The World of Asia

by Akira Iriye, Edward J. Lazzerini, David Kopl

The World of Asia is an ambitious book that attempts to tell the history of Asia in roughly four hundred pages. In discrete sections of three to four chapters each, the text covers China, India, Japan, Korea, and the ten countries of Southeast Asia. Through a rich mix of political, economic, and social history, the text manages to present an amazingly complete overview without overwhelming the reader with detail, conveying an appreciation of the complex differences among the many "worlds" of Asia. From the revised introductory essay by Akira Iriye on "Asia and America," through updated narratives, glossaries, maps, and illustrations for all sections--as well as a completely new and much expanded section on Southeast Asia--the updated second edition succeeds in presenting an accessible, digestible, and essential body of information about a massive geographic area that is as diverse as it is fascinating.

Genres: History

432 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1979

About the author

Akira Iriye is an historian of American diplomatic history especially United States-East Asian relations, and international issues. A graduate of Haverford College and Harvard University, he taught at the University of California at Santa Cruz, the University of Rochester, and the University of Chicago before accepting an appointment as Professor of History at Harvard University in 1989, where he became Charles Warren Professor of American History in 1991. He was Director of the Edwin O. Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies from 1991 through 1995. He served as President of the American Historical Association in 1988, and has also served as president for the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations.