2016年原住民日當天，蔡英文總統代表政府正式向原住民族道歉。這個道歉，也開啓了我國原住民族歷史正義與轉型正義的新頁。面對這項重要的轉折，學界對此議題的分析卻相對有限，且論者多是從法政或原住民族研究的角度出發，將重點放在道歉後的制度性安排。有鑑於道歉涉及到語言的使用，且又是一種典型的言語行爲（speech act），這樣的特徵替語言學提供了介入的空間。本研究擬從「語言與政治」（language and politics）的視角出發，透過政治語言學（political linguistics）的分析，來對蔡總統代表政府向原住民族的道歉文進行分析。具體來說，本文嘗試以語言學的方法和分析技法，來對道歉文中的已言（said）、蘊含表現（implicature，即未明言）、未言（unsaid）等部分進行分析，以便了解道歉者如何透過語言的使用和表述，來做出限定、排除、引導、乃至說服，進而建構出一套完整的論述。在此同時，作者也希望通過這樣的分析，藉此探索語言學、政治學、原住民族研究的交錯與接點所在。

The 2016 national apology by the Taiwanese President starts a new chapter in historical justice and transitional justice for Taiwan’s indigenous peoples. In this political linguistics analysis of Tsai Ing-wen’s apology, we explore the language of the apology in light of recent investigations on national apologies as a generic type of political discourse. We examine how the authenticity and sincerity of the apology were accomplished through the use of illocutionary force indicating devices and first-person pronouns. In addition, we demonstrate how the concept of the apology was revisited by using the Atayal term ‘Sbalay’ and how such a redefined concept shifted the focus of the apology from compensation to reconciliation. Differing from previous political science research on national apologies and compensation arrangements, we reveal how the linguistic features and patterns embedded in the apology – the said, implied and unsaid – were used as a rhetorical strategy for eliciting support from the apology recipients.