Ancestor Worship in Taiwan

One of the most notable differences between the ancestor worship practices of Taiwan in comparison to the countries I have discussed so far is that the matter of ancestor worship ceremonies is not handled by the male, but the female in this case. This means that when I woman marries into a family, the mother-in-law will teach her how to properly do any ceremonies, such as what to specifically offer. Despite this difference it is still the husband's ancestors that will be worshipped and subject to these ceremonies, not the wife's. However, this reign over ceremonies would only be within the home. Outside of the home, in temples and tombs, the men would take over as past societal norms were that women stayed at home while men were the bread-winners and would be more out and about within society.

Another factor that makes Taiwan different from the other countries is that it had  many native tribes prior to the Han Chinese moving in. These tribes, including the Pingpu and the Siraya, also had their forms of ancestor worship. But unlike their Chinese compatriots who worshipped through offerings of food and drink, something common among all countries discussed in this blog, the native Taiwanese tribes offered betel nuts and wine. This is particularly distinctive because the betel nut is a stimulant and a carcinogen--one might go so far as to equate their offerings as offering drugs (though that may still be stretch). And unlike the Chinese Taiwanese, many tribes worship solely at temples and do not have a place of worship at home.

(1) National Museum of Taiwan History. "The Customs of Ancestral Worship. Last modified 2009. http://www.nmth.gov.tw/Portals/0/epaper/en/06/coverstory05.html