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Conference
The 4th Kent Ridge International Roundtable
Conference on Chinese Linguistics
Conference Program &
Paper Abstracts
Translocal and Transregional
Dynamics
in Chinese History, 960-1911
Over the past few decades, it has become apparent for historians of
China that any historical analysis would have to take regional
variations into account. In fact, some has begun to question the
usefulness of “China” as an analytical concept. We have also witnessed a
surge in the number of microscopic studies being done on the social,
economic and cultural history of different localities and regions. But
it is only until recently that scholars are becoming more alert to the
various translocal and transregional factors that shaped the
socio-cultural landscape of a particular locale or region. Such
translocal and transregional interactions tied localities and regions
together on a “higher level”, but were still lower than the empire. This
intermediate level need not be geographical or administrative; and the
interacting localities and regions may not even be connected in
geographical terms. This conference, based on the assumption that these
factors would play out differently in different places and in different
periods, hopes to bring together scholars who are studying the histories
of different regions and localities to explore the working of these
factors in different spatial settings. It is hoped that through the
findings of the conference papers, we could establish a basis for
studying local history in a comparatively manner; and achieve a better
understanding of how different places interacted in the history of China
and the space that the interactions took place. Some topics that we are
interested in (but not limited to) include:
1) The construction of local or regional identities amid translocal and
transregional interactions.
2) The founding and development of trans-regional intellectual
traditions.
3) The social, cultural, and language factors behind common religious
practices and pilgrimages across regions.
4) The space of cross regional literati networks and literary
productions.
5) Shared historical memories across regions and its meaning.
6) Trans-regional political practices and the state.
7) The social and cultural meaning of trans-regional migrations,
commercial traveling, and official postings.
8) Translocal economic factors and regional trade.
Program for Translocal Conference, NUS 2008
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