The taboos for Taiwanese

1. Do not use red ink to write letters or notes. It is O.K. for a teacher to correct the homework with a red pen, but a significant amount of writing in red should be avoided.

2. Clocks should not be chosen as gifts for others. In Chinese "clocks" sound the same as "termination", which has an implication of death. As a result, giving others clocks can be considered

bringing them mishaps.

3. Umbrellas are not good gifts for lovers, either. In Chinese "umbrellas" sound similar to "separation", 

which means "breaking up".

4. The period between July 1st and July 15th in the Lunar Calendar is considered the "Ghost Month" 

(Refer to "Chung-yuan Day" in question (C. 3) ). A lot of things should be avoided unless       

necessary, like marriage, moving, traveling and/or nonemergent medical operations.

5. Taiwanese people interpret things differently from the Western ones. That you say something implies it will happen even if you mean no offense. For instance, if you say "watch out for the knife or you will hurt yourself", it implies your friend might indeed hurt him/herself though you don't want this to happen. Such statements should be avoided especially during the Lunar New Year holidays.

6. The number "4" sounds the same as "death" in Chinese. When choosing gifts, don't give NT$400 or NT$4000, for instance. In some hospitals, you won't find the button for "4" in the elevators -- the 5th floor comes directly above the 3rd floor. On the other hand, the number "8" is considered lucky as it sounds similar to "prosper" in Chinese.

7. In Taiwan, the color "white" is related to death. It is O.K. to dress in white for ordinary lives, going to work or school, but it is not good for a joyful occasion like a wedding banquet as a guest (the bride and the bridegroom are obvious exceptions in the western style wedding banquets).