Regional / International studies Books

With the unleashing of the "War on Terror" in the aftermath of 9/11, Afghanistan has become prominent in the news. However, we need to appreciate that no substantive understanding of contemporary history, politics and society of this country can be...

Older persons are often portrayed as social and financial burdens because pensions, health and social care have to withstand increasing old age dependency ratios. Due to a lack of access to representation or a lack of social and economic power, older...

Bringing together a group of international scholars, Directors of Urban Change in Asia examines who the 'directors' for urban change are in an eclectic mix of Asian cities. The books discusses how, in the majority of cases, urban change has come about...

The image of the shinkansen - or 'bullet train' - passing Mount Fuji is one of the most renowned images of modern Japan. Yet, despite its international reputation for speed and punctuality, little is understood about what makes it work so well and what...

This is an analytical examination of Ibn Khaldun's epistemology, centred on Chapter Six of the Muqaddima. In this chapter, entitled The Book of Knowledge (Kitab al'Ilm), Ibn Khaldun sketched his general ideas about knowledge and science and its...

The International Relations of Japan and South East Asia asks three main questions: how and when has a new South East Asian regionalism been set in motion? what is the nature of Japanese leadership and networking in maintaining and promoting that new...

Using an exhaustive selection of primary sources, this book presents a rich and textured picture of Indonesian politics and society from 1965 to the dramatic changes which have taken place in recent years. Providing a complete portrait of the Indonesian...

The divide between the West and Southeast Asia seems to be nowhere more apparent than in debates about human rights. Within these diverse geographical, political and cultural climates, human rights seem to have become relative, and the quest for...

This unique and authoritative guide describes more than 400 important Chinese symbols, explaining their esoteric meanings and connections. Their use and development in Chinese literature and in Chinese customs and attitudes to life are traced lucidly and...

This book assembles translations of the work of leading critical socialist feminist Song Shaopeng, presenting a concise narrative which theorizes China's political and social development through a gendered lens.

This book is a biography of a Scottish missionary worker, Alexander Wylie, a classical nineteenth century artisan and autodidact. He made significant contributions to knowledge transfer, both to and from China: in missionary work; as a teacher, and as a...

Poon analyzes the ways in which British colonists and Chinese leaders, backed by the rhetoric of public health and nationalism respectively, transformed the Hong Kong seaside into a leisure space. This book will be of great interest to historians with an...

Globalization and internationalization are salient features of our times in significant modern and post-modern social theories. This study contributes to the literature, and delineates a comprehensive picture of China's higher education...

In this volume, a group of international scholars address issues relating to community wellbeing and the role of politics, law and economics in Europe and Japan in achieving human-centred symbiotic governance. Case-studies and suggestions for reform are...

First Published in 2001. These extremely entertaining shorter pieces by the leader of Islamic literary culture aim to instruct us on matters of moral and social concern. They cover such uses as Chanteuses, The Pleasure of Girls and Boys, This Life and...

While scholarly works on this topic have to date mainly concentrated on Japan's influences in economic and political terms, this volume examines Japanese influences in Asia from a broader perspective. The text takes into account human factors, such as...

First published in 2005. Art and an aesthetic sense of beauty are central to all aspects of Japanese life. This book examines beauty as an important aspect of Japanese tradition and Japanese international success. Topics include natural beauty, gardens...

The importance and richness of the Arabic linguistic tradition, largely neglected by Western literature, is amply demonstrated by this book, first published in 1990. Written by three experts in the field, it provides us with a comprehensive survey of the...

This book, first published in 1970, provides a description of the standard Arabic language used today as the universal means of written communication throughout the Arab world and in formal spoken communication (vernaculars differ both from each other...

This bibliography, first published in 1979, is a guide to serials and periodicals in Arabic, English, French and other European languages published in the Arab countries or in the Western hemisphere. Arab serials and periodicals are considered primary...

Based on frequent, first-hand reporting in Iran and the United States, The Iran Agenda Today explores the turbulent recent history between the two countries and reveals how it has led to a misguided showdown over nuclear technology. Foreign...

