The Siraya settled flat coastal plains in the southwest part of the island of Taiwan and corresponding sections of the east coast; the area is identified today with Tainan City and Taitung County.

The Siraya are Plains indigenous peoples (Pingpu) — that is, occupants of flat coastal regions rather than mountain areas.

The family name Wan (萬), often encountered in the region, is a Chinese transliteration of Talavan, a common Siraya surname.

[1] Efforts have been under way by the Siraya and related plains aboriginal peoples to gain official recognition from Taiwan's national government.

Government officials have proposed changing the law to ensure accuracy and inclusion of all indigenous groups.

[5] According to Taiwan Journal, Taiwan's Academia Sinica historians and linguistics announced, on 14 February 2006, that their team of researchers have deciphered up to 80% of the 187 so-called Sinckan Manuscripts (or Sinkang Manuscripts), a set of documents from 17th and 18th centuries written in the language spoken by the Siraya people using a system of romanization introduced by the Dutch in the 17th century.