This paper examines how mixed Indigenous Taiwanese individuals (defined as those who are part Indigenous and part Han Taiwanese) negotiate Indigeneity within overlapping structures of community norms, state recognition regimes, and lived experiences of mixed ancestry. Building on Barth’s theories of boundary-making, constructivist approaches to ethnicity, and contemporary critiques of authenticity and recognition, I argue that Indigeneity in Taiwan is not a fixed cultural inheritance but an ongoing process shaped through social interaction, institutional classification, and personal meaning-making. Drawing on preliminary interviews with mixed Indigenous adults from different tribal backgrounds, the research explores four guiding questions: How do mixed Indigenous Taiwanese people identify themselves and their Indigeneity? How do Indigenous communities identify mixed Indigenous Taiwanese people and their Indigeneity? How do mixed Indigenous Taiwanese people build belonging in Taiwan? And how do mixed Indigenous Taiwanese interact with their identity? By situating mixed Indigenous Taiwanese experiences within wider debates on Indigeneity, settler-state politics, and the social construction of identity, this paper contributes to rethinking how Indigenous belonging is defined and negotiated in Taiwan, as well contribute to the broder understanding of mixed identities are situate in contemporary times. Ultimately, it argues that for mixed Indigenous individuals, Indigeneity emerges not from cultural essence but through everyday practices of boundary negotiation, relational belonging, and assertions of identity in the face of institutional and social ambiguity.

Authors:
Gemma Verna Dallas, National Chengchi University, Taiwan

About the Presenter(s)
Gemma Dallas is pursing an International Masters of Asia Pacific Studies in Taipei, at National Chengchi University. Her research examines the nuanced, lived realities of mixed Indigenous identity in Taiwan, challenging binary notions of belonging.

Connect on Linkedin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/gemma-dallas/

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