• National Consortium for Teaching about Asia applications are ready for Summer 2008 and AY 2008-09! Please click here for application information.

  About Us

  The Asian Studies Program at UF began in 1986 with seven core faculty members and sustained with a series of gifts from anonymous donors. Though the American south has not traditionally been well-represented in Asian Studies, with the support of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and help from Freeman and Japan Foundation grants in 1995, 2001, and 2005, the University of Florida has over the last ten years tripled in size, with 28 core faculty members in seven different departments. As the flagship university of a ten-university system, UF boasts the only full four-year program of language study in Chinese and Japanese in Florida, B.A degrees in East Asian Languages and Literatures and Asian Studies, with over 350 students enrolled in language study and 95 majors, and fledgling programs in Vietnamese, Indonesian, Hindi, and Korean.

  In response to the rapid rise in economic, political, and cultural significance of Asia in a globalizing world, the University of Florida has over the last ten years built its program to one of real substance. We provide the resources to acquire the language and a rigorous, academic interdisciplinary focus on the social science and humanities issues that will be reshaping your world in the 21st century. Our graduates have won two Fulbright Fellowships in the last five years, have been placed into top graduate programs and corporate positions, as well as medical and professional schools. Our students know that a disciplined understanding of this region as it remakes the economic, political, and cultural map in every field in the 21st century is important. It widens our horizons, enriches us personally, and deepens one’s ability to engage any professional field. Come join us and see.

  FAQs

  • Why study Asia?
    Why study Asian languages?
    What kind of a job can I get with an Asian Studies or EALL major?

  News and Events
  
• The Tale of the Heike presented by Ms. Yoko Hiraoka with lecture and musical performance
  March 5, 2008 - 6 to 8 PM - E119 CSE
• Documenting China: Contemporary Photography and Social Change
  Thomas Center Galleries, Gainesville, Florida
  October 25, 2008 to January 3, 2009
  Exhibition sponsored by Asian Studies Program and the City of Gainesville in collaboration with Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibit Services (SITES)
  . . the single most significant event in the contemporary transformation of Chinese society [is the] peasants’ departure from their land and their integration into city life.
  Special Events (TBA)
• International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic and Social Sustainability, Malaysia
  January 4 - 7, 2008
  
  This Conference aims to develop a holistic view of sustainability, in which environmental, cultural and economic issues are inseparably interlinked. It will work in a multidisciplinary way, across diverse fields and taking varied perspectives in order to address the fundamentals of sustainability.
  As well as impressive line-up of international main speakers, the Conference will also include numerous paper, workshop and colloquium presentations by practitioners, teachers and researchers. We would particularly like to invite you to respond to the Conference Call-for-Papers. Papers submitted for the Conference proceedings will be peer-refereed and published in print and electronic formats in the International Journal of Environmental, Cultural, Economic and Social Sustainability. If you are unable to attend the Conference in person, virtual registrations are also available which allow you to submit a paper for refereeing and possible publication in this fully refereed academic Journal, as well as access to the electronic version of the Conference proceedings.
  The deadline for the next round in the call for papers (a title and short abstract) is 13 October 2007. Proposals are reviewed within four weeks of submission. Full details of the Conference, including an online proposal submission form, are to be found at the Conference website: http://www.SustainabilityConference.com
  
  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  
  
• Ladybird's Requiem
  Anime film at the Harn Museum, through July 15, 2007
  part of the "International Contemporary Art from the Harn Museum Collection"
  This film was made by Japanese artist Akino Kondoh, who is part of vibrant young generation working in the realms area of anime, manga and technology. The film, which she created between 2005 and 2006, will be on view through July 15, 2007, while the exhibition closes on Oct. 14, 2007. “Anime” is the Japanese term for animation and “manga” refers to Japanese adult comic books that are characterized by fluid compositions, highly stylized art and adult themes. In “Ladybirds' Requiem,” Kondoh evokes the intangible memories and fantasies of childhood through the dreamlike interaction between ladybirds and a young girl named “Eiko,” who appears in all of Kondoh's works as the idealized figure of a young woman. Born in 1980 in Japan 's Chiba Prefecture , Kondoh went on to graduate in 2003 from Tama Art University and her work has since been exhibited in several international venues. She has received several prestigious awards for her work, including being the jury recommended work in the Manga Division at the 7th Japan Media Arts Festival held in 2003. “International Contemporary Art from the Harn Museum Collection” demonstrates that art produced across cultures is richly diverse despite globalism. Featured are more than 30 artists who span the continents of Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa and Asia working in painting, sculpture, drawing, prints, photography, installation and video from 1945 to the present. Other Japanese artists included in “International Contemporary Art from the Harn Museum Collection” are Yayoi Kusama, Jun Kaneko and Hiroshi Sugimoto. Admission to the Harn Museum of Art is free. For more information call 352.392.9826 or visit www.harn.ufl.edu .
• Asian Perspective of Tourism: Universal Principles or Culturally Determined Values?
  Wednesday, April 18, 12:00pm
  Florida Gym 260
  Distinguished speaker Trevor Sofield from the University of Tasmania, Australia will be speaking on attitudes towards tourism in Asia. Sponsored by the Center for Tourism Research and Development.
• "To the Divine through Beauty"
  The Center for the Study of Hindu Traditions (CHITra) and The Harn Museum of Art present the Roy C. Craven, Jr. Memorial Lecture
  Vidya Dehejia, Ph.D., Barbara Stoler Miller Professor of Indian and South Asian Art, Director, Southern Asian Institute, Columbia University
  Tuesday, April 10, 2007, 6 p.m. at the Harn Museum
  
