Ancient Southeast Asia

John Miksic and Geok Yian Goh's synthesis reflects a phenomenal effort and impressive scholarship; it is just such work that may inspire the next generation of archaeologists to research the past of Southeast Asia. - Miriam T. Stark, Department of Anthropology, University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA (...) the authors have compiled a detailed gazetteer of Southeast Asian archaeological sites, ancient polities, artistic traditions, political economies, and religion. Invaluable to students of Southeast Asian history. - E. R. Swenson, University of Toronto This book provides readers with the most comprehensive overview of Southeast Asia's archaeological history since C.F.W. Higham's (1989) seminal book, The Archaeology of Mainland Southeast Asia. Moreover, Ancient Southeast Asia is the first synthesis to encompass not only the mainland regions but also Island Southeast Asia from Sumatra and Borneo to the Philippines. A work of such breadth and scope demands rich scholarship, which has been guaranteed by the authors' enormous knowledge of the different regional contexts and their acquaintance with the material and textual evidence and the latest discoveries. The result is a highly useful compilation, which will enable readers to understand the dynamics of social-cultural evolution in a vast and geographically fragmented region. - Dominik Bonatz, Freie Universitat Berlin John Miksic and Geok Yian Goh successfully accomplish three remarkable feats: delivering a highly accessible and sophisticated account of how Southeast Asia evolved as a world region from prehistoric times to AD 1600; providing a comprehensive research guide to the field of pre-modern Southeast Asian history and historical archaeology; and contributing important original insights to the theorisation of Southeast Asian and world history. One of the most inspiring achievements of this book is the authors' enunciation of the notion of 'interaction spheres' and consistent deployment of it as an overarching analytical tool throughout the book. Erudite and meticulously documented, this book is a foundational text for students and scholars interested in Southeast Asian history and archaeology, world history and Silk Road studies. - Qiong Zhang,Wake Forest University, NC, AWE [Ancient Southeast Asia] serves as a guide to the richness of archaeological knowledge in Southeast Asia, and it helps to chart the course for research yet to be done. - Sarah E. Klassen, Leiden University - American Antiquity