授業関係のお知らせ

This week's class is the last of the Autumn Quarter. We discuss several topics on the "Opera Jawa," an Indonesian film adaptation of the Ramayana.

• Opera Jawa. 2006. Dir. by Garin Nugroho (more info at IMDb, watch the film at YouTube)

Some of the topics we covered include:

• How is the Ramayana story embedded in the narrative of the film Opera Jawa?
• What are the differences between the Ramayana story (as we know it) and the story told in the film?
• What is the significance of the above-mentioned differences?
• What symbols or visual cues are used in the film, and what are their meanings?
• How relevant is the Ramayana story now in the predominantly Muslim Javanese society?

The due date of the term paper is on 25 January.

I wish you all a fruitful break until the beginning of the Spring quarter.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 13:29 

We had the first class of the year today. In the class, we look into the second set of the Ramayana reliefs at the Prambanan temple.

The reliefs we looked at cover the episodes including Ravana's abduction of Sita, Rama's encounters with creatures in the forest, Rama's alliance with Sugriva and his army of monkeys, and Hanuman's discovery of Sita.

Interestingly, when Rama kills the creatures (a monster and a crocodile), their spirit, in the form of a heavenly being, departs from the body for heaven. We learn from the text that they are indeed heavenly beings, who have been forced as punishment to be reborn as unpleasant creatures on the earth. It is possible to point out there is a strong affinity between the narrative of the Ramayana and the animistic world view of the contemporary Javanese society. To support this interpretation, we look at video materials on Sanghyang, the trance dance in Bali, where the society holds an animistic world-view in the cultural context heavily influenced by the Hindu-Javanese culture.

The next class, the last in this semester, will be held on 18 January, as 11 January is a national holiday. The date for submission of the term paper is 25 January. Please refer to the messages in Slack for details.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 12:45 

This week, we look into the first set of the Ramayana reliefs at the Prambanan temple.

The Ramayana reliefs and the Old Javanese translation of the story of Rama around the 9th century represent the oldest evidence that the Ramayana was transmitted beyond the Bay of Bengal and firmly rooted in the local community.

The reliefs we looked at cover the episodes including Vishnu's earthly manifestation as Rama, Rama's first killing of demons at the sage's hermitage in the forest, Rama's victory over Sita's hands in the wedding contest, and Rama's banishment to the forest with Sita and Laksmana. We have analyzed up to the scene of Bharata taking Rama's sandals back to the court of Ayodhya, where Bharata governs the kingdom on Rama's behalf.

We will resume the class on 4th January 2021, after the winter recess. Until then I wish you all safe and pleasant holidays.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 14:26 

This week, we focus on the arrangement of the Buddha images in Borobudur. They are as follows:

It is interesting to note that this arrangement has a similarity with the Diamond Realm mandala in Vajrayana.

After this, we looked into the Prambanan temple, another magnificent legacy from Indonesia's Hindu-Buddhist period. Next weel, we will look into the reliefs of the Ramayana story.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 19:56 

This week, we discuss the Buddhist cosmology and the Six Realms of Existence by looking at some of the traditional Buddhist paintings from different parts of Asia.

The Buddhist cosmology is characterized by Mount Sumeru (須弥山) towering at the center, surrounded by seven concentric mountain ranges and seas, which are in turn surrounded by the vast ocean. In the ocean, there are four continents in the four cardinal directions. The southern continent, called Jambudvipa (閻浮提), is resided by the people, as we know as Indians.

On the summit of the mountain are the thirty-three residences of gods, with that of the head of the gods, Indra, located at the center. The sun and the moon rotate around in the middle of Mount Sumeru, creating day and night for the people living on the continent. The residences of the higher beings float above the summit of the mountain, producing an impression of layers of space stations.

Six realms of existence are located in this cosmological space. They are:

• gods (deva, 神)
• jealous gods (asura, 阿修羅)
• animals (畜生)
• hells (地獄)
• hungry ghosts (餓鬼)
• humans　

In Tibetan paintings of the wheel of life, we can observe the gods residing at the top of Mout Meru, defending themselves from the attack of asuras from below. A person will transmigrate from one realm to another as he or she dies and is re-born endlessly until ultimately getting released from this wheel of life through the attainment of enlightenment. The realm of existence is determined by the person's past actions, which are often negatively motivated by greed, hatred, and ignorance.