  Vidya Dehejia provides a preview from her forthcoming book, "The Body Adorned," which addresses the dominance of the human form in India's art, the sensuous nature of the imagery used to portray deities to be approached with veneration, the intimate portrayal of divine couples, and the manner in which sacred spaces happily accommodate what might be termed "profane" imagery. The program is co-sponsored by the Center for the Study of Hindu Traditions (CHiTra) and the Harn Museum.
  
  Dr Deehjia has authored over twenty major books and numerous articles on Indian art history, Buddhist archaeology and inscriptions, and Tamil devotional poetry. As the deputy director and chief curator of the Smithsonian's Freer Gallery and the Arthur M.Sackler Gallery from 1994-2002, she organized several important exhibitions, including 'The Sensuous and the Sacred: Chola Bronzes from South India," (American Federation of Arts, New York, jointly with Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 2002), "India Through the Lens: Photography 1840?1911." (Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.,2000) and "Devi: The Great Goddess." (Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 1999.)
  
  Dr Dehejia received her PhD from Cambridge University, England. Over the past thirty years, she has combined research with teaching and exhibition-related activities around the world. Extensive field travel in South Asia, with visits to sites of importance in Southeast Asia, has given her first hand familiarity with the art of the region.
  Dr Dehejia incorporates her knowledge of classical Sanskrit and Tamil, her lyrical translations of ancient poetry, and material from unpublished manuscripts, to illumine art. She has explored the theoretical basis for the portrayal of visual narratives in the context of India?s sculpture and painting, and has examined issues of gender and colonialism. Over time, her work has ranged from Buddhist art of the centuries BCE to the esoteric temples of North India, and from the sacred bronzes of the South to the art of British India. Management and curatorial experience at the Smithsonian?s Freer and Sackler Galleries has provided broader scope to convey the excitement of her field to non-specialist audiences.
  http://www.clas.ufl.edu/chitra/index.html
• Japanese Festival: Saturday April 7
  The UF Japanese Club will present a Japanese Spring Festival on Saturday, April 7th, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. on the North Lawn of the Reitz Union as part of International Month.  This festival features the taiko drummer group Matsuriza, sponsored by the Consulate General of Japan, Miami, as well as soran bushi folk dancing, a formal tea ceremony, calligraphy and karate demonstrations,  and various arts and crafts.  The event is also sponsored by the African & Asian Languages & Literatures Department and the Asian Studies Program.   The Deputy Consul from the Miami Consulate will make opening remarks.  For further information, contact Prof. Susan Kubota, African & Asian Languages & Literatures Department,  at skubota@aall.ufl.edu .
• The Japan-Florida Relationship
  Friday, April 6, 3:00- 4:00pm
  Turlington Hall, room L005
  Deputy Consul Watanabe of the Consulate General of Japan in Miami
  
  Deputy Consul Watanabe will discuss the relationship between Japan and Florida, including the history of Japanese immigrants to Florida, the Japan–Florida economic relation, and the current situation within the
  Japanese economy.
• Why I'm Talking about Modern South Asian Women's Poetry
  Women's Studies Brown Bag Lecture Series
  Thursday April 5, 2007, 11:45am
  Ustler Hall, Third Floor Reading Area
  
  Presented by Dr. Anita Anantharam, CWSGR and English departments. For more information, please contact the Center for Woemns' Studies and Gender Research at 392-3365. This event is free and open to the public.
• The Origins of Sanxingdui: An Early Complex Society in Sichuan, China
  Thursday April 5th, 2007
  Ustler Hall 200 - Grand Atrium (Formerly the Women's Gym)
  7:00pm [reception to follow]
  
  In 1986 two pits filled with fabulous bronze, jade, gold, and ivory objects were found in Guanghan City near Chengdu, Sichuan Province. These discoveries forced a complete revision of our understanding of the “big picture” of the Early Chinese Bronze Age. Recent research has begun to focus on understanding the origins of this “Sanxingdui Civilization” with particular focus on the precursor communities associated with the “Baodun Culture.” I discuss the background for this research and the current fieldwork being conducted in the Chengdu Plain to address these issues.
  
