Taiwan Province (traditional Chinese: 臺灣省 or 台灣省; simplified Chinese: 台湾省; pinyin: Táiwān Shěng) is one of the two administrative divisions of the Republic of China (ROC) that are officially referred to as "provinces". The province covers approximately 73% of the territory controlled by the ROC, with around 40% of the total population.
Geographically it covers the majority of the island of Taiwan as well as almost all of its surrounding islands, the largest of which are the Penghu archipelago, Green Island and Orchid Island. Taiwan Province does not cover territories in the direct-controlled special municipalities of Taipei, Kaohsiung, Taichung, Tainan, and New Taipei, all of which located geographically within main island of Taiwan. It also does not include the counties of Kinmen and Lienchiang, which are located alongside the southeast coast of Mainland China and administered as a separate Fujian Province.
Historically Taiwan Province covers the entire island of Taiwan and all its associated islands. All the special municipalities were split off from the province between 1967 and 2010. Since 1997 most of the Taiwan provincial government's functions have been transferred to the central government of the Republic of China following a constitutional amendment. The Taiwan provincial government has effectively become a nominal institution under the Executive Yuan's administration.
Taiwan (i/ˌtaɪˈwɑːn/ TY-WAHN; Chinese: 臺灣 or 台灣; pinyin: Táiwān; see below), officially the Republic of China (ROC; Chinese: 中華民國; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó), is a state in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China now governs the island of Taiwan (formerly known as Formosa), which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu, and other minor islands. Neighboring states include the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east and northeast, and the Philippines to the south. Taipei is the capital city and economic and cultural centre of the country, and New Taipei is the most populous city.
The earliest evidence of inhabitation of Taiwan dates back to the late Paleolithic era. The island of Taiwan was mainly inhabited by Taiwanese aborigines before being colonized in the 17th century by the Dutch and the Spanish Empire. The first Han Chinese polity on Taiwan began when Koxinga's troops defeated Dutch forces and established the Kingdom of Tungning. The island was subsequently ruled by the Qing Dynasty after the kingdom's defeat in the Battle of Penghu in 1683, a period that lasted for over 200 years. Following Japan's victory over the Qing Dynasty in the first Sino-Japanese war, Taiwan was ceded to Japan under the Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895.