Next week, we will discuss Borobudur's mandala arrangement of the Buddha statues before turning into Hindu narratives.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 20:53 

This week, we discuss the characteristics of the Jataka stories before observing some Jataka reliefs in Borobudur. In particular, we chose the Sasa-Jataka (Rabbit Jataka), a story of self-sacrifice for the benefit of others, and how the story spread to Japan as an episode in the Konjaku Monogatari. Finally, we discuss the episode of 捨身飼虎, bodhisattva giving up his own body to feed a tigress and cubs as depicted in the Tamamushi Shrine in the Horyuji temple.

Next week, we will discuss Borobudur's mandala arrangement of the Buddha statues and the Buddhist view of the world.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 18:36 

This week, we looked into the reliefs of the life story of the Buddha in Borobudur, the magnificent Buddhist monument built in the 9th century in Central Java.

We found the video clip "Borobudur: Relief Scenes from the Life of the Buddha" particularly informative and useful.

Although Borobudur was built according to Mahayana Buddhism, there is no essential difference between the depictions of Buddha's life story in the Borobudur reliefs and in the early 19th century Burmese paintings from Theravada Buddhist tradition. Borobudur represents multiple stages of the development of Buddhism; It shows the life story of the Buddha suitable for both Theravada and Mahayana Buddhists, then it also shows the reliefs specifically intended for Mahayana Buddhists and the arrangement of the Buddha statues in the form of a mandala, only intended for Tantric Buddhists.

Next week, we will look into some of the Jataka stories in Borobudur reliefs and then Borobudur's mandala arrangement of the Buddha statues.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 13:23 

This week, we continued to follow the life of the Buddha, as depicted in a Burmese illustrated manuscript.

Some of the highlights include:

• Siddhartha's discovery of the state of meditation in an early childhood
• Four sights of a sick person, an old man, a dead body, and an ascetic which compelled Siddhartha to become a wandering ascetic
• Siddhartha's attainment of the enlightenment through meditation

The story may be divided into four parts:

• life as a young prince indicates a secular life
• life as a wandering ascetic indicates the importance of the middle path
• Life as the Buddha indicates the importance of wisdom to attain enlightenment and compassion for others
• His death indicates the complete renouncement of this-worldly conditions (and the importance of the transmission of the Buddha's teachings after his death)

The life of the Buddha has been taken as a model in the tradition of Theravada Buddhism. In the following weeks, we look into the parallel tradition in Mahayana Buddhism.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 16:59 

From this week, we will look into a life story of the Buddha as depicted in a Burmese illustrated manuscript made in the early 1800s. The original manuscript, now kept in the British Library as Or. 14297, is 49 x 19 cm in size and contains 104 folds with illustrations on 52 openings. The illustrations were reproduced in the following book.

• Herbert, Patricia M. 1993. The Life of the Buddha. The British Library.

This work is a result of imagining the life of the Buddha in India in the past by the 19th century Burmese based on the Theravada Buddhist tradition. We follow the story from the Buddha's former life as Sumedha to his birth as Siddhartha.

It is interesting to note that the sage Kaladevala (also known as Asita), who predicted that prince Siddhartha would become a world-conquering monarch (chakravartin, "the wheel turner") or a Buddha ("the enlightened one"), is depicted as observing the prince's soles. This reminds us of the Buddha's footprints with symbols.

Next week, we will continue to follow the story.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 18:18 

This week we continue to explore the development of Buddhism and Hinduism in India. We focused on the difference between Theravada and Mahayana, which can be summarized as follows:

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 20:09 

This week we continue to explore the development of Buddhism and Hinduism in India. Topics we covered include:

• Upanishads texts (7th to 3rd c. BCE) in Sanskrit
  • Realization of the oneness between the Brahman (ultimate reality, or macrocosmos) and the Atman (the ultimate self, or microcosmos) through yoga.
• The emergence of non-Vedic free thinkers (nastika=atman does not exist), challenging the orthodox Vedic ideas (astika=atman exists) (5th to 6th c. BCE)
  • Buddhism advocated by Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) and Jainism by Jina
  • The Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path
• Hinduism as Brahmanic response to the popular movements (2nd to 3rd c. BCE)
  • Personal gods: Shiva and Vishnu, and their affiliated gods
  • Epic mythology: Ramayana (600-400 BCE) and Mahabharata (400 BCE-400 CE)

