Location: Eastern Asia, islands bordering the East China Sea, Philippine Sea, South China Sea, and Taiwan Strait,
north of the Philippines, off the southeastern coast of China

Area: total: 35,980 sq km

Capital: Taipei

Population: 23,230,506 (January 2012 est.)

Government type: multiparty democracy

Religions: mixture of Buddhist, Confucian, and Taoist 93%, Christian 4.5%, other 2.5%

Languages: Mandarin Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects

Ethnic groups: Taiwanese (including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese 14%, aborigine 2%

Concise history:
1544 The Portuguese Taiwan, and called it the beautiful island (Ilha Formosa)
1624 The Dutch colonize the south of Formosa
1626 The Spanish colonize northern Taiwan
1683 The Manchus (Tartars) conquer Taiwan which becomes part of the Chinese empire
1884 French forces lead by Admiral Coubert invade northern Taiwan
1895 China cedes Taiwan to Japan
1939 - 1945: World War II Japan surrenders and China's Chiang Kai-shek appoints General Chen-Yi to take over Taiwan
1946 90% of Japanese expelled from Taiwan
1949 Chiang Kai-shek defeated in China and flee to Taiwan
1975: Chiang Kai-shek dies and is suceeded by his son Chiang Ching-Kuo who ruled until 1988