Asian History Commons^™

The Rise And Fall Of The Small Bronze Tripod Used For Pouring Heated Libations (A Pre-Confucian Libation Rite), Elizabeth Childs-Johnson

Art Faculty Publications

The rite of pouring out heated alcohol in honor of spirits begins during the Late Neolithic but matures as a formal institution known in writing and in cast bronze during the earliest phases of the historic Bronze Age, namely the Erlitou (ca. 1900-1600 BC) and Shang periods (ca. 1600-1046 BC). As will be analyzed, the libation rite known as ... [示 + 爵 = ...] (jue/guan) in Shang oracle bone divinations involved the use of the tripod jue爵 (bronze vessel). Although the rite [...] continues to appear in written inscriptions through most of the Western Zhou era, by the 9th-8th …

China's Spy Network In America: A People's War Against An Open House: America Needs To Confront The Reality Of The New Cold War, Shaomin Li

Management Faculty Publications

The article discusses China's extensive espionage activities in the United States, framing it as part of a broader "people's war" strategy employed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It highlights historical cases of espionage, such as those involving Qian Xuesen and Bo Jiang, to illustrate the ongoing threat posed by Chinese intelligence efforts, which leverage both state-sponsored and civilian participation. The article contrasts the CCP's ruthless approach to espionage with the U.S. legal system's more restrained response, emphasizing the asymmetry in their respective strategies. It concludes by urging the U.S. to recognize and confront the realities of this new Cold …

A Forgotten Piece Of History: The Story Of The First Municipal Council Of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Chandra R. De Silva

History Faculty Publications

The website of the Municipal Council of Colombo asserts that it was founded in 1865 (Colombo Municipal Council, 2015). This is also the story that is recounted in scholarly histories of Colombo, in modern websites and in popular accounts of the history of the city. The objective of this article is to demonstrate that Colombo had a municipal council as early as the sixteenth century and to illuminate the story of its existence for over 70 years - until well into the seventeenth century. It also explores the functions of the council, its relationship with Portuguese officials who ruled the …

An Analysis Of Portuguese Colonial Representations Of Sinhalese Women, Chandra R. De Silva, Ramani Hettiarchchi

History Faculty Publications

The history of Sri Lanka until recently has been written mostly as the history of men in the country. This has been particularly true of the early modern period, for which existing records are mostly those of visiting colonizers who were mostly men, writing about their dealings with those in power or with those from whom they could gain profit. This article is an attempt to collect and analyze the admittedly limited data on how the Portuguese who gained political authority over parts of the coastal areas saw local women. It is limited to the women of the majority community …

Institutionalisation And Institutional Evolution: A Model Of Selecting Government Officials In Ancient China, Haiwen Zhou

Economics Faculty Publications

The evolution of institutions in selecting government officials in ancient China reflected efficiency considerations and increased power concentration in the hands of the ruler. Selecting government officials in ancient China became more rule‐based over time, and standardisation and centralisation were some key features of this process. In this dynamic model, a higher volume of transactions, shown as the number of candidates needed to be evaluated, leads to institutionalisation, which has a higher fixed cost but a lower marginal cost in processing each transaction. In the steady state, a ruler with a more encompassing interest chooses a higher level of institutionalisation. …

A Forgotten Piece Of History: The Story Of The First Municipal Council Of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Chandra Richard De Silva

History Faculty Publications

The website of the Municipal Council of Colombo asserts that it was founded in 1865 (Colombo Municipal Council, 2015). This is also the story that is recounted in scholarly histories of Colombo, in modern websites and in popular accounts of the history of the city. The objective of this article is to demonstrate that Colombo had a municipal council as early as the sixteenth century and to illuminate the story of its existence for over 70 years - until well into the seventeenth century. It also explores the functions of the council, its relationship with Portuguese officials who ruled the …

National Integration And Institution Building, Haiwen Zhou

Economics Faculty Publications

The mutual dependence between national integration and institution building is established in a formal model. It is shown that a decrease in transportation costs, but not necessarily an increase in population size, reduces the equilibrium number of states and the adoption of rule-based institutions. With endogenous transportation costs or endogenous population size, the unification process can feed on itself. The model is illustrated by the state of Qin's unification of China in 221 BC. During this process of national integration, transformations from relation-based governance to rule-based governance happened.

