1st Edition

Anthropology and Colonialism in Asia Comparative and Historical Colonialism

By Jan van Bremen, Akitoshi Shimizu Copyright 1999
424 Pages
by Routledge

424 Pages
by Routledge

424 Pages
by Routledge

For a time it was almost a cliche to say that anthropology was a handmaiden of colonialism - by which was usually meant 'Western' colonialism. And this insinuation was assumed to somehow weaken the theoretical claims of anthropology and its fieldwork achievements. What this collection demonstrates is that colonialism was not only a Western phenomenon, but 'Eastern' as well. And that Japanese or... Read more
Notes on contributors, Acknowledgements, Introduction, Part One: Anthropology in colonial contexts: historical and comparative perspectives, Part Two: Japanese anthropology in colonial contexts: East Asia, South-East Asia and Oceania, Part Three: Dutch anthropology in colonial contexts: South-East Asia, Afterword

Biography

Jan van Bremen, Akitoshi Shimizu

'This important volume will be very useful to those interested in the history of anthropology, colonialism and anthropology, and Asia. This work breaks new ground in exploring lesser-known anthropologies and their uses in a variety of colonial contexts. Their compilation into one volume will provide specialists from other academic traditions and world regions with a basic understanding of anthropology in these arenas that will be useful for their further exploration and comparison.' - Suzanne Falgout, Journal of Asian History (JAH)

'I believe that this book is a valuable contribution to the project of critically examining the world history of anthropology...the experiences of Japanese anthroplogy examined in this book provide significant lessons that deserve worldwide attention.' - Prof. Shinji Yamashita, Social Science Japan Journal