  Dr. Rowan Flad (PhD UCLA) is assistant professor of anthropological archaeology at Harvard University. His research is currently focused on the emergence and development of complex society during the late Neolithic period and the Bronze Age. This research incorporates interests in diachronic change in production processes, the intersection between ritual activity and production, the role of animals in early Chinese society – particularly their use in sacrifice and divination, and the processes involved in social change in general. Recently he has conducted excavations at a salt production site in the eastern Sichuan Basin and has started a new field project in the Chengdu region focusing on prehistoric settlement patterns and social evolution in that region.
  
  Sponsored by: Florida Anthropology Student Association (FASA), Asian Studies Program, and Department of Anthropology
• "New Research on the Mawangdui Silk Manuscripts & Paintings"
  April 5, 2007, 5:00-7:15pm
  Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, Chandler Auditorium
  CHEN Songchang
  Professor and Director fo the Hunan Provincial Museum, Keeper of the archaeological materials excavated from the Mawangdui tombs
  &
  "Voices from the Tomb: A Legal Case from the Documents Excavated
  in the Baoshan Tomb, ca. 316 BCE"
  CHEN Wei
  Professor, Wuhan University
  [Reception to follow]
  Sponsored by the Harn Eminent Scholar Lecture Series
  
• ‘Partly Colored'?: Asian Americans, Jim Crow History, and Conceiving Coalition
  Professor Leslie Bow
  Thursday March 29th at 6 pm
  113 Little Hall
  
  Where did the Asian American sit on the segregated bus? This talk explores the place of Asian Americans within the context of the Jim Crow South and their construction as “partly colored.” If the legacy of segregation and the Civil Rights Movement enforced a black-white lens for looking at American race relations, how do Asian Americans fit in? This talk analyzes the construction of Asians as racial middlemen—between white and black— and its significance for coalition-building in the present.
  
  Leslie Bow is the Director of the Asian American Studies Program and Associate Professor of English and Asian American Studies at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She received a B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley and a Ph.D. from the University of California at Santa Cruz. She is the author of _Betrayal and Other Acts of Subversion: Feminism, Sexual Politics, Asian American Women's Literature_ (Princeton University Press, 2001) and is currently working on a book-length project tentatively titled, Transracialism and the Anomalies of Segregation.
• English Teaching Program in Shenzhen, China: accepting applications. This program seeks graduating seniors and recent graduates to teach English in Shenzhen, China for one year. Participants learn Mandarin Chinese and gain a year's experience in one of the world's most important and most interesting cultures. This well-established, large program is supported by the Shenzhen government. The program begins with three weeks in Beijing for training in English teaching methods and in Chinese language (4 levels; the beginning course requires no prior study of Chinese). Please click here for more information.
• Florida Statewide Chinese Language Competition, March 30-31, 2007. This reading, writing, and speaking competition brings together Chinese language students from around the state of Florida. For more information, please contact Dr. Cynthia Chennault, Department of African and Asian Languages and Literatures.
• Interim Director Joseph Murphy, along with 6 international and Asian-American students, presented a panel at the Mayor's Summit on Race and Diversity in Tallahassee this fall. Their panel, entitled "Asians and Asian-Americans in Florida," explored issues of immigration, cultural difference, the idea of "diversity," economic issues, Asians in the academy, and more. The student speakers were Bharati Kasibhatla (Ph.D. student, English), Sandy Chiu (UF undergraduate, Microbiology), Daming Ng (UF alumnus), Jianlin Li (graduate student, Materials Science), Elizabeth Hartsell (UF undergraduate, Psychology and Classics), and Madhura Bandyopadhyay (Ph.D. student, English). Thank you all for your participation in this event!
• The National Consortium for Teaching about Asia was recently featured in the Gainesville Sun. Click here for the article about the seminar, and here for more web resources for teaching about East Asia.
• In May and June of 2006, the University of Florida Lombardi Scholars visited Japan under the guidance of Dr. Joseph Murphy, director of the Asian Studies Program. Check out the website of their trip, featuring studies of public space in Japan, here.
• ZIRGER ALUMNAE!! Please contact us. We are in the process of following up on the life and history of our Zirger alumnae. Please contact Amisha Sharma and give us an update on what you've been doing since winning the award! Click here for a list of past winners of the Alice M. Zirger Scholarship. Click here for our 2006 winner, Lucille Lam.

Related Links