The Challenges Of Writing The History Of Localities That Were Under Colonial Rule In The Early Phase Of European Expansion: An Investigation Into Writing The History Of Negombo (Sri Lanka) In The Sixteenth And Early Seventeenth Centuries, Chandra R. De Silva

History Faculty Publications

Local history has been conventionally defined as a chronicle of a limited geographical area. The study of local history can have positive outcomes including reconstructing our ancestor’s everyday lives and providing opportunities for students to develop investigative research skills, develop linkages with locals and to also motivate students to improve their basic skills of reading, writing and critical thinking. Unlike in the West, however, where local historians use old records of their locality, local historians of lands colonized by Westerners have problems finding source material. For example, in Sri Lanka, the Portuguese occupying the southwest lowlands destroyed Buddhist and Hindu …

‘It All Comes From Me’: Bahu Begam And The Making Of The Awadh Nawabi, Circa 1765–1815, Nicholas J. Abbott

History Faculty Publications

This article examines the durable, yet largely overlooked, claims of Bahu Begam (1727–1815) to dynastic wealth and authority in the Awadh nawabi (1722–1856), a North Indian Mughal ‘successor state’ and an important client of the East India Company. Chief consort (khass mahal) to Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula (r. 1754–75) and mother to his successor Nawab Asaf-ud-Daula (r. 1775–97), Bahu Begam played a well-documented role in the regime’s tumultuous politics, particularly during Warren Hastings’s tenure as the Company’s governor-general (1773–85) and his later parliamentary impeachment. But despite her prominent political influence, little attention has been paid to the substance of her …

[Review Of The Book Mao And The Sino-Soviet Split, 1959-1973: A New History, By D. Li & Y. Xia], Austin Jersild

History Faculty Publications

[Introduction] This second volume continues a tradition of productive team work, this time between Danhui Li and Yafeng Xia, who emphasize the central role and importance of China in some of the more significant strategic realignments of international history and the Cold War. The chronological dimensions of the story (1959-1973) take the reader from the Sino-Soviet split to the "quasi-alliance" that developed between the United States and China after President Richard Nixon's trip to China in February 1972 (233). The subsequent entanglement of the American and Chinese economies that developed since that time is the subject of extensive public debate …

Ichimatsu Boy And The Historical Impact On Ichimatsu Ningyo, Sherelle Rodgers

OUR Journal: ODU Undergraduate Research Journal

This article discusses the historical research found on the Ichimatsu Ningyo boy doll by Takizawa Koryusai II. This doll is housed by the Barry Arts Museum and is an example of the Japanese Ichimatsu Ningyo art style. The purpose of this project was to discover why and how the doll was created due to the lack of provenance. This investigation will first address the make and style of the doll as well as the symbolism that lies well within its image. Second, it will address the historical significance and future of the Japanese Ningyo doll. By comparing how the doll …

Confrontations With Colonialism: Resistance, Revivalism And Reform Under British Rule In Sri Lanka 1796-1920, Vol 1, C. R. De Silva

History Faculty Publications

(First paragraph) In one of the most challenging and thought-provoking history books published in Sri Lanka in the last decade, P. V. J. Jayasekera has used a wide variety of sources to challenge a number of existing interpretations relating to Sri Lanka under British colonial rule in the nineteenth century. While the book is based partly on his own doctoral dissertation completed in 1970, in Jayasekera’s own words “The scope and the foci of the original study have been substantially changed” (p. ix) in view of new theoretical approaches in the study of colonial history and the debates on history …

Peradeniya's Contribution To The Rewriting Of The History Of Sri Lanka, Chandra Richard De Silva

History Faculty Publications

In the last 75 years, scholars at and alumni of Peradeniya have transformed the writing of the history of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka has had a long and distinguished tradition of chronicles and histories. However, with the advent of colonial rule, with exceptions like the hatan kavyas, the writing of the history of Sri Lanka fell largely into the hands of the colonizers. Though the rewriting of history by Sri Lankans through the critical reading of sources began before 1942 as a response to the colonial depiction of local history, with the foundation of the University at Peradeniya there …

[Review Of The Book Mao And The Sino-Soviet Partnership, 1945-1959: A New History, By Z. Shen & Y. Xia]., Austin Jersild

History Faculty Publications

[Introduction] Soviet General Secretary Nikita Krushchev was in Beijing in the fall of 1954 to celebrate the five-year anniversary of the Chinese revolution, open a huge exhibit designed to facilitate socialist bloc collaboration with Chine, and establish a positive tone and relationship with Chinese leaders who had reason to be wary of historic Soviet objectives in the Far East. In a speech before he left to mark the anniversary of the revolution, he focused on the sensitive question of colonialism in Chinese history, and the importance of the revolution in the creation of a new and independent china free of …

Dorjé Tarchin, The Mélong, And The Tibet Mirror Press: Negotiating Discourse On The Religious And The Secular, Nicole Willock