It must be noted that Buddha was not a Brahmin but came from a Kshatriya family. This reflects the intellectually vibrant and diverse atmosphere of urban lives in the Ganges valley at the time of his life.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 14:30 

This week we started exploring the development of Buddhism and Hinduism. Topics we covered include:

• The Indus Valley civilization (2600-1900 BCE)
• Aryan migration, Indo-European language family
• Veda texts (1500-1000 BCE) in Sanskrit
  • Rituals performed by Brahmins for gods: Indra, Agni, Rudra, and other gods of natural phenomena
  • Concept of reincarnation: atman and karma

A Brahmin is a priest. Since Brahmins created all the ancient texts, the world view described in the texts is naturally Brahmin-centered. They commanded respect from other classes because only Brahmins knew the gods' language and could communicate with them.

Please note that there is a lot of discussion regarding the Aryan migration theory.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 17:14 

This is the first week of the Autumn Quarter. Due to COVID-19, we continue the class online with students from different backgrounds as in the Spring Quarter, including Italy, Brazil, Indonesia, and Japan.

In this quarter, we will focus on world religions in Southeast Asia, that is, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity, and their interaction with indigenous beliefs and development in the local contexts. By looking into these topics, we hope we will be able to understand the formative era of Southeast Asian culture.

In the first several weeks, we will focus on the development of Buddhism and Hinduism in India, as they were most influential in the formative era of Southeast Asia. As an introduction, we compare the two Buddha statues built in different times, places, and Buddhist environments.

(sources: Wikimedia)

The Buddha statue on the left, located in Sukhothai, Thailand, represents a type of Buddha worshiped in a Theravada Buddhist society. The Buddha has a "fire" on his head, symbolizing his enlightenment, and his left hand on the crossed legs indicates his medication, while his right hand touching the ground indicates his invocation of the earth goddess. As a whole, the statue celebrates the moment when a man born as Siddhartha attained enlightenment. Buddhists are expected to follow in his footsteps.

The Buddha statue on the right, located in Kamakura, Japan, represents a type of Buddha worshiped in a Mahayana Buddhist society. The Buddha's two hands set on the crossed legs, with his closed eyes, indicates that he is deeply in the state of meditation. The statue represents Amitabha Buddha (or Amidabutsu in Japanese), a transcendent Buddha who resides in the Western Pure Land. Devoted followers pray for their rebirth in the Pure Land.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 15:47 

This week is the last week of Spring Quarter. We watched an NHK TV documentary program entitled "Newly found Japanese propaganda films made in Java during World War Two"(NHK, 1989, 44 mins, Japanese title「発掘　幻の国策映画　日本軍政下のジャワ」). The program includes the following short films (titles in Indonesian and Japanese):

• 1. 04:30. Kedatangan Perdana Menteri Tojo di Jawa/東條首相ジャワ来訪 (Prime Minister Tojo's arrival in Java)1943-07-06.
• 2. 10:10. Taboengan Oeang Moe/チョキンシマショウ (貯金しましょう, Let's Save Money)
• 3. 12:08. No title (showing scenes of 国民学校 and 東亜の良い子ども)
• 4. 14:38. Perlombaan Bahasa Nippon (Djawa)/ニッポンゴキョオギカイ(日本語競技会, Japanese Speech Contest in Java)
• 5. 17:00. Pemberian Pandji Kapada Tentara Pembela Tanah Air Djawa/ギュウグンダイダンキ (義勇軍大団旗, Granting the Flags of PETA; Defenders of the Homeland)1943-10
• 6. 21:38. Romusha Kekayaan Bangsa/労務者 (Labourers are the Wealth of the Nation).
• 7. 22:26. Oentoek Membangoenkan Asia Baru/新アジア建設 (Building New Asia)
• 8. 28:30. Berdjoeang Mati-Matian/決戦敢闘 (Fight Tooth and Nail)
• 9. 32:21. Tonari Gumi/隣組 (Neighborhood Association)1944-01
• 10. 36:14. Perkenan Kemerdekaan Kepada Indonesia/東印度に将来独立を許容 (Japan Promised Indonesia Independence)1944-09-07
• 11.40:30. No title (独立準備委員会設置の許可. Japan allowed the setting up of the Preparatory Committee for Indonesian Independence)1945-08-07

Some of the film footages were shown at Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival in 1997 under the heading Indonesia under Japanese Military Rule.

