Although not distinguished for their size, Taiwan's rivers did at least once run with water that was clear, and like major rivers elsewhere they played a central part in daily life. People rose with the dawn and retired at dusk, relying on rivers to supply drinking water, facilitate transport and answer religious needs, and so there was a bond that tied society to the river.
台灣的河川水量雖不充沛，但在早期，水質頗為清澈，也和其他世界著名的大河一般，是生活在這片土地的人們生生息息所繫，大家日出而作，日落而息，舉凡飲水、交通、宗教活動等，都與河川脫離不了關係，也因此和河川產生了深厚的感情。