Monument of Aboriginal Ancestors' Birthplace Introduction
According to the oral traditions of the Puyuma people, Taiwan was originally submerged under the sea, with land connecting Orchid Island and Green Island. Later, Taiwan Island rose above the surface, while the original land where the people lived sank underwater, and even the sun and moon disappeared, leaving only five siblings alive. One boy was elevated to the sky to become the sun, one girl became the moon, and the other two boys and one girl drifted to the mountains near Sanhe Village and Huayuan Village in Taitung's Taimali Township. This landing place is referred to by the tribe as "Luhavan" or "Banabananayang," which means 'place of origin' in the Puyuma language. It is also the site of the monument honoring the ancestors of the indigenous people. In 1960, a monument titled "Ancestral Origins of Taiwanese Indigenous Peoples" was erected on the hillside next to Sanhe Village. In the 1980s, suggestions from local people led to greater attention, and the county government sought funds to rebuild and expand the area, improve facilities, add explanatory signs, and carve structures for beautification and greening, resulting in its present scale. Every year around the Tomb-Sweeping Day, the Puyuma people from Jhiben and Jianhe communities come to pay respects to their ancestors, expressing their gratitude and remembrance. The Amis people from Dulan Village in Donghe Township also establish a ceremonial altar here to fulfill the instructions of their ancestors, regularly coming to worship and express their longing for their forebears. The site of the Ancestral Origins of Indigenous Peoples Monument features explanations of Puyuma migration, commemorative images of their difficult journey, memorial inscriptions, and monuments, which can be viewed by ascending the cement steps, aiding visitors and descendants of indigenous peoples in understanding the process of indigenous migration to Taiwan.