The films show the phases of the Japanese occupation of Java from the establishment of Japanese education, through the mobilization of workers (romusha, which we discussed in the last week's class), the organization of a voluntary army and Neighborhood Associations, to the final collapse.

The program points out underlying tensions in the Japanese occupation of Java, which include the Indonesian nationalists' apparent collaborative attitude toward the occupying Japanese, and Indonesian people's dissatisfaction at the Japanese occupation expressed in the 1945 PETA revolt in Blitar.

This concludes this quarters' class. The term paper assignment is due 9 August.

Wish you all the best.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 19:55 

This week, we discuss the Second World War in Southeast Asia, based on Chapter 9 of Osborne's Southeast Asia: An Introductory History.

Some of the topics we discussed include:

• What was the primary motivation of the Japanese invasion of Southeast Asia?
• How did nationalists in Southeast Asia perceive the Japanese advancement into the region?
• How different was the Japanese occupation of the French Indochina from the Japanese occupation in other parts of the region?
• Why were ethnic Chinese in Malaya and Singapore treated more savagely by the Japanese compared with the Malay population?
• How did the Japanese surrender affect the colonization of Southeast Asia?

To facilitate our understanding of the topics, we watched two versions of the recount of the Japanese construction of the "Death Railway" connecting Thailand and Burma: One is the Hollywood film "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957), and the other is a Malaysian documentary on a Tamil "romusha" survivor (2016).

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 09:47 

This week, we discuss the interwar period (between the World War I and II) of Southeast Asia, based on Chapter 8 "The Years of Illusion" of Osborne's Southeast Asia: An Introductory History.

The interwar period is named "the years of illusion" because of the European complacency about the colonial rule despite the growing nationalistic sentiment among the local population.

The illusion of complacency can be clearly seen in a 1938 film footage showcasing the British prosperity in Singapore (YouTube: Singapore - Crossroads of the East 1938).

The difference between earlier "traditional" anti-colonial rebellions and "modern" anti-colonial movements in the 1920s and 1930s lies in the fact the latter was accompanied by an increasingly strong sense of "nation" among the local population. Rebels in the earlier times might fight for their king, but modern counterparts fought for their people or nation.

This awareness of nationhood could be manifested in different ways, as we can see in the rise of the Communist Party in Vietnam and that of the National Party in Indonesia.

In the following weeks, we will move on to Chapter 9 (The Second World War in Southeast Asia), after further discussing the emergence of nationalism in Southeast Asia.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 17:20 

This week, first, we discussed the characteristics of traditional Chinese religion, in which Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism are practised without excluding each other.

After this, we discussed a significant change in the Asian immigration pattern in Southeast Asia that took place in the nineteenth century.

In this change, the British had a decisive role, first, by founding commercial centers in Singapore in 1819 and other Malay coastal settlements (creating labour demand), and, second, by opening up China as a result of the Opium Wars (making possible for Chinese to go abroad).

The internal instability in the late 19th century China, caused by famines and social unrest (the Taiping rebellion, 1850-64), forced many impoverished Chinese to go abroad, including Southeast Asia, seek fortune (creating labour supply). Those Chinese labourers, called coolies "苦力", worked in various sectors, including construction, shipping, agriculture, and mining, under the indentured labour system (where a worker was bound by a contract).

When the Second World War (1939) brought an abrupt end to this situation, the Chinese population already occupied nearly 40% of Malay's total population.

We also paid attention to the situations in Mainland Southeast Asia, where the assimilation of Chinese immigrants into the local populations happened more extensively.

Finally, we discussed the two types of Chinese immigrants: sojourners "華僑" and settlers "華人".

In the following weeks, based on Chapter 8 of Osborne's book ("The Years of Illusion: Southeast Asia Between the Wars, 1918-1941), we will look into the emergence of nationalism in Southeast Asia during the two world wars, taking Vietnam and Indonesia as two prominent examples.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 17:20 

In this week, first, we observed pictures created by Japanse artists in the 19th century and discussed the situation of the Dutch trading post on the island of Dejima in Nagasaki, Japan. Pictures showing European men, Japanese women, and servants who probably originated from Southeast Asia (most likely from Indonesia) may be considered as a representation of the relationship between Europe, Japan and Southeast Asia.

