Only 25,000 people still speak the endangered Seediq language.The News Lens
Date: 2019/08/02
By Abhinash Das

Human history is full of examples of the struggles between indigenous peoples and colonial powers.

The Seediq tribe (賽德克族), one of the aboriginal tribes of Taiwan, has a similar history of fighting for their rights against the Japanese colonial power that occupied the island from 1895 to 1945.

Today the Seediq tribe only has a population of 8,994 and its language is classified as a critically endangered language.

The term “Seediq” refers to both the people and their language. The Seediq language is a part of the Austronesian language family and it is made up of three major dialects: Truku, Toda, and Tgdaya. The Truku dialect is also shared by the Truku (or Taroko) tribes.    [FULL  STORY]