Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “Taiwan” come from?

Taiwan derives from Dutch Tayouan, which was used by Dutch traders in the 17th century to refer to the island, with origins in the local indigenous language.

Ancestry of “Taiwan”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Chinese Mandarin臺灣—
2Hokkien臺灣—

Words derived from “Taiwan”

  • Taiwanese
  • Taiwaneseness
  • Taiwan
  • Táiwáán
  • Taiwan
Every word from Hokkien 臺灣 →