Then we discussed some of the topics dealt with in Chapter 7 "The Asian Immigrations in Southeast Asia" of Milton Osborne's Southeast Asia: An Introductory History. 12th ed., Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 2016. The topics include:

1. Prehistoric immigrations of certain language speaking groups contributed to the current distribution of indigenous populations in Southeast Asia: The Papuan language groups in Timor-Leste; The Austronesian language groups in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines; The Austroasiatic language groups in Vietnam and Cambodia; The Tibet-Burmese language groups in Myanmar; and The Tai language groups in Thailand and Laos.

2. While European immigration, in general, resulted in the creation of the states ruled by the Europeans, Asian immigrations, notably Chinese and Indian immigration, resulted in forming minority communities in the states ruled by indigenous populations. Singapore is a significant exception to this pattern.

3. The interaction with the Indian civilization introduced several important Indian cultural assets to Southeast Asia: A notable example is a group of Indian-derived scripts now used in Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, and Cambodia.

4. In early times, Chinese immigration to Southeast Asia was mainly motivated by the profit from trading. While most of the settlers were, after several generations, integrated into the local populations, Peranakan Chinese maintained their distinctive cultural mixture of Chinese and Malay.

In the next week, we will discuss the big change in the pattern of Asian immigration which took place in the nineteenth century and its consequence.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 18:36 

In this week, we discussed the following topics in the movie Max Havelaar.

1. The Dutch colonialism in Indonesia was an indirect rule in the sense that it relied on local rulers to control the villagers' production of commodity products, such as coffee. While the farmers were exploited, both the Dutch and the local rulers benefitted from this system.

2. The movie shows a Chinese man among the grievants at Max Havelaar's office in Manado. He wore his hair in the style called the queue, which was imposed on Chinese men by the Manchurian rulers during the Qing era. In Southeast Asia, many Chinese men took the role of middlemen between the ruling Dutch and the ruled local population in what is often called a "plural society."

After dealing with the movie, we briefly discussed the reasons why Thailand managed to avoid being colonized by European powers (even though it had to give up parts of the territory). One of the reasons is that Thailand was regarded as a buffer zone by the French and the British. Another reason is that Thai rulers became conscious of the importance of the nation-building and modernization of Thai society. We watched and discuss a video clip from the 1956 movie "The King and I" to see how Thai's modernization process was dealt with (in a Holywood way).

In the following week, we will continue to discuss Asian immigrants, especially Chinese, in Southeast Asia.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 16:06 

In this week, we discuss the movie Max Havelaar (1976). Some of the points we discussed include:

1. Not all local population were against the Dutch colonial rule. In fact, local rulers cooperated with the Dutch, and in return the Dutch supported them. This relationship was apparent in the scene where Dutch soldiers shot a young peasant to death who protested against the local ruler's oppressive treatment.

2. The movie shows that the Dutch soldiers consisted of people of many racial and ethnic backgrounds. An African soldier can be identified, as the Dutch maritime empire at its height included South Africa. Christianised Indonesians also served as soldiers for Dutch. The Dutch effort to Christianise the local population (emphasized in the early part of the movie) worked well with its colonial "divide and rule" policy.

3. The fight between a water buffalo and a tiger (and the former's victory over the latter) may be interpreted as a metaphor of the local peasants' resistant against the colonial Dutch. This prophecy-like discourse that a docile water buffalo can overcome a mighty tiger is also reflected in the famous 19th-century Javanese painter Raden Saleh's painting. Note that a water buffalo is a symbol of ordinary people in modern Indonesia's national emblem.

We will continue the discussion about the movie in the next week.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 11:28 

In this week we explored the impact of the arrival of Europeans in Southeast Asia. Obviously they were not uniform. Different groups of Europeans came to different regions at different times for different reasons. This can be summarized as follows:

• In the 16th century, the Portuguese and Spanish arrived at Indonesia for spices (clove, nutmeg and mace).
• In the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company arrived at Indonesia for spices. The Dutch later introduced coffee to the region. Meanwhile, the Portuguese almost disappeared except in Timor-Leste and the Spanish were engaged in the trans-Pacific trading with Chinese merchants in the Philippines.
• In the 18th century, the characteristics of the Dutch changed from the trader to the landlord by interfering with local politics.
• In the late 19th century, the British expanded its Indian territory into Myanmar and also settled down in parts of Malaysia for trading and later for tin. The French, initially looking for a trade route with China, eventually occupied Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.

One of the interesting questions regarding the colonization of Southeast Asia is why Thailand was not colonized. We will look into this before discussing the movie "Max Havelaar" in the following weeks.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 22:04 

In this week's Photo Challenge, we continued to identify another eleven images. By analyzing the photos, we came to appreciate the cultural/religious diversity of Southeast Asia and understand how the past is shown in multiple historical representations.　

