Regional / International studies Books

Shaykh Ṭanṭāwī Jawharī was an Egyptian exegete known for having produced a scientific interpretation of the Qurʾān. A pioneering scholar in terms of familiarising the people of his time with many previously neglected matters regarding Islam and science,...

This book offers a multifaceted look at Northeast India and the customs and traditions that underpin its legal framework. The book:charts the transition of traditions from colonial rule to present day, through constitutionalism and the consolidation of...

Hong Kong's 'Umbrella Revolution' has been widely regarded as a watershed moment in the polity's post-1997 history. While public protest has long been a routine part of Hong Kong's political culture, the preparedness of large numbers of citizens to...

Indian Muslims form the largest ethnic minority within Singapore's otherwise largely Malay Muslim community. Despite its size and historic importance, however, Singaporean Indian Muslims have received little attention by scholarship and have also felt...

Postcolonial studies is a well-established academic field, rich in theory, but it is based mostly on postcolonial experiences in former West European colonial empires. This book takes a different approach, considering postcolonial theory in relation to...

Islamic Banking and Finance (IBF) has become a growing force over the past three decades, with Pakistan being one of the IBF pioneers by converting to an 'interest-free' banking system in 1985. However, since independence in 1947, there has been...

Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Armenia has struggled to establish itself, with a faltering economy, emigration of the intelligentsia and the weakening of civil society. This book explores how a new national elite has emerged and how it has...

Southern Silk Route is the historic route, which runs from China to Myanmar and ends up in Assam. The route has historical importance as it served as a major artery of ancient trade articles. The Southern Silk Route: Historical Links and Contemporary...

This volume contributes new insights to the scientific debate on post-Socialist urbanities. Based on ethnographic research in cities of Central Asia, the Caucasus and Russia, its contributions scrutinise the social production of diverse public, parochial...

The contributors and editors purpose in this book is to sketch where and why the United States and Cuba differ; to identify the issues where differences are likely to endure because they stem from the central values and interests of such different...

Neither stability nor change in the post-colonial Arab world can be fully understood without considering the international context, and American Foreign policy in particular. However, the exact nature of America's presence in the Arab world, and the...

Drawing on a rich body of multimethod field research, this book examines the ways in which Indonesian and Philippine religious actors have fostered conflict resolution and under what conditions these efforts have been met with success or limited success...

This book provides a comparative analysis of the social, economic, industrial and migration dynamics that structure women's paid work and unpaid care work experience in the Asia-Pacific region. Each country-focused chapter examines the formal and...

This book explores the long history of the evolution of Arab political identity, which predates the time of the Prophet Muhammad and is characterized by tolerance, compassion, generosity, hospitality, self-control, correct behaviour, equality and...

The idea of 'the commons' is a long-standing concept in the English-speaking world and in English law. A similar concept occurs in China. How different from or similar to the English idea of 'the commons' is the idea in China; and how is the concept...

Examining Syrian foreign policy during the Ba'th years from 1963 to 1989, this book traces the alliances of the Levantine country from a historical perspective and in the context of recent political developments. Syrian Foreign Policy analyses the...

Gamal Abdel Nasser was arguably one of the most influential Arab leaders in history. As President of Egypt from 1956 to 1970, he could have achieved a peace agreement with Israel, yet he preferred to maintain his unique leadership role by affirming...

The nature of the economic cycle has been a long-standing problem for economists, given much attention by especially Malthus, Marx and Keynes. Key questions include: What are the causes of the economic cycle? Are the causes endogenous or exogenous? and...

Catholicism has had an important place in Macau since the earliest days of Portuguese colonization in the sixteenth century. This book, based on extensive original research including in-depth interviews, examines in detail the everyday life of Catholics...

The Islamic resistance movement 'Hamas' is, arguably, one of the most important Palestinian organizations in recent decades. Since Hamas' establishment, it has extensively utilized media as a means of mobilization for its political and ideological...

This book focuses onurban family soaps on television and analyses them as an important resource for anthropological insights into contemporary social issues and practices. It studies thepopular andeveryday while also concentrating on the middle class.

Contemporary Japan is in a state of transition, caused by the forces of globalization that are derailing its ailing economy, stalemating the political establishment and generating alternative lifestyles and possibilities of the self. Amongst this nascent...

