is under threat due to the small but steady
urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly th ...
of Sakizaya youth. Efforts to preserve their culture have been initiated by the government, which believes this could be beneficial to
ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide fund ...
.Anderson, Christian (2000). "New Austronesian Voyaging: Cultivating Amic Folk Songs for the International Stage" in David Blundell (ed.), ''Austronesian Taiwan: Linguistics, History, Ethnology, Prehistory''.
Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...
: SMC Publishing


Age-class systems

According to Japanese researchers, Sakizaya men are divided into age-class systems, known as ''sral'', where they stay for about five years. Between infancy and 15 years of age, boys are classed into the child class or ''wawa''. They soon participate in a ritual known as ''Masatrot'' and are trained in a youth-house or ''talaon'', where they learn to obey orders as well as certain commands. Once they accomplished this, they would move to the preparatory youth class or ''kapah'' and stay there until they are 23 years of age, when they finally reach the superior class.


See also

*
Demographics of Taiwan The population of Taiwan is approximately 23.19 million as of September 2022. Immigration of Han Chinese to the Penghu islands started as early as the 13th century, while settlement of the main island occurred from the 16th century during the ...
*
Taiwanese indigenous peoples Taiwanese indigenous peoples (formerly Taiwanese aborigines), also known as Formosan people, Austronesian Taiwanese, Yuanzhumin or Gaoshan people, are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous peoples of Taiwan, with the nationally recogni ...


References

{{Taiwanese indigenous peoples Taiwanese indigenous peoples Headhunting