[KS] Forw: Traderoutes in Asia

[Henny Savenije]

---------------------- forwarded message ------------------
Date:         Wed, 24 Mar 2004 09:49:39 +0800
From: H-SEASIA Editor <h_seasia at NUS.EDU.SG>
Subject:      CFP -Northeast Asia in Maritime Perspective: A Dialogue with
               SoutheastAsia


Workshop on Northeast Asia in Maritime Perspective: A Dialogue with 
Southeast Asia

29-30 October 2004

organised by
Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore and
The 21st Century COE Program <Interface Humanities>, Osaka University

Background

Recent years have seen some dramatic revisionist history being written in 
respect of the polities of Northeast Asia -- China, Japan, Korea, and 
Ryukyu. Some of these new studies have highlighted the idea that maritime 
trade (combined with international diplomatic and military relations) was 
one of the primary stimuli in the rise and demise of states and societies 
during the 14th to the 17th centuries. This workshop aims to discuss the 
validity of this claim for Northeast Asia, in a dialogue with scholars of 
Southeast Asia, where maritime trade-centric studies (from van Leur and 
Schrieke to Warren, Reid, Blussé, etc) saw earlier development.

The Okinawa Workshop

Rather than examining the more common framework of the "relationships 
between China and other regions or countries," this workshop will instead 
focus on the common trends and experiences of Northeast Asia (Japan, Korea, 
Northern China and Manchuria) during the 14th to 17th centuries, in a 
similar way to which Southeast Asianists have been examining their region's 
"age of commerce." In other words, Northeast Asia will be treated as a 
region comparable to and interactive with Southeast Asia (in a broad sense 
including southern maritime China), while China will be examined as 
political and economic systems which extended to both Northeast and 
Southeast Asia. The lower Yangtze Region, along with Taiwan and Ryukyu, 
will be examined as interfaces between the two regions. The involvement of 
Northeast Asian societies in Asian maritime trade networks not only had 
deep influence upon Northeast Asian history per se, but also had a strong 
impact upon Southeast Asian and global systems in two ways. First, it 
provided new markets and trade commodities. Second, Northeast Asian factors 
(sometimes violent) were often crucial in the closing and opening of the 
early modern Chinese state and society, which in turn, deeply influenced 
the entire Asian maritime world. Japan's silver exports and its pirates, 
for example, symbolize some of the major ways in which Northeast Asia 
influenced all of Asia.

This workshop also aims at dialogue between two research traditions which 
have long been isolated from each other, despite mutual concerns. That is 
to say, it hopes to foster a dialogue between Northeast Asian historical 
studies (mainly led by Asian-language-based scholars) and Southeast Asian 
historical studies (mainly led by Western-language-based scholars). Both 
sides would likely benefit from such a dialogue in better understanding the 
role of maritime commerce in their respective regions. For instance, 
Northeast Asianists may find in Southeast Asian studies more developed 
frameworks for dealing with issues such as the total history of a region, 
broad and multi-ethnic trade networks, the relations between trade and 
society/polity, and so on. Southeast Asianists in turn, will not only be 
able access new sources from Northeast Asia, but will also have an 
opportunity to compare the arguments made for the Southeast Asian age of 
commerce (about state, market and peasants, for example) with the phenomena 
observed in Northeast Asia. To stimulate such dialogue, papers dealing with 
the relationship between or comparative analysis of Northeast and Southeast 
Asia will be especially welcomed, and some Southeast Asianists will be 
invited as discussants. The dialogue will also likely stimulate discussions 
about wider issues such as intra-Asian trade systems, the modern world 
system and Asia, East Asian modernization and so on. English will be the 
main language of the workshop, but the organizers will be inviting 
interpreters to facilitate more fruitful discussions.

Areas of investigation will include:

* Maritime trade and the flow of people, commodities, currencies and 
bullion, information, technologies (including military technologies), and 
beliefs in Northeast Asia or throughout Northeast and Southeast Asia

* Trade and its influence upon local societies and polities in Northeast 
Asia (including peripheral areas like Ryukyu, Ezo-chi [Northern Japan] and 
Manchuria)

* State-controlled trade, mediators of interstate trade (both Asian and 
European), and pirates in Northeast Asia or throughout Northeast and 
Southeast Asia.

* Northeast Asian source materials concerning Maritime Asia.

* Periodization of the Northeast Asian "Age of Commerce".


************* ***************** ****************

Workshop Details

Title: Northeast Asia in Maritime Perspective: A Dialogue with Southeast Asia
Venue: Okinawa
Dates: 29-30 October 2004 (tentative dates)
Funding: Some funding may be available to accepted paper presenters

Potential paper-givers are invited to submit a 500-word abstract of their 
intended presentation before 15 April 2004 to:

Shalini Chauhan (arisc at nus.edu.sg)
Asia Research Institute
National University of Singapore
The Shaw Foundation Building
AS7, Level 4, 5 Arts Link
Singapore 117570
Fax: (65) 6779 1428



Henny (Lee Hae Kang)
-----------------------------
http://www.henny-savenije.pe.kr Portal to all my sites
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http://www.hendrick-hamel.henny-savenije.pe.kr/indexk2.htm   In Korean
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http://www.vos.henny-savenije.pe.kr  Frits Vos Article about Witsen and 
Eibokken and his first Korean-Dutch dictionary
http://www.cartography.henny-savenije.pe.kr (in English) Korea through 
Western Cartographic eyes
http://www.hwasong.henny-savenije.pe.kr Hwasong the fortress in Suwon
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http://www.british.henny-savenije.pe.kr A British encounter in Pusan (1797)
http://www.genealogy.henny-savenije.pe.kr Genealogy
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