Flags of Taiwan

On this page we present an overview of flags that are relevant for Taiwan. We want to give a better understanding of the sensitivities associated with the flags shown.

1895 Formosa Republic

This is the flag of the 1895 Formosa Republic, which was established on 25 May 1895 after the Shimonoseki Peace Treaty. It was the first independent republic in Asia. However, on 29 May 1895, a Japanese military force of over 12,000 soldiers landed in Northern Taiwan, and started to crush the movement. On 21 October 1895, Japanese imperial troops entered Tainan, the southern capital of the Taiwan Republic, ending its short life.

The Kuomintang Party

This logo was adopted by Sun Yat-sen's Society for Regenerating China in 1895. The crimson background (see below) was added to the society's flag before the 1911 Chinese revolution. The society became the Kuomintang in 1919 . It came over from China and occupied Taiwan following the defeat of the KMT at the end of the Chinese Civil War, 1945-49.

The "Republic of China";

This flag was proclaimed the flag of China in 1921. It is at the moment still the official flag of Taiwan, or "Republic of China", as it is referred to by the Chinese mainlanders (13% of the population) who came over from China with Chiang Kai-shek. To the native Taiwanese (85% of the population), it became a symbol of repression during the Kuomintang's four decades of martial law.

World United Formosans for Independence

This flag is the symbol of the World United Formosans for Independence, the prime organization advocating Taiwan independence. WUFI was established in 1970 through a merger of four existing overseas Taiwanese organizations in Japan, Europe, the United States, and Canada.

Democratic Progressive Party

This is the flag of the Democratic Progressive Party, which was established on 28 September 1986 in spite of the Kuomintang's repression and martial law. The green color symbolizes the hope for the island's future as a free and democratic nation. The island Taiwan on the broad white cross symbolizes the island at the crossroads.

The four-hearted flag

This flag was devised in Taiwan in 1996 in the "New Flag, New Anthem" campaign: the flag depicted here was selected after a wide competition in which 187 different flags were entered, but it was never formally adopted

• the green color symbolizes the natural beauty of the island and the need to protect the environment,
• the white color represents the original purity of the people on the island, and the desire to preserve this natural beauty, and
• The symbol in the middle depicts four hearts in harmony, representing the four population groups on the island -- aborigines, Hakka, Min-nan Taiwanese, and mainlanders -- who have to learn to live together in peace.

World Taiwanese Congress

This flag became the prime symbol of the overseas Taiwanese movement at the beginning of 2001. It is the flag of the World Taiwanese Congress (WTC), formally established in Taipei in March 2001 as the major overseas Taiwanese umbrella organization.