Saisiyat people

Saisiyat
賽夏
Pas-ta'ai ceremonies in Nanzhuang, Miaoli, Taiwan
Total population
6,743 (2020)
Regions with significant populations
Taiwan
Languages
Saisiyat, Mandarin Chinese
Religion
Animism, Christianity
Related ethnic groups
Taiwanese Aborigines

The Saisiyat (Chinese: 賽夏; pinyin: Sàixià; Wade–Giles: Sai4 Hsia4; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: 獅設族(Sai-siat-cho̍k); lit. 'true people'; Hakka Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: 賽夏族(Sòi-hà-tshu̍k)), also spelled Saisiat, are an indigenous people of Taiwan. In 2000 the Saisiyat numbered 5,311, which was approximately 1.3% of Taiwan's total indigenous population,[1] making them one of the smallest aboriginal groups in the country. The Saisiyat inhabit Western Taiwan, overlapping the border between Hsinchu County and Miaoli County. They are divided into the Northern Branch (Wufong in the mountainous Hsinchu area) and the Southern Branch (Nanzhuang and Shitan in the highlands of Miaoli), each with its own dialect. Their language is also known as Saisiyat.

  1. ^ Directorate General of Budget, Accounting and Statistics, Executive Yuan, R.O.C. (DGBAS). National Statistics, Republic of China (Taiwan). Preliminary statistical analysis report of 2000 Population and Housing Census Archived 2007-03-12 at the Wayback Machine Excerpted from Table 28:Indigenous population distribution in Taiwan-Fukien Area. Accessed PM 8/30/06