First published in 1952, imperialism is a regularly recurring historical phenomenon, calling for neither approval not condemnation in the abstract. A more profitable exercise is to consider particular imperialisms and assess their spirit and their...

Based on extensive fieldwork and archival records, this book traces the emergence and flourishing of madrasas and the myriad ways in which they impact upon local Muslim communities, especially in West Bengal. It also addresses issues of identity,...

Published in 1934: This book describes his adventures and experiences among the Nomads of Central Asia.

The rise of popular politics is among one the most significant social and political developments the People's Republic of China has witnessed in the post-Mao era. People from all walks of life have responded to rising inequalities and the privatization...

This book aims at uncovering the politics behind the provision of US foreign aid to Pakistan during three distinctive periods: the Cold War, the post-Cold War and the "war on terror". Focusing on a comprehensive analysis of aid allocation and delivery...

This book analyses the formulation, interpretation and implementation of sharia in Pakistan and its relationship with the Pakistani state whilst addressing the complexity of sharia as a codified set of laws.Drawing on insights from Islamic studies,...

The bantustans - or 'homelands' - were created by South Africa's apartheid regime as ethnically-defined territories for Africans. Granted self-governing and 'independent' status by Pretoria, they aimed to deflect the demands for full political...

The Komagata Maru incident has become central to ongoing debates on Canadian racism, immigration, multiculturalism, citizenship and Indian nationalist resistance. The chapters presented in this book, written by established and emerging historians and...

A sense of order has irreversibly retreated at the turn of the twenty-first century with the rise of such ancient civilizations as China and India and the militant resurgence of Islamic groups. The United States and like-minded states want to maintain...

This book examines important social movements in Hong Kong from the perspectives of historical and cultural studies. Conventionally regarded as one of the most politically stable cities in Asia, Hong Kong has yet witnessed many demonstrations and...

With China's rapid advancements in urbanization and industrialization, there has been significant labor movement away from agriculture in the rural regions. Using four village case studies, Song examines how this restructuring process affects the rural...

Mozambique as a place of interrogation: the modernity in Elísio Macamo and Severino Ngoenha is an attempt to seek answers to questions that arise when we think within the scope of modern science from the global periphery. This book provides a tour...

Resistance movements to economic measures and militaristic policies have been increasing in Latin America and the Caribbean since the 1960s. Indigenous and peasant movements are advancing against the exploitation of their territories by mining, oil, and...

This text discusses the Chinese Legalists, an ancient school of Chinese philosophy which flourished during the Period of the Hundred Contending Schools (6th-3rd century B.C.E.) The school perfected the science of government and art of statecraft to a...

An autobiography of a scholar-teacher who devoted his career to the study of Chinese history and the promotion of Asian studies in America.

Based on archival research, this is a history of the Russo-Chinese border which examines Russia's expansion into the Asian heartland during the decades of Chinese decline and the 20th-century paradox of Russia's inability to sustain political and...

These essays present fresh insights into the history of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), from its founding in 1920 to its assumption of state power in 1949. They draw upon considerable archival resources which have recently become available.

Regionalism is one of the most debated issues in contemporary western Europe. Yet why the region, rather than the nation state, can have such a strong appeal for the construction of social and political identity remains largely unexplored. Drawing on...

What does the Congress do? How does it do it? Is the Congress up to the challenges ahead? This primer offers students an introduction to Congress and the role it plays in the US political system. It explores the different political natures of the House...

This companion presents a critical collection of Sinhala resistance literature from Sri Lanka. It includes translated short stories and excerpts from Sinhala novels, written during and after the civil war in the country.

This book considers the Chinese internet as an ensemble of ideas, ownership, policies, laws, and interests that intersect with pre-existing global elements and, increasingly, with deepening globalizing imperatives.

This book looks at the representation and practice of chastity in selective ancient Indian texts. It studies how and when the concept originated and in what ways it was intertwined with the social, cultural, and economic notions of Indian society.

This book explores the ambiguous legal status of traditional - adat - communities in Indonesia and their informal, traditional rights to communal - ulayat - land.

The book critically analyses questions of gender and sexuality in the medieval religious texts of Bengal. It analyses the emergence of religious cults in patriarchal contexts, the humanisation of the goddess figure as a wife and mother who is subject to...

Bringing together two voices, practice and theory, in a collaboration that emerges from lived experience and structured reflection upon that experience, Ueno and O'Mochain show how entrenched discursive forces exert immense influence in Japanese society...