Philosophy Faculty Publications

Much scholarly attention has been given to the importance of the Mélong, the first Tibetan newspaper, in the discursive formation of Tibetan nationalism; yet in claiming the Mélong as ‘secular’ and ‘modern,’ previous scholarship has also evaded the press’s Christian and colonial roots. This paper investigates the secularization of the Mélong and the Tibet Mirror Press as an historical project, and as a corollary demonstrates the emergence of a vernacular project of secularism that aligned pan-Tibetan national identity with religious pluralism against the threat of communism. As a Tibetan Christian intellectual, the Mélong’s founder Dorjé Tarchin (1890-1976) creatively responded to …

Art And Politics: The Cultural Revolution In The Eyes Of An Art Soldier, Shaomin Li

Management Faculty Publications

2016 marks the 50th anniversary of China's Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). When the revolution started in 1996, I was 9. The ten years of the Cultural Revolution was the most important period for my education. I love painting and drawing. So during the ten years of the Cultural Revolution, I devoted all my time to study art except for the time I was forced to study communist ideology and to do hard labor. According to the communist theory, art is politicalized and is a tool to serve the communist revolutionary goal. During the Cultural Revolution, the politicalization of art …

Photos Of Major Social Turmoils In China Since 1900, Shaomin Li

Management Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Author's Response. [Review Of The Sino-Soviet Alliance: An International History, By A. Jersild], Austin Jersild

History Faculty Publications

[Introduction] I was trying to do justice to several threads of inquiry in The Sino-Soviet Alliance. As the archives opened up in the early 1990s and wonderful new opportunities emerged to study long-inaccessible materials, I remained impressed by the tendency of scholars of foreign policy and international relations to confine themselves to the sources traditionally used by diplomatic historians, in this case the somewhat limited Politburo and Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) memoranda. The early work of the Cold War International History Project (CWIHP), for example, was path-breaking yet methodologically conservative. Such an approach was entirely appropriate, however, as the …

The Pacific War Crimes Trials: The Importance Of The "Small Fry" Vs. The "Big Fish", Lisa Kelly Pennington

History Theses & Dissertations

In the post-World War II era, the Allied nations faced multiple issues, from occupying the Axis countries and rebuilding Europe and Japan to trying war criminals for atrocities committed prior to and during the war. War crimes trials were an important part of the occupation process and by conducting the trials, the Allied nations hoped not only to punish war criminals, but to provide examples of democratic principles to the former Axis powers and deter future wartime atrocities. When considering war crimes trials, it is most often Nuremberg that comes to mind, and it is Nuremberg that has dominated much …

The Sixth Tseten Zhabdrung, Jigme Rigpai Lodro, Nicole Willock

Philosophy Faculty Publications

(First Paragraph)

Jigme Rigpai Lodro ('jigs med rigs pa'i blo gros), the Sixth Tseten Zhabdrung (tshe tan zhabs drung), was born on May 31, 1910, the twenty-second day of the fourth month of the iron dog year in the fifteenth rab byung cycle. He was the second youngest of eight children born to his father Yang Cai, whose Tibetan name was Lobzang Tashi (blo bzang bkra shis), and his mother, Lhamotar (lha mo thar). His birthplace, Yadzi (ya rdzi), is more commonly known today by its Chinese name, Jishi Town (Jishi zhen 积石镇) in today's Xunhua Salar Autonomous County of …

Empire, Horses And Trade: An Examination Of Sixteenth Century Portuguese Efforts To Control Trade In Arab And Persian Horses Across The Arabian Sea, Chandra R. De Silva

History Faculty Publications

[First paragraph] Portuguese dominance over the trade in horses across the Arabian Sea from West Asia to the western littoral of India lasted approximately from the Portuguese capture of Goa in 1510 to their loss of Ormuz to the Persians in 1622. As will be evident from the subsequent discussion, Portuguese control was incomplete and its significance varied from area to area and also from time to time. Nevertheless, a study of their attempts to control this trade is useful for three major reasons.

The Sino-Soviet Split: Cold War In The Communist World, Austin Jersild

History Faculty Publications

A reader of both Russian and Chinese, Lorenz M. Lüthi provides fascinating depth and detail to an unstable Sino-Soviet alliance shaped by strong and ambitious personalities, nationalist sensitivities, cultural misunderstandings, and the perhaps inevitable clash between two societies at very different stages in “socialist” history.

