History Of Southeast Asia

The first Southeast Asian nations larger than a city-state appeared in or near the first century A.D. In other words, roughly two thousand years ago. This episode will look at Funan, the major state that arose in Cambodia, and medium-sized states like Dvaravati, Haripunjaya, Pan Pan, Langkasuka, and Tambralinga, which the Mons and Malays founded in present-day Thailand and northern Malaya. This map from Wikipedia shows the centers of political power on the Southeast Asian mainland in 1360 A.D. The episode refers to this map while explaining the loose monarchies that characterized Southeast Asian states in ancient times, a system we sometimes call "mandalas." Support this podcast!  

The Southeast Asians you are familiar with came originally from China, in at least five waves of migration: the Austronesians or Malays, the Mon-Khmers, the Vietnamese, the Tibeto-Burmans and the Thais. In this episode we will follow the Malay and Mon-Khmer migrations. Then when the Mons make contact with India, we will see Indian civilization introduced to nearly all of Southeast Asia, setting the stage for the rise of the first Southeast Asian states. This map from Wikimedia Commons shows the path taken by the Austronesians during their great migration. Recent research has changed some of the dates, but otherwise the map is reliable. Support this podcast!  

Our narrative begins with Southeast Asia in prehistoric times. We will look at Java Man, Solo Man, Wadjak Man, Meganthropus, Gigantopithecus, Homo floresiensis, the Negritos, and the amazing Ban Chiang village in Thailand. This episode was originally uploaded on July 15, 2016. It was edited on August 21 to remove a sentence that was later found to be in error.   Support this podcast!  

Meet the podcaster and get a geographical description of Southeast Asia, before jumping into the historical narrative that will make up the rest of this podcast series. Support this podcast!