Sino – Malay Trade and Diplomacy from the Tenth through the Fourteenth Century

Description

China has been an important player in the international economy for two thousand years and has historically exerted enormous influence over the development and nature of political and economic affairs in the regions beyond its borders, especially its neighbors. Sino–Malay Trade and Diplomacy from the Tenth through the Fourteenth Century examines how changes in foreign policy and economic perspectives of the Chinese court affected diplomatic intercourse as well as the fundamental nature of economic interaction between China and the Malay region, a subregion of Southeast Asia centered on the Strait of Malacca. This study’s uniqueness and value lie in its integration of archaeological, epigraphic, and textual data from both China and Southeast Asia to provide a rich, multilayered picture of Sino–Southeast Asian relations in the premodern era. Derek Heng approaches the topic from both the Southeast Asian and Chinese perspectives, affording a dual narrative otherwise unavailable in the current body of Southeast Asian and China studies literature. Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments Introduction 1: Sino-Malay Interaction in the First Milenium A D 2: China’s Economic Relations with Maritime Asia in the Song and Yuan Periods 3: The Malay Region’s Diplomatic and Economic Interactions with China 4: Malay and Chinese Foreign Representation and Commercial Practices Abroad 5: China as a Source of Manufactured Products for the Malay Region 6: China’s Evolving Trade in Malay Products Conclusion Appendix A: Chinese Imports to the Malay Region, Tenth through Fourteenth Century Appendix B: Ceramics Data from Temasik - Period Sites, Singapore (Empress Place and Old Parliament House) Appendix C: Malay Imports to China, Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries Abbreviations Notes Bibliography Index