The United States Information Agency And The "New Look": France And India, 1953-1961, Leanne Alicia Sutton

History Theses & Dissertations

This study examines the creation of the United States Information Agency (USIA) under the guidance of President Dwight D. Eisenhower and looks at the place of the Agency in the "New Look." The US Information Agency was an important "soft" tool in the American struggle with the Soviet Union for preponderant influence around the world and played a part in the American effort to maintain the balance between the Communist and Free worlds. This study takes a deeper look at the work of the Agency in two case studies, which examine the work of the USIA in France, a reluctant …

Becoming A Good Neighbor In Southeast Asia: The Case Of China's Territorial Disputes In The South China Sea, 1989–2006, Dirk Richard Morton

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Since the establishment of formal diplomatic relations between China and the ASEAN states following the end of the Cold War, Sino-ASEAN relations have widened and deepened considerably. This is surprising, considering that most ASEAN states viewed China as a revisionist power and threat to regional security during the Cold War and Vietnam and the Philippines have a history of armed conflict with China over as-of-yet unresolved territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Given the withdrawal of American military forces from the Philippines in 1992 and the steady growth of Chinese economic and military power, one might expect ASEAN's traditionally-held …

Russification In The Soviet East: Education In Uzbekistan And The Emancipation Of Uzbek Women, 1938-1956, Anna Sochnikova

History Theses & Dissertations

Before the Revolution of 1917, the Uzbek population had a traditional system of religious education, but the literacy level of the Uzbek people was very low. After the Soviets seized power in Uzbekistan, they promoted the development of Uzbek language and culture. In 1937 the Soviet government subjected the entire Uzbek nation to political and ideological instructions. The Russian language became the primary language that dominated many aspects of Uzbek life: party apparatus, science, technologies, state administration, and higher education.

Throughout the Soviet period the majority of children in the rural areas of Uzbekistan attended native schools, while an increasing …

Guided By God: The Catholic Church And Political Legitimacy In The Philippines, Steven B. Shirley

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The developing world is witnessing a growing (some may say disturbing) trend towards “de-secularization” of national governments. This trend has been understudied and misunderstood over the past decade. Government experts and scholars alike too often view this trend through the lens of “threat” analysis and in so doing miss key cultural, historical, and political factors at work. This study attempts to redress this problem. By looking at political legitimacy and the role religious organizations such as the Catholic Church may play, a new understanding of how religious institutions can shape and mold governments and policies emerges.

This study focuses specifically …

Wei Jingsheng And The Democracy Movement In Post-Mao China, Merle David Kellerhals Jr.

Institute for the Humanities Theses

The hypothesis tested in this thesis was whether there has been an evident evolution in the democratic thought of those engaged in China's Democracy Movement in the post-Mao era. The activists of the Democracy Movement of 1978-79, following a long-standing tradition of remonstrance, were among those substantially influenced by the events of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution. The activists initiated big character posters on Democracy Walls throughout China--but among the most influential was Beijing's. Wei Jingsheng, though certainly not the only voice, represented the more vocal and extreme democratic position in his wall poster The Fifth Modernization: Democracy, which first …

Institutions, Developmental Alliances, And Economic Development In Korea And Brazil (1950-1985), Charles Paul Winebarger

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

This paper compares the development of Korea and Brazil, 1950-85. These newly industrialized countries developed at above-average rates among less developed countries. Korea developed more rapidly than Brazil. The paper contends that institutions, interest groups (especially firms) and the state, enter into developmental alliances. Alliances affect policies. Policies, then, affect development.

Findings reveal interesting trends in the 1950s' democracies of the cases. Both countries had semi-autonomous states, equivocally committed to industrialization. Industry was the growth point in each. Korea used local firms to industrialize; Brazil used foreign firms. In both cases, the state allied itself with firms. Policy mostly favored …

The Marine Corps In Vietnam: An Examination Of Cohesion And Effectiveness At Khe Sanh, Gregory L. Davenport

History Theses & Dissertations

The Marine defense of the Khe Sanh Combat Base in 1968 provides an isolated model to study combat cohesion and effectiveness. Focusing on Companies K and L of the 3d Battalion, 26th Regiment, reveals that cohesion and effectiveness were composed of four interlocking components: universal, cultural, institutional, and situational. Universal sources include the primary group, ideology, esprit de corps, small unit leadership, and social systems. Culturally, Marine recruitment images and pop-culture literature and cinema, which highlighted the Corps and combat as epitomizing manhood, influenced the Khe Sanh marines. Institutionally, the Corps used Marine history and gender manipulation during boot …

Maintaining The Neutrality: Soviet-Japanese Relations, 1941-1945, Michael Shawn Blevins

History Theses & Dissertations

In April 1941, the Soviet Union and Japan concluded a five-year neutrality pact. Before the end of the year both nations were embroiled in bitter wars against each other' allies, but not against one another. How did Soviet.— Japanese wartime relations preserve this neutrality that lasted nearly four years during World War II? The answers are provided through analysis of both Soviet and Japanese foreign policies while also considering each nation's prospects for winning the war. To this end, timely MAGIC and ULTRA signal intelligence intercepts provide key insights into each government's intentions. Thus, the Special Research History and the …