CHL Pacific and Asian History

Award-winning teaching

Direct engagement with Asian and Pacific societies

Focus on documentary, oral, and visual materials

Consistent highest ERA rating for History

Strong tradition of research and teaching

Our distinctiveness lies in our direct engagement with Asian and Pacific societies on fundamental questions of identity and meaning. By emphasizing the resonances of past and present, our work forms an essential link between the College of Asia and the Pacific and the societies it studies.

History as a discipline examines the meaning of the human condition by exploring experiences, memories and reconfigurations of the past, and by examining processes of political, social, economic, cultural, intellectual and environmental change over periods ranging from the very long to the very short.

The work of the Department includes academic research, publication, undergraduate teaching and postgraduate supervision on a wide range of issues related to the histories and cultures of Asia and Oceania.

Our research is marked by close attention to documentary, oral, and visual materials. We combine particular empirical interests with reflection on the nature of historical inquiry, representation and writing in history and related disciplines. Our methods include the deep reading of texts for meaning and the rigorous practice of documentary study and criticism.

A vigorous historical research presence in the College provides a temporal perspective on current developments in the Asia and Pacific region, contributing to the deep understanding of contemporary political, social and economic processes.