In the next week and after, we will start looking back from the map of European colonization of Southeast Asia at the end of the 19th century to the arrival of European powers in the 16th century so that we understand who (which Europeans) arrived when, where and for what reason.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 16:24 

In this week we look into a historical perspective of Southeast Asia to understand the cultural diversity of the region.

First, we analyze the "structure" of the history of Southeast Asia by using the Time-Space Matrix Framework of the History of Southeast.

Time-Space Matrix Framework of the History of Southeast Asia

Blank worksheet

Then, we started "Photo Challenge" where we observe selected historical images and identify their positions in the Time-Space Matrix Framework.

In this week's Photo Challenge", we identified three images. We continue challenging more photos next week.

Also we will look into the arrival of European powers and try to understand who arrived when for what reason.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 18:30 

In this week's meeting, we reviewed the cultural outlook of eleven Southeast Asian countries (ASEAN10 plus Timor Leste). Please refer to the table.

As for the map, please read an insightful article on Wikipedia, the difficulties of mapping world religion, and a most bizarre map.

Among the eleven countries, the Philippines and Timor Leste share common characteristics with Pacific countries because of their geographical location. Their populations are predominantly Christians, except for the southern region of the Philippines, which is dominated by Islam. The Spanish and the Portuguese who colonized the Philippines and Timor Leste respectively introduced Christianity (mostly Catholicism).

Vietnam is mostly dominated by Chinese Mahayana Buddhism mixed with Confucianism and Taoism, although there are sizable populations of Christians and indigenous Vietnamese religions. Because of its geographical location, Chinese is influence is most strongly felt in Vietnam (especially in the northern half). The French colonization also brought in Christianity to Vietnam.

Apart from those explained above, it can be generally described that Mainland Southeast Asia (Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar) is dominated by Theravada Buddhism, while Island Southeast (Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei) is dominated by Islam.

Singapore's religious make-up is unique because it was largely created by immigrants (mostly from China) in colonial times.

The island of Bali in Indonesia is dominated by Balinese Hinduism. This is living proof that most part of Southeast Asia was in fact once dominated by Hinduism and Mahayana Buddhism from India.

In the next meeting, we will see more about the historical background of this cultural diversity in Southeast Asia.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 19:29 

In this week's meeting, we reviewed four climate regions found in Southeast Asia. They are (in the order of their location from the equator to farther away):

1. Tropical humid climate. Wet year-round. Singapore.

2. Tropical monsoon climate. Wet and dry with a short dry season. Phuket.

3. Tropical savanna climate. Wet and dry with a long dry season. Bangkok.

Tropical climates are hot year-around as they are close to the equator. Tropical monsoon and savanna climates have wet and dry seasons due to the seasonal migration of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ).

4. Humid subtropical climate. Hot and muggy summers and mild winter. Hanoi (also Tokyo).

Tropical wet and dry climates and humid subtropical climate in the northern hemisphere have a wet summer and a dry winter. Note that the pattern is reversed in the southern hemisphere. Tropical monsoon climate (Jakarta) and tropical savanna climate (Dili) have a wet "winter (in the northern hemisphere)" and a dry "summer (in the northern hemisphere)".

A useful summary may be found on this webpage.

In the next meeting, we will discuss how people both indigenous and foreign, made use of tropical vegetation found in tropical climates in the history of Southeast Asia.

So far we have mentioned rubber, coffee, spices, rice and tea.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 17:14 

Due to the COVID-19 crisis, this Graduate School seminar class will be conducted online for Spring Semester 2020. We have different students from diverse backgrounds, including Japan, Indonesia, Brazil, and Italy. We will read some chapters from a history textbook on Southeast Asia and discuss a number of topics to deepen our understanding of the history, culture and people of Southeast Asia.

The assigned textbook is:

• Milton Osborne. Southeast Asia: An Introductory History. 12th ed. Allen & Unwin, 2016.

The book is available in both paperback and Kindle editions at amazon.com and amazon.co.jp.

We will read chapter 5 The European Avance in Challenge and onwards in the following weeks. In the meantime, however, we discuss the climate, geographical setting, and people of Southeast Asia to consolidate and share our understanding of the basics of the region.

投稿者: AOYAMA Toru 日時: 18:52