▌Yizhou and Liuqiu, ancient islands east of China's modern Zhejiang and Fujian provinces, maybe names unfamiliar to a broader audience. However, they are central to an academic debate about Taiwan’s historical alignment. Competing historical interpretations have identified these two islands as corresponding to Taiwan or as part of the Ryukyu islands. This question is still relevant today as these two islands appear at the beginning of the People’s Republic of China’s White Paper claim for unifying Taiwan. It says, “Taiwan has been part of China since ancient times; its ancient names are Yizhou and Liuqiu”. In their article “Yizhou 夷洲’ and ‘Liuqiu 流求’ in Historical Chinese Texts: International Relations on the Northeast Asian Seas (3rd-17th Centuries)”, Professor Lin Man-houng and co-author Huang Yi-chen have advanced this long-standing academic debate. Through the comprehensive use of electronic databases, their findings indicate that Yizhou and Liuqiu do not correspond to ancient Taiwan. Still, instead, they were more likely to be part of the Ryukyu Islands. The entrepot position Ryukyu assumed up to the 14th century on the East Asian seas is crucial for establishing the Ryukyu Kingdom’s golden period from this century to the 16th century. Likely, Taiwan’s central position by 1945 on the East Asian seas is vital for reallocating the Republic of China to this island afterward.