The Republic of China

 The Republic of China: Asia's first constitutional democracy, the Republic of China, was
 founded in 1912 by Dr. Sun Yat-sen. The ROC government moved to Taiwan after the
 Chinese mainland fell to communist Chinese forces in 1949.

 The Taiwan Area: The area over which the ROC government exercises administrative
 control is called the Taiwan area. This area encompasses Taiwan proper, Penghu (the
 Pescadores), Kinmen (Quemoy), Matsu, Orchid Island, Green Island, and the Tiaoyutai
 Islets. Also under ROC government jurisdiction are the Spratlys, the Paracels, Macclesfield
 Bank, and the Pratas Islands. The majority of the people in the Taiwan area live in Taiwan
 proper, which is why the Taiwan area is often referred to simply as Taiwan.

 Location: Taiwan is located in the middle of a chain of islands in the West Pacific stretching
 from Japan in the north to the Philippines in the southwest. It lies off the southeast coast of
 the Chinese mainland and is separated from it by the Taiwan Strait, which is about 220
 kilometers at its widest point and 130 kilometers at its narrowest.

 Size: Taiwan is 394 kilometers long and 144 kilometers broad at its widest point. It has an
 area of approximately 36,000 square kilometers (14,000 square miles) and is slightly smaller
 than the Netherlands.

 Topography: Taiwan is very mountainous. Five longitudinal mountain ranges occupy almost
 half of the island and extend 330 kilometers from north to south. Taiwan has many peaks,
 with more than 200 of them rising over 3,000 meters above sea level.

 Climate: Taiwan enjoys an oceanic, subtropical monsoon climate. The mean monthly
 temperature in the lowlands is about 16 degrees Celsius (61 degrees Fahrenheit) in the
 winter and ranges between 25 degrees Celsius (77 degrees Fahrenheit) and 28 degrees
 Celsius (82 degrees Fahrenheit) in the summer. Average annual rainfall is approximately 100
 inches (2,515 mm).

 Population: As of June 1998, about 21.8 million people were residing in the Taiwan area,
 with most of them in Taiwan's western coastal plains.

 Languages: Mandarin is the official language of the Republic of China, although the Southern
 Fukienese and Hakka dialects are used extensively in the Taiwan area. The nine tribes of
 indigenous people in Taiwan speak different languages belonging to the Proto-Austronesian
 linguistic family.