What is the area and population of Taiwan?

Taiwan has a total area of ??36,000 square kilometers and a population of 23,487,509 in 2021.

Taiwan Province of China includes Taiwan Island and 21 affiliated islands including Orchid Island, Green Island, Diaoyu Island, and 64 islands in the Penghu Islands. Taiwan Island covers an area of ??35882.6258 square kilometers and is the largest island in China. 70% of it is mountainous and hilly. Plains are mainly concentrated on the western coast, and the terrain and elevation vary greatly. More than 70% of the population of Taiwan Province of China is concentrated in five metropolitan areas in the west, of which the Taipei Metropolitan Area, centered on the major city of Taipei, is the largest.

Historical evolution

The name of a community originated from the "Taiwowan" community of an ethnic minority in southern Taiwan, which means coastal land. The immigrants from Fujian Province who developed Taiwan used this name in Hokkien. The name was translated as "Da Yuan", "Tai Yuan", "Dawan", etc., and was later named "Taiwan".

During the Wanli Period of the Ming Dynasty, officials officially used the name "Taiwan" in official documents, but until the Ming Dynasty, "Taiwan" referred to the Tainan area of ??Taiwan Province. It was not until the Qing Dynasty that the entire island was officially named "Taiwan" and the "Taiwan Prefecture" affiliated with Fujian Province was established. Before the Guangxu era, it was the only "prefecture" in Taiwan. In 1885, Taiwan Province was established. The abbreviation of Taiwan Province is taken from the first letter of the province's name, "Taiwan".