Taiwan Test

It's test time! Let's just see how much you really know about the country of Taiwan.


1. The island of Taiwan is located just north of which country?

a. Tonga (Go to number 27)
b. The Philippines (Go to number 32)
c. Korea (Go to number 16)

2. Let's just say that you're in the ballpark. Close … but unh-uh. Please go back to number 8 and try again!
 
3. You've got a great memory for names! Too bad it's a 50 year old memory. Chiang Kai Shek was the first president of Taiwan, setting up rule on the island after fleeing the communist takeover of China in 1949. Please go back to number 22 and try again!

4. Ka ching! Ka ching! That NT stands for New Taiwan dollar, and its exchange rate is currently pegged out at 34 NT = 1 U.S.D. Here's your next question:

What is it that covers about two-thirds of the island of Taiwan?

a. Rice fields (Go to number 18)
b. Tea plantations (Go to number 31)
c. Mountains (Go to number 26)

5. Taiwan is indeed a haven for many gorgeous (and rare) butterflies. Too bad that's not what its name means in Chinese. Please go back to number 32 and try again!

6. Who'd have thought it? (Certainly not us.) And this doesn't even include those 53 pesky little Spratly islands that are also claimed by China, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, and the Philippines. (Amazing how rumors of oil can up the value of ugly rocks in the ocean.) Now on to your next question:

One small area of Taiwan lays claim to having more of which of the following things per square kilometer than anywhere else in the world?

a. Rare birds (Go to number 14)
b. Phd's (Go to number 22)
c. Cell phones (Go to number 30)

7. You're kidding, right? In a place where you can find such exotic fruits as mangos, papaya, lychee, pomelo, dragon eyes, and star fruit, we'll grant that watermelon is a bit mundane. Mundane, but plentiful. Please go back to number 29 and try again!

8. You got it! The other choices are certainly more exciting, but Terraced Bay it is. In Chinese, "yang tai" means a terrace, and "hai wan" refers to an ocean bay. Put 'em together and you get "Yanghai." (Just kidding.) On to your next question: 

How many people presently live in Taiwan?

a. 16 million (Go to number 20)
b. 20 million (Go to number 2)
c. 23 million (Go to number 15)

9. Wow! You really know your stuff! But (pregnant pause) your dates are a bit off. The Dutch ruled Taiwan between 1624 and 1661. Please go back to number 26 and 
try again!

10. Sounds reasonable … but that still doesn't make it true. Please go back to number 15 and try again!

11. Feels right, doesn't it? Just goes to show you shouldn't depend on your feelings. Please go back to number 26 and try again!

12. Well, bow wow … the dogs of Taiwan are cheering your correct answer. You would have thought that tons of stray dogs and millions of bats might make for a dangerous combination. Guess it's easier on an island to keep stuff like rabies in check. Keep on going to your next question:

What is the name of the monetary currency in Taiwan?

a. Baht (Go to number 28)
b. NT (Go to number 4)
c. Yen (Go to number 21)

13. That's the right answer … if the question is "Who was Taiwan's last president?" Please go back to number 22 and try again!

14. Nice try, but no cigar. There are tons of rare birds in Taiwan, but not world-record setting or anything. Please go back to number 6 and try again!

15. Not too bad … unless this is your third choice. Taiwan does indeed have 23 million inhabitants, which include Taiwanese (74%), Hakka (14%), Mainlanders (10%), and Indigenous Peoples (2%). Kinda hard to imagine so many people living on such a small island, isn't it? And that leads right to your next question:

Which of the following countries has a greater population density (more people per square kilometer) than Taiwan?

a. Indonesia (Go to number 33)
b. Cambodia (Go to number 10)
c. Bangladesh (Go to number 29)

16. Not quite. Taiwan lies to the south of Korea, not to the north. Please go back to number 1 and try again!

17. Hmmm. 17 islands on number 17. Great system you have! Who else would have guessed it? No one but you. Please go back to number 19 and try again!

