Current Trends in the Economic History of Southeast Asia

Abstract

New winds are blowing in the writing of the economic history of Southeast Asia. The traditional Eurocentric perspective of the colonial economy is gradually giving way to a more Asian perspective stressing similarities and mutual links within the region itself. The issue of Western expansion now appears less vital than long-run economic developments in the Asian economies. Political power struggles in colonial relationships are squeezed aside and replaced by a more quantification and an increasing appreciation of dynamic change that does not readily fit into the model of Westernstyle modernization. The aim of this article is to discuss some positions and directions that have come to the fore in the economic history of Southeast Asia in recent years. Without claiming to offer a full coverage of the field, it is believed that trends thus identified may suggest, at least in part, the future course of Southeast Asian economic history.