This book examines the changing image of the Arab Gulf States in the West. It addresses the question of perception in international relations and how the Arab States of the Gulf have pursued various endeavors to project themselves into Western...

This book explores China's rich history of regulating the market in the interests of the mass of the population

The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Malaysia offers a broad, analytical survey of Malaysia. It provides a comprehensive survey of significant topics in Malaysian politics, economy, and society today, focussing on issues, institutions, and trends. It...

Now available in paperback, the Routledge Handbook of Religions in Asia provides a contemporary and comprehensive overview of religion in contemporary Asia. Compiled and introduced by Bryan S. Turner and Oscar Salemink, the Handbook contains specially...

Decades after the end of the World War II East Asia continues to struggle with lingering animosities and unresolved historical grievances in domestic, bilateral and regional memory landscapes. China, Japan and the Korea share a history of inter- and...

The environment is one of the defining issues of our times, and it is closely linked to questions and dilemmas surrounding economic development. Southeast Asia is one of the world's most economically and demographically dynamic regions, and it is also...

The United Arab Emirates were established in response to the British decision to withdraw from the Gulf by 1971. This decision, announced in 1968, had left the rulers of the emirates perplexed and alarmed. After decades of mutual suspicion and rivalry,...

This book, first published in 1994, analyses the entire length of Iran's international boundaries. It reviews the establishment, evolution and continuing contentions over Iranian frontier zones and boundary lines, from the creation of the Iranian nation...

The study of Arab historiography and of the emergence of the Arab nation-state as an object of historical treatment is a matter of considerable current interest. Despite its importance, no academic work has dealt with this subject as a major...

This book, first published in 1994, provides a comprehensive treatment of a crucial set of geopolitical issues from a region where political developments are observed with great care and some trepidation by the rest of the world. Based on expert analysis...

Exploration usually demands the qualities of bravery, curiosity and organising ability. Arabia demanded more of the voyager: linguistic ability of a high order, scholarship and an imaginative temperament. It was also necessary to be able to pass as a...

Observers of Iran have often ascribed the main cause of the revolution to economic problems under the Shah's regime. This book, first published in 1990, on the other hand focuses on the political and social factors which contributed of the Pahlavi...

This book, first published in English in 1966, is a comprehensive guide to, and analysis of, the Third Reich's policy towards the Arab world. Based on German archive material, the records of the Nuremburg trials, published collections of American,...

This collection of essays, first published in 1958, presents analyses by some 34 specialists on key political and social trends in the Middle East. They take the reader through the history of the Middle East to help reveal the background behind the...

During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries the fertile islands of Zanzibar and Pemba became of central importance to East Africa's growing contact with the international economy as the ruling dynasty encouraged trade in cloves, slaves and...

First published in 1934, The Winning of the Sudan details the British conquest of the country following the fall of Khartoum and the death of General Gordon. The campaign culminated in the Battle of Omdurman and the Anglo-Egyptian domination of Sudan...

This book, first published in 1974, is a study of the two states which dominated the northern and western regions of Sudan from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century: the Funj kingdom of Sinnār and the Keira sultanate of Dār Fūr. Until now the history...

The State of Israel is an unlikely powerhouse in a troubled region. Since 1948, Israel has retained its status as a democratic state without interruption. An investor-friendly environment and skilled workforce have led to a thriving economy, whilst the...

For the public at large Shi'ism often implies a host of confused representations, suggesting more often than not obscurantism, intolerance, political violence and other ignominies running hot or cold in response to world events. In fact for many people,...

This book explores the question "Why is the US Navy in the South China Sea at all?" It traces the history of diplomatic, economic, and military tensions among the People's Republic of China, the Soviet Union, the United States, and the Socialist Republic...

This book explores social citizenship through the lens of investigating local compulsory education policy targeting migrant children in Beijing and Guangzhou.

This book critically analyzes the Palestinian legal arguments against Israeli occupation and in favor of Palestinian statehood.

This book is an inquiry into the elision of the figure of the sovereign, cotton producing Garo in the colonial archive and its savage transformation into imperialism's quintessential 'primitive' in the period between 1760 CE and 1900 CE.