Lawmaker calls for Academia Sinica to change name

A DPP lawmaker is calling on Academia Sinica to change its English name to reflect that the institution is Taiwanese. Legislator Fan Yun said that the research body should drop the word “sinica,” which means Chinese in Latin. She suggested that it be replaced it with the word “Taiwan” or "Taiwanica,” to avoid stoking confusion in the international community. Academia Sinica President James Liao said that the institution was open to discussing a new name. But he said that any change would have to be aligned with the government’s stance on Taiwan’s political status. Academia Sinica recently announced a breakthrough finding that could lead to a rapid screening test for COVID-19. Following the announcement, a Taiwan lawmaker said it’s hard to tell from its name that Academia Sinica is Taiwanese.Fan YunDPP lawmakerThis issue has troubled me for a long time. When I was in Academia Sinica, I participated in international conferences and many international scholars would ask, “If you come from Taiwan, why aren’t you called Academia Taiwanica?”Academia Sinica was founded in 1928 in Nanjing, after a year of planning. In 1949, it relocated to Taipei with the R.O.C.’s retreat to Taiwan. The lawmaker says the name has a historical context, but is now proving to be a source of confusion for the international community.Fan YunDPP lawmaker1928 was nearly 100 years ago. We have already localized our institutions in many arenas. I think it’s extremely regrettable that whenever we have excellent research findings, we have to emphasize that it is “Taiwan Research.” If the institution had the right name, we wouldn’t need to emphasize that it’s produced “Taiwan Research.Lawmaker Fan has submitted an extemporaneous motion that asks Academia Sinica to change its name within three months.James LiaoAcademia Sinica presidentWe can start discussions on that. But don’t think we can make a unilateral decision on the matter easily. We have to move in step with national policies.Fan YunDPP lawmakerActually, you would only need to revise Academia Sinica’s organization law. That’s something the Legislative Yuan can do. The Chinese name can remain unchanged. What we want to change is the name in English.Academia Sinica said it was open to starting discussions on changing its name, potentially to Academia Taiwanica.