The Asian Studies Parade. Archival, Biographical, Institutional and Postcolonial Approaches

Based on his book The Asian Studies Parade. Archival, Biographical, Institutional and Postcolonial Approaches, Paul van der Velde will try to sketch an idea of the development of the field of Asian studies in the past forty years through his professional engagement with the field.

As an introduction, he will try to come to grips with the question: ‘How does one get interested in a continent, its populations and its customs?’ It is a question which is frequently asked but is seldom answered satisfyingly. Paul hopes to shed some light on it, placing the seven chapters of his book in the context of its time, which started at the end of the previous century with a colonial instrumental orientation and turned into an endeavour of cross-cultural celebration in present times.

Those who want to have an impression of what his lecture will be about should not hesitate to skim, peruse or even embrace the contents of The Asian Studies Parade, which is available for free through Open Access: https://library.oapen.org/handle/20.500.12657/61213.

The Speaker

Paul van der Velde is a historian and served as Secretary of the International Convention of Asia Scholars (ICAS) and the multilingual ICAS Book Prize for many years. Presently, he is a fellow at the International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS). His most recent publication is Life under the Palms—the Sublime World of Jacob Haafner (Singapore: NUS Press 2020).