18. Great guess! Tough luck that you're wrong. There are too many buildings and other "obstructions" (hint, hint) in the way for rice fields to cover so much of Taiwan. Please go back to number 4 and try again!

19. Sashimi Kawasaki! (Japanese for "You got it!") China ceded tiny Taiwan to Japan as the spoils of a naval war it lost in 1895. The influence was so great during those fifty years of Nippon rule that you'll still find a certain nostalgia among the elderly residents of Taiwan and a love for all things Japanese. Now on to your next question:

How many islands actually make up what we call Taiwan?

a. 17 (Go to number 17)
b. 53 (Go to number 23)
c. 86 (Go to number 6)

20. Your calculator must be on the fritz today. Please go back to number 8 and try again!

21. Sorry. A yen for yen is really a desire for Japanese money. Please go back to number 12 and try again!

22. It ain't braggin' if it's the truth! The high-technology Hsinchu Science-Industrial Park (just north of Toufen, by the way) is apparently packed to the gills with highly educated personnel. So on to your next question:

Who is the current president of Taiwan?

a. Chen Shui Bian (Go to number 34)
b. Chiang Kai Shek (Go to number 3)
c. Lee Teng Hui (Go to number 13)

23. We'll give you a hint. You're either too high or too low. Please go back to number 19 and try again!

24. If we were asking for the meaning of "Formosa" - the old Portuguese name for Taiwan - then you would be correct. But we weren't … and you're not. Please go back to number 32 and try again!

25. Gotcha! You'd think a sub-tropical climate would pretty much sound the death knell on snow … but think again. It arrives almost every winter on the slopes of several of the 3000+ meter high mountains. Please go back to number 29 and try again!

26. Nailed it! Two-thirds of the island is covered by mountains … and not just dumpy little ones either. Taiwan is pretty proud to advertise that at 3,952 meters (13,114 feet) Jade Mountain is the highest peak in all of Northeast Asia. (As long as you don't count any of those Himalayan foothills.) Now on to your next question: 

Which country ruled Taiwan between 1895 and 1945?

a. China (Go to number 11)
b. The Netherlands (Go to number 9)
c. Japan (Go to number 19)

27. Nice try, but Tonga is so far away from Taiwan that its summer is Taiwan's winter and vice versa. (What with Tonga being in the southern hemisphere and all.) Please go back to number 1 and try again!

28. It's so easy to confuse Thailand with Taiwan, isn't it? Please go back to number 12 and try again!

29. Bangladesh it is! And if you exclude some of those city-nations like Singapore and Hong Kong, there are no countries in the world - other than Bangladesh - with a greater population density than Taiwan. (How's that for selective statistics?) On to your next question:

Which of the following things will you not find in Taiwan?

a. Snow (Go to number 25)
b. Watermelons (Go to number 7) 
c. Rabies (Go to number 12)

30. Check out the number of cell phones in the local MacDonalds one night and you might be tempted to think this is the right answer. But it's not. Please go back to number 6 and try again!

31. Oops! Tea is very popular in Taiwan … but not that popular. Please go back to number 4 and try again!

32. Piece of cake, right? The Philippines is just south of Taiwan, China is to the west, China again (surprise, surprise) is to the north, and heading east will cause you to
eventually run smack into Hawaii. Traveling on to your next question:

What does "Taiwan" mean in Chinese?

a. Terraced Bay (Go to number 8)
b. Beautiful Island (Go to number 24)
c. Butterfly Haven (Go to number 5)

33. Not too bad a guess. Not too good either. Please go back to number 15 and try again!

34. Congratulations! You aced the test! Chen Shui Bian, elected in March 2000, is the first opposition party president that Taiwan has ever had. (Hey … open elections just started a few years ago.)


Thanks for taking our Taiwan Test! If you have any questions, comments, or corrections, please feel free to contact us at team@hakkaministries.org. We'll be sure and get back to you!