SocietyEast Asia
Austronesians set out from Taiwan
The start of history's most far-reaching sea migration
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Linguistics pointed to Taiwan long before genetics and archaeology confirmed it: the most divergent Austronesian branches are all found there, the pattern expected at a point of origin. The outrigger, and later the double canoe, made it possible to cross open ocean carrying cargo. No other language family before modern times covered such a distance.
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From Taiwan people began sailing south in outrigger canoes with pigs, chickens and taro aboard. Their descendants eventually reached Madagascar in the west and Easter Island in the east — across half the globe.
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Part of Terra Saga — the story of Earth on a timeline. terrasaga.org