The Third International Conference of Institutes & Libraries for Chinese Overseas Studies, Singapore, 2005 on "Maritime Asia and the Chinese Overseas (1405 - 2005)"
Organized by
Inter-Agency Committee on the Chinese Overseas Databank and Research, Singapore
and
Ohio University Libraries, Athens, Ohio, USA
In Association with
International Zhenghe Society, Singapore
Dates: 18-20 August 2005 (Thursday to Saturday)
Venue: Singapore
Patron: Singapore, Minister for Foreign Affairs : BG George Yeo
Distinguished Advisor: Prof. Wang Gungwu
Chinese overseas migration began many centuries ago. In the long process, Chinese contacts were established with the vast maritime world in Asia. This development in turn ushered in the world of maritime Chinese which spread from the Asia Pacific to the Indian Ocean littoral.
The Third International Conference of Institutes and Libraries for Chinese Overseas Studies with the theme "Maritime Asia and the Chinese Overseas (1405-2005)", scheduled for the year 2005, coincides with the 600th anniversary of Admiral Zheng He's first of the seven voyages to the South Seas and the Indian Ocean. The Zheng He expeditions in the early fifteenth century contributed to the development of the Asian maritime world in which the Chinese diaspora was a key Asian component. The Europeans subsequently entered this maritime world and participated in its trade activities. All these developments contributed to many important aspects of interaction among the Asians themselves, including the Chinese, and between the Asians and the Europeans. There emerged, as a result, the convergence and mutual adaptations of the various civilizations.
The primary objective of the Third International Conference of Institutes and Libraries for Chinese Overseas Studies is to explore the long process of these interactions and the role played by the Chinese overseas. It will trace both the early and modern developments in the various aspects.
The geographical areas, which the Conference will cover, include the Asia Pacific, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, India, the Middle East and East Africa.
Major plenary sessions conducted in English and Chinese are as follows:
Call for papers and panels
The organizing committee of the Conference invites proposals for organized panels as well as individual papers relating to the themes of the plenary sessions, or any other topics relating to Chinese Overseas. Please submit your proposal with abstract to the following email address by 15th December 2004 and the full paper by 1st May 2005.
Conference languages
English & Chinese (for all sessions) and Malay / Bahasa Indonesia (for session on Zheng He voyages / Maritime Asia / Chinese overseas)
Finance
Participants are expected to seek their own financial support for their travel and accommodation expenses. Sponsorship for invited speakers can be considered.
Accommodation
The organizing committee will provide information about accommodation possibilities in due course.
Contact
Ms Liu Wei Ho
National Library Board
278 Marine Parade Road #B1-01
Marine Parade Community Building
Singapore 449282
Email: weiho@nlb.gov.sg
Tel: 6342 4072
Fax: 6342 4222