本文指出，清初官方對土番社認知是來自贌社制下的賦稅分類，無論是鳳山八社或土番三十四社都曾參與贌社制。康熙24年社餉定額化後，繳納社餉被運用至新附土番的歸化。康熙年間番人歸化辦法，有以繳納社餉、鹿皮餉內附，或依附已納餉番社。推動番社歸化的動力並非是「王化」的感召，而是「社商、通事」等商貿團體努力推動，迎合地方官員、清廷政策的結果。朱一貴事件後，清廷對山區採取「立石為界」的政策，不允許漢人擅自越界交易，此舉限縮原本地方社會交易活動，卻也促使通事們迎合地方官員的政策，積極推動生番歸化。這也是雍正朝出現「生番歸化潮」的原因。此變化促使清廷建立番人分類體制。清初在臺官員對番人的認識，最初是以鄭氏時期納稅「土番」與未知「野番」對應，康熙30年代歸化番社以納餉的方式，進入土番類屬。康熙末年官方對番人的分類稱謂則從「野番、土番」轉變至「生番、熟番」。不過，當時官員對區分生、熟番的定義並無統一。這樣分類體系從清初至雍正朝產生變化，雍正3年生番歸化政策的終止，讓官員面臨如何在原本「生、熟番」分類體系中，安排這群位於界外卻又納餉的番社？因而在原分類增添「歸化生番」的類型。在雍正中葉地方官員將番社粗略歸類為「生、化、熟」三類。不過，化番、熟番的區分並不顯著，直至乾隆初期番人分類體制才以「番界內外」、「納稅與否」標準儼然成形。藉由歷時化的考察番人分類體制的形構過程，本文指出，清帝國對番人類屬的歸類，顯然不可簡單的視為天朝文化主義下文明－政治範疇下的產物，實則與朝廷的統治政策與治理實態，有著密切的關係。

This article traces the development of the fan (aboriginal) classification system established by Emperors Kangxi and Yongzheng. During early Qing rule, fan tribes were recognized and classified according to their tax payment under the Village Franchise System. Fengshan eight tribes and Tufan thirty-four tribes were all part of this system during the reign of Emperor Kangxi. Instead of being levied at rates that varied from year to year, tribal tax payment became fixed and was thus taken as one of criteria for naturalization of aborigines. What triggered the subsequent wave of mass naturalization of fan tribes was neither their loyalty to nor their being enlightened by the empire. Rather, it was a move 'pushed' or promoted by sheshang (tribal businessmen) and tungshih (interpreter) to keep up with the Qing policy and to curry favor from the local officials. Commercial interests rather than patriotic sentiments were what motivated the aborigines to become naturalized. In face of the mass naturalization trend, the Qing Empire refined the classification system for aborigines. Toward the end of Kangxi reign, the initial dichotomous categories of 'tufan' (tax-paying aborigines) and 'yefan' (literally, wild/untamed aborigines) adopted from the classification under the Zheng regime were changed into 'shufan' (literally, cooked aborigines) and 'shengfan' (literally, raw aborigines), respectively. Nevertheless, the distinction between the two categories was neither well defined nor standardized. Further changes were introduced by Emperor Yongzheng. Upon termination of the naturalization policy, the third category 'huafan' (naturalized aborigines) was added to denote those naturalized shengfan who lived beyond the Qing boundary but paid tax to the empire. Again, there existed no clear differentiation for the three groups, especially between 'huafan' and 'shufan'. It was during the reign of Emperor Qianlong that aboriginal boundary was demarcated and distinction among aborigines was drawn according to whether they lived within or beyond the boundary and whether they paid tax to the Qing government or not. Through examining the evolution of the fan classification system, this article points out that people classification under Qing rule was more than a culturo-political product of celestial imperialism but closely related to the state policy and governance.