Taiguaye

Taiguaye (Chinese: 枱掛曄; pinyin: Táiguàyè; Filipino: Taiguaye), officially the Commonwealth of Taiguaye (Chinese: 枱掛曄聯邦; pinyin: Táiguàyè liánbāng; Filipino: Kómonwélt ng Taiguaye), is an unincorporated territory and commonwealth of the. It is located in the, at a tri-point between , Tseng and the Philippine island of.

In 1844, Taiguaye was ceded to the United States by the Qing as part of the Taiguaye treaty. Taiguaye was occupied by Imperial Japan from 1942 to 1945 during World War II; it was converted to a US-Republic of China condominium after the surrender of Japan. In 1979, the US took full control of Taiguaye after downgrading relations with the Republic of China and converted the territory to commonwealth status.

Taiguayans have been U.S. citizens since 1920, and can move freely between the island and the U.S. mainland.

Taiguaye is a highly developed territory, with a major capitalist service economy characterized by low taxation and free trade.

Etymology
It's unknown what Taiguaye means. It is possibly a word from an extinct indigenous language.

History
Taiguaye was first settled from Aboriginal peoples from Taiwan and the Philippines. In 1699, the arrived and settled Taiguaye. In 1833, Taiguaye Province was created from Fujian Province.

On September 4, 1844, Taiguaye was ceded to the United States following the American invasion of Taiguaye. Taiguaye became a U.S. treaty port.

The US occupation of Taiguaye from 1844 to 1942 was controversial. On one hand, cities like Wanlong and Kuangkang were expanded and developed, but on the other abuses and human rights violations occurred.

In 1942, Taiguaye was invaded by Japan. They continued to repress the Taiguayese people until August 5, 1945, when US rule resumed.

From 1946 to 1979, Taiguaye was jointly governed by the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the United States in a condominium known as the Taiguaye Condominium.

In 1979, due to the fallout of ROC-US relations, the condominium was dissolved and Taiguaye received commonwealth status of the US.

Government and politics
"See also: List of political parties in Taiguaye, List of Governors of Taiguaye, Municipalities in Taiguaye, Political party strength in Taiguaye"Being a commonwealth of the US, Taiguaye's government is based of the American model. All governmental powers are delegated by the United States Congress, with the head of state being president of the United States. As an unincorporated territory, Taiguaye lacks full protection under the United States Constitution.

There are three branches in Taiguaye's government: legislative, judicial, and executive. The executive is led by the governor, currently Fred Hua. The legislative branch consists of the bicameral Legislative Assembly, made up of a Senate as its upper chamber and a House of Representatives as its lower chamber; the Senate is headed by a president, currently Louise Yeung, while the House is headed by the speaker of the House, currently Gabriel Carandang. The governor and legislators are elected by popular vote every four years, with the last election held in December 2020.

Political parties
The main parties in Taiguaye are the pro-independence Taiguaye Party, the "middle-ground" Third Way Party, and the pro-American National Alliance Party.

Taiguayans can also register their membership for the Taiguayan affiliates of the Democratic and Republican parties.

Administrative divisions
Taiguaye is divided into 54 municipalities. Those are the county equivalents of Taiguaye. Each municipality has a mayor and a legislature, which are elected every four years. The largest municipality is Wanlong.

Culture
The culture of Taiguaye is a mix of Chinese, Taiwanese, Filipino (especially Ilocano and Tagalog), American, and Japanese cultures.

Media
Taiguyanese television dramas, also known as TGY-dramas, have gained increasing popularity in the Mandarin-speaking community internationally. TGY-dramas such as Through Failure and Tragedy and Where Have All The Good Ones Gone?, both produced by TBI Production Studio, have aired in multiple Asian countries to great success, and several TGY-dramas have also been exported to regions such as Latin America and the MENA region.

Music
Taiguaye is also a centre for music. The Mandopop singer Jessie Lan and the Pinoy rock band Decamillennial, who originated from Taiguaye, have become famous within Asia and/or the Chinese-speaking world.

Karaoke is also extremely popular in Taiguaye. Most major cities offer karaoke bars.

Transportation
Cities and towns in Taiguaye are interconnected by a system of roads, freeways, expressways, and highways maintained by the Highways and Transportation Authority under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and patrolled by the Taiguaye Police Department.

Automobiles drive on the left (unlike in the mainland U.S.), because the Taiguaye road system was originally constructed with assistance from British engineers and because of the influence of left-hand traffic proponent Claude Maraniss, one of Taiguaye's first governors. Taiguaye is one of three U.S. jurisdictions that drive on the left, the other two being Trishel and the.

Utilities

 * Main articles: Energy in Taiguaye, Electricity sector in Taiguaye, and Taiguaye Aqueducts and Sewers Authority

Taiguaye generates most of its electricity locally.

Telecommunications
Telecommunications in Taiguaye includes radio, television, fixed and mobile telephones, and the Internet. Broadcasting in Taiguaye is regulated by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC).