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The University of Nottingham’s Taiwan Research Hub: Reflections on Contemporary Developments in the PRC 2019-2024

14. October 2024

The University of Nottingham’s Taiwan Research Hub presents a talk by Professor Katherine Morton, Schwarzman College Professor of Global Affairs and Associate of the Oxford China Centre and a Professorial Research […]

DGA Blog Digest

13. October 2024

Generative Künstliche Intelligenz (KI) – Auswirkungen auf die Gesellschaft und ihre Regulierung Online Event | 2024-10-30, 8:00–9:30 MEZRead more CfA: Roger E. Covey Professor of Silk Road Studies, Open Rank, […]

United Digital Publications: South China Sea Island Dispute; Rafu Shimpo

13. October 2024

Since the 1968 UN report, the South China Sea has been dubbed the ‘Second Persian Gulf’ due to its key role in global shipping and abundant resources in fisheries, oil, […]

United Digital Publications – AI Adds Color and Diversity to Black-and-White History

13. October 2024

Sinology master Chen Yinke once said that ‘new materials’ lead the way for academic trends; likewise, ‘new technologies’ can revolutionize scholarly development. History, once seen as ‘black-and-white memory,’ can now […]

National Day / Nationalfeiertag 2024

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Jimmy Brainless - Im Schein der Pfütze Buchpräsentation 22 Mai 2024

Wie ruft man Erinnerungen wach? Der eine beißt in eine Madeleine und
schlürft Lindenblütentee, ein anderer steht über eine Pfütze gebeugt und
„glotzt sich die Vergangenheit lebendig". Weil der Monsun in Taiwan
allgegenwärtig ...ist, mangelt es nicht an Wasserpfützen, in denen sich für
Simon – einen Gespaltenen zwischen zwei Welten und unentschlossen,
was seine Zukunft betrifft – die Geschichte seiner Familie zu spiegeln
scheint, mal wie sie wirklich war, mal wie sie gewesen sein könnte: Nahe
Tainan führt Lín Jin-Yì das Regiment als Schul- und Haushaltsvorstand.
Seine Sparsamkeit ist legendär, die Duldsamkeit seiner Frau auch. Am
Wiener Alsergrund indes spiegelt die Pfütze einen anderen Mann, den geachteten wie gefürchteten Exekutor Anton, der nicht nur seine Schuhe, sondern auch die Vergangenheit zu polieren weiß. Was die beiden verbindet: Sie pflanzen sich leicht zeitversetzt auf zwei verschiedenen Kontinenten fort und werden eines Tages Großväter von Simon. Zuvor müssen sich freilich noch Jin-Yì|s Tochter und Antons Sohn kennenlernen... Im Schein der Pfütze ist ein drei Generationen und zwei Kontinente umspannendes Kaleidoskop an Geschichten und Figuren. Packend wie lehrreich, insbesondere was die hierzulande wenig bekannte Geschichte und Kultur Taiwans angeht.

Jimmy Brainless ist Musiker und Autor mit taiwanischen Wurzeln. Er schreibt
literarische Texte, die bisher in diversen Literaturmagazinen und Anthologien
publiziert worden sind. 2023 belegte er beim WortReich-Kurzgeschichtenwettbewerb den zweiten Platz.[+] Show More

Jimmy Brainless - Im Schein der Pfütze Buchpräsentation 22 Mai 2024

Wie ruft man Erinnerungen wach? Der eine beißt in eine Madeleine und ...

Ann Heylen – A 17th Century Depiction of Women in Dutch Formosa Source Materials

This project examines the accessibility of disclosed and undisclosed ...

This project examines the accessibility of disclosed and undisclosed archival materials related to early modern Taiwan history over the past decades. The integration of digital humanities tools and methods has ...accelerated this accessibility within the academic community. However, it emphasizes the importance of methodological validity, and to formulate solid questions rather than solely relying on data availability. A key concern arises when analyzing historical data from the 17th century. For the historian these materials are part of the legacy of Dutch colonial history, and are revealing a male-centric perspective that shapes the discourse on women. This construction of discourse creates power positions that have come to inhabit different levels of privilege and obscure a more layered and intricate post/colonial historiography. The presentation adopts an intersectional lens to explore colonialism as an epistemological endeavor, highlighting the intertwining of gender and race. Utilizing archival data, the project aims to make visible the women histories that have been marginalized within dominant historical narratives. This will be illustrated with three types of materials: 1) an undisclosed manuscript Kerkboeck (Church Minutes of the Tayouan Consistory 1642-1649); 2) the 1980-2000s Dutch edited and annotated published version of De Dagregisters van het kasteel Zeelandia, Taiwan 1629-1662 (Daily Journals); and 3) the recent (2000-) Taiwan edited version of De missiven van de VOC- gouverneur in Taiwan aan de Gouverneur -Generaal te Batavia (Taiwan Missiven).

Ann Heylen is Professor at the Department of Taiwan Culture, Languages and Literature (TCLL) at National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) and currently serves as the Director of the International Taiwan Studies Center, College of Liberal Arts at NTNU. She holds a Ph.D. in Chinese Studies (Sinology) from Catholic University Leuven, Belgium. She is editor-in-chief of the East Asian Journal of Popular Culture (EAJPC, Intellect). Her publications cover the history and historiography of Taiwan, with special attention to Dutch Formosa, the Japanese colonial period (1895-1945).[+] Show More

Ann Heylen – The Representation of Womankind in Dutch Formosa Research 10 April 2024

This presentation underscores the significance of scrutinizing both ...

This presentation underscores the significance of scrutinizing both secondary research data generating historical narratives and the nature of archival sources in making visible marginalized histories within dominant narratives. While both ...objectives are interconnected, the focus here is on the former rather than contextualizing the literary generic of the source material. The exploration of the 17th century Dutch colonial project in early modern Taiwan remains a vibrant area of research and extends beyond the realm of historians. Of interest is to see how the research output shapes the gender and race discourse within colonialism. Specifically, the presentation aims to understand the gendered nature of the VOC (Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie/ Dutch East India Company) and its impact on postcolonial historiography in Taiwan. It examines the development of this gender narrative against the backdrop of Taiwan’s complex and multilayered colonial past, identifying ethnic components that have been concealed, silenced, biased, or overemphasized in the historically evolved constructions of social and cultural realities. To address these questions, an overview of themes in Dutch Formosa history (in English and Mandarin) relating to gender will be provided, with selected illustrations subjected to in-depth analysis. The concluding remarks will draw a renewed attention to how womankind feature in the Dutch colonial project and its civilizing mission in the Tayouan factory on Formosa.

Ann Heylen is Professor at the Department of Taiwan Culture, Languages
and Literature (TCLL) at National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) and currently serves as
the Director of the International Taiwan Studies Center, College of Liberal Arts at NTNU.
She holds a Ph.D. in Chinese Studies (Sinology) from Catholic University Leuven, Belgium.
She is editor-in-chief of the East Asian Journal of Popular Culture (EAJPC, Intellect). Her
publications cover the history and historiography of Taiwan, with special attention to Dutch
Formosa, the Japanese colonial period (1895-1945).

Wednesday 10 April 24, 18.30 -20.00, SIN 1 (Altes AKH, Campus of the University of Vienna, Hof 2, Entrance 2.3, 1090, Vienna)[+] Show More