Yunnan and the Bengal Bay

Speaker: Prof. Yang Bin (History, National University of Singapore; HYI Visiting Scholar 2011-12)

Discussant: Prof. Michael Witzel (Wales Professor of Sanskrit, Harvard University)

Yunnan, a frontier province in southwest China, has long been placed in Chinese historical narration. This talk aims to bring back its medieval connections to Southeast and South Asia.  It first introduces the use of cauri (cowrie or cowry) currency in Yunnan and other areas around the Bay of Bengal, and then construct historical routes linking the Bengali world and Yunnan, both by land and sea. The spread of Buddhism into Yunnan will be discussed to highlight the Bengali cultural influence. Keeping these reflections in perspective, Yang Bin calls for a reconsideration of the current so-called Chinese frontier studies.