This introduction to the archaeology of Asia focuses on case studies from the region's last 10,000 years of history.

Comprises fifteen chapters by some of the world's foremost Asia archaeologists

Sheds light on the most compelling aspects of Asian archaeology, from the earliest evidence of plant domestication to the emergence of states and empires

Explores issues of cross-cultural significance, such as migration, urbanism, and technology

Presents original research data that challenges readers to think beyond national and regional boundaries

Synthesizes work previously unavailable to western readers

Series Editors' Preface

Acknowledgments

Notes on Contributors

List of Figures

List of Tables

Part I: Introduction:

1. Contextualizing an Archaeology of Asia: Miriam T. Stark (University of Hawai'i, Manoa)

Part II: Contexts of Asian Archaeology:

2. Some National, Regional, and Political Uses of Archaeology in East and Southeast Asia: Ian Glover (Institute of Archaeology, University College London)

3. Archaeology in the Two Koreas: Sarah Nelson (University of Denver)

4. Self-identification in the Modern and Post-Modern World and Archaeological Research: A Case Study from Japan: Koji Mizoguchi (Kyushu University)

Part III: Formative Developments:

5. East Asian Plant Domestication: Gary Crawford (University of Toronto, Mississauga)

6. Asian Farming Diasporas? Agriculture, Languages, and Genes in China and Southeast Asia: Peter Bellwood (Australian National University)

Part IV: Emergence and Development of Complex Asian Systems:

7. Early Communities in East Asia: Economic and Sociopolitical Organization at the Local and Regional Levels: Anne Underhill and Junko Habu (The Field Museum, University of Illinois, Chicago, and Northwestern University; University of California, Berkeley)

8. Sociopolitical Change from Neolithic and Bronze Age China: Li Liu and Xingcan Chen (La Trobe University; Chinese Academy of Social Sciences)

9. Marks and Labels: Early Writing in Neolithic and Shang China: David N. Keightley (University of California, Berkeley)

10. Secondary State Formation and the Development of Local Identity: Change and Continuity in the State of Qin (770 - 221 BC): Gideon Shelach and Yuri Pines (both Hebrew University, Jerusalem)

Part V: Crossing Boundaries and Ancient Asian States:

11. Frontiers and Boundaries: The Han Empire from its Southern Periphery: Francis Allard (Indiana University of Pennsylvania)

12. States on Horseback: The Rise of Inner Asian Confederations and Empires: William Honeychurch and Chunag Amartuvshin (Smithsonian Institution; Institute of Archaeology, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia)

13. Historicizing Foraging in Asia: Power, History, and Ecology of Holocene Hunting and Gathering: Kathleen Morrison (University of Chicago)

14. The Axial Age in Asia: The Archaeology of Buddhism (500 BC - AD 500): Himanshu Ray (Jawaharlal Nehru University)

15. Imperial Landscapes of South Asia: Carla Sinopoli (University of Michigan)Index

Miriam T. Stark is Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Hawai'i, Manoa. She has worked in Southeast Asia since 1987, and also has experience in North American and Near Eastern archaeology. She has published widely on her research in the Philippines and in Cambodia, and currently co-directs the Lower Mekong Archaeological Project in the Mekong Delta.