History of dance in Taiwan

Located between China, South Korea, Japan, and several island countries of Southeast Asia, Taiwan is situated at the junction of maritime traffic connecting Indo-Pacific countries. The earliest human activity on the island dated back to the Paleolithic Changbin culture in Taitung County.^[1] Taiwan then experienced the Dutch Formosa period (1624–1662), the Kingdom of Tungning (1661–1683), the Japanese rule (1895–1945), and the current period starting with the Nationalist government's move to Taiwan in 1949. With the human body as its primary medium of expression, dance is inextricably linked to the activities of different ethnic groups. Influenced by Taiwan's geographical location and historical background, the establishment and evolution of dance forms are closely connected to the political, economic, social, and cultural factors in every period.^[2]