Documentary on Pingtan reveals origins of Austronesian peoples

The documentary Pingtan and the Austronesian Peoples was recently broadcast on CCTV. As the first documentary to systematically examine the origins and expansion of the Austronesian peoples, it offers in-depth historical interpretation and compelling visual storytelling, filling a gap in science popularization in China.

The Austronesian peoples, a vast group numbering up to 400 million, are distributed across a vast area — from China's southeastern coast in the north to New Zealand in the south, and from Madagascar in the west to Easter Island in the east — covering nearly half the globe. The Keqiutou site in Pingtan county, Fuzhou, is regarded as a key location for Austronesian research.

Fan Xuechun, director of the Pingtan International Institute of Austronesian Research, said growing evidence from these studies points to deep connections between Pingtan and the origins of the Austronesian peoples. The documentary brings these findings together, making academic research accessible to a wider audience and sparking public interest in maritime civilizations.

Although Austronesian studies are a major topic in international archaeology, the subject has remained little known to the public in China. The goal was not only to document the past, but also to reintroduce this history into contemporary awareness.