Kingship, Nation, and Heritage in Asia

3.0 credits · Undergraduate

In this course, we will study Asia's kingdoms, states, and empires, and how this past is formulated as national heritage in present-day modern Asian states. We examine how Asian states and their royal traditions first came to be, including Hindu, Buddhist, and East Asian kings and emperors, and how the legacy of these glorious pasts is reinterpreted and staged as national heritage. Our examples will include Cambodia's Angkor empire modeled on Indian traditions, as well as Burma, Thailand, Japan, China, and more. We will use readings, films, lectures and in-class student presentations on many topics. The course also serves as a prerequisite to the separate in-country Winter semester course Heritage, History, and Identity in Cambodia (ANTHR 3590/6590). (ASIAN-SC)