The Chinese Overseas: From Earthbound China to the Quest for Autonomy

The Edwin O. Reischauer Lectures

by Wang Gungwu

The Chinese overseas now number 25 to 30 million, yet the 2,000-year history of Chinese attempts to venture abroad and the underlying values affecting that migration have never before been presented in a broad overview. Despite centuries of prohibition against leaving the land and traveling and settling overseas, the "earthbound" Chinese--first traders, then peasants and workers--eventually found new sources of livelihood abroad. The practice of sojourning, being always temporarily away from home, was the answer the Chinese overseas found to deal with imperial and orthodox concerns. Today their challenge is to find an alternative to either returning or assimilating by seeking a new kind of autonomy in a world that will come to acknowledge the ideal of multicultural states.

In pursuing this story, international scholar Wang Gungwu uncovers some major themes of global the coming together of Asian and European civilizations, the ambiguities of ethnicity and diasporic consciousness, and the tension between maintaining one's culture and assimilation.

Genres: China, History, Asia

160 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2000

About the author

Wang Gungwu is an academic who has studied and written about the Chinese diaspora, although he has objected to the use of the word diaspora to describe the migration of Chinese from China, because it is inaccurate and has been used to perpetuate fears of a "Chinese threat". He was born in Surabaya, Indonesia, and grew up in Ipoh, Malaysia. He completed his secondary education in Anderson School, Ipoh before going to the university.

He studied history in the University of Malaya, Singapore, where he received both his Bachelor and Masters degrees. He holds a Ph.D. from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (1957) for his thesis on The structure of power in North China during the Five Dynasties. He taught at the University of Malaya (in both Singapore and Kuala Lumpur) before going to Canberra in 1968 to become Professor of Far Eastern History in the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies (RSPAS) at Australian National University. He was Vice-Chancellor of the University of Hong Kong from 1986 to 1995. In 2007, Wang became the third person to be named University Professor by the National University of Singapore.

Reviews

[Craig Kissho · Rating 3 out of 5]

A simple historical narrative about chinese immigration throughout history. Mainly well known facts without anything new.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Comprehensive overview of the history of Chinese migration, beginning from maritime policy in imperial China to the social and economic changes faced by overseas Chinese moving into the 21st century.

[Tsai Wei-chieh · Rating 4 out of 5]

大家小書。把東南亞海外華人史濃縮在短短三、四萬字以內。讀來尤見其功力之深。對於各個朝代性格的把握以及三種移民適應模式的歸納還是挺清楚的。可以做為入門書來讀。

[Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written essays in the experience of Chinese migrants in North America and Southeast Asia. Delivered at Harvard as a series of lectures in 2000, the essays feel dated, but also very predictive of the clash of civilizations unfolding in HK between the "continental" and the "maritime" outlooks of China

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think all huaqiao should read this. Actually, maybe everyone of Chinese descent should read this.