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28/08/2005: "EASTERN CAROLINE ISLANDS.....near Nukuoro Atoll"
Some of the Taiwanese cultures have a history of building complex canoes capable of making long ocean going voyages. It may be that this is where the navigation skills originated. The Yami (Taiwanese aboriginal group) traditional stories tell of voyages to southern islands and battles with the inhabitants.
The Yami traditional religous beliefs speak of the cosmos being arranged into eight levels, just as the traditional belief system of Samoa had eight heavens.
Some of the tribes in Taiwan used to practice tattooing but it has been outlawed since the Japanese occupation at the end of the last century.
Cultural exchange can be a two way process and it is possible that the Taiwanese picked up various skills from contact with other Pacific Islanders rather than actually taking the skills with them as they migrated.
