Taiwanese aborigines (Chinese: 臺灣原住民; pinyin: táiwānyuánzhùmín; Wade–Giles: t'ai2-wan1-yüan2-chu4-min2; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tâi-ôan-gôan-chū-bîn; literally: "Taiwanese original inhabitants") is the term commonly applied to the indigenous peoples of Taiwan, who constitute about two percent of the island's population, or more than 500,000 people. Recent research suggests their ancestors may have been living on Taiwan for approximately 8,000 years before a major Han immigration began in the 17th century.