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Explores the prehistory of the Silk Roads, reexamines their structure and history in the classical era, and explores shifts in their geography in the last one thousand years. Explains that a revised understanding of the Silk Roads demonstrates how the Afro-Eurasian land mass has been linked by networks of exchange since the Bronze Age. (CMK)

Relates the phenomenon of genocide to broader processes that have created and shaped modern international society. Argues that the emergence of a western-led international system of national states has caused many states to attempt shortcuts to development or to become empowered by distinguishing themselves from the dominant states. (CMK)

Examines a social movement that swept over the British settler colonies of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States in the second half of the 19th century. The movement was characterized by an enthusiasm for introducing birds and animals that could be hunted to remind settlers of home. (MJP)

Offers a comparative and transnational study of environmental contacts between California and Australia. Analyzes concepts of the ideal society, the influence of isolation, distant markets, and climate similarities, using world system and cultural landscape theories. Discusses key exchanges of plants and policies regarding irrigation and biological control. (MJP)

Explores the reasons for the extraordinary conversion to Christianity among the Naga peoples of northeastern India. Almost the entire population has converted within the last 100 years. Tests the usefulness of models of religious change generated from fieldwork on conversion in Africa, specifically Robin Horton's "intellectualist" theory. (MJP)

Characterizes the early modern period in world history (roughly 1500-1800) as one marked by worldwide processes of change unprecedented in scope and intensity. Argues that the society of the Indian subcontinent shared directly in the massive processes of change that influenced societies throughout the world. (MJP)

Outlines a comparative approach to the social dynamics (struggles, adaptations, and cross-border alliances) in regions' bisected borders. Argues that borderland studies provide an indispensable corrective to historical narratives that accept the territoriality to which all modern states lay claim. Discusses borderland culture in relation to space, time, and overlapping networks. (MJP)

Argues against a graduate field of study in world history as too general. Suggests developing a specialization in comparative history to encompass major culture areas. Uses multiple elements to develop comparative history courses. Proposes graduate seminars where students discuss works in cross-cultural comparative history. (NL)

Recommends academic history departments review present course listings and devise more structured programs. Describes four one-semester core courses designed to promote world history perspectives. Includes a brief outline for each course. Reviews past college and university history department programs and changes in the curriculum since the 1960s. (NL)

Urges an approach to the teaching of history that takes the largest possible perspective, crossing time as well as space. Discusses the problems and advantages of such an approach. Describes a course on "big" history that begins with time, creation myths, and astronomy, and moves on to paleontology and evolution. (DK)

Discusses effects of disease on the Atlantic basin after Christopher Columbus established contact between the hemispheres. Emphasizes the decimation of the native populations of the Americas when exposed to illnesses common in Eurasia and Africa. Relates the epidemics to the development of the slave trade and the rise of the middle class in Europe. (DK)

Discusses world history as an academic field at the University of Manitoba (Canada). Advocates developing programs with a specifically global approach. Argues research and publishing are necessary to win academic recognition and funding. Suggests faculty recruitment remain politically sensitive and proceed gradually. (CH)

Analyzes revisions in Chinese historiographical treatment of world history since 1949, stressing the dominance of Marxist/Maoist ideology, political isolation, and Chinese nationalism. Shows evidence of these influences in high school textbooks. Examines the Cultural Revolution's impact on historiography. Sees current liberalization producing a less insulated, more factual view of world history. (CH)

Evaluates an introductory world history course taught at the University of Alberta, Canada. Advocates including similar courses taught from a Canadian perspective in the core curricula of Canada's colleges. Stresses that Canada's role as peacekeeper, official commitment to multiculturalism, and unique relationship to both developed (especially the United States) and developing nations lends itself to such a course. (CH)

Traces the history of Muslim women from ancient times to the present. Discusses the practice of veiling and its significance. Compares the status of women before and after the Qur'an. Delineates the class differences between Muslim women. Analyzes Muslim women under Islamic law, concentrating on laws governing marriage, sex, and divorce. (RW)

Seeks to define world history through an analysis of its historical antecedents. Concentrates on the efforts of three historians--Louis Moreau, William H. McNeill, and Leften S. Stavrianos--to establish world history's place in education. Analyzes the relationship between world history, peace, and global education and the state of world history in the schools. (RW)

Examines the book, "The Rise of the West: A History of the Human Community," 25 years after its publication. Contends that the book was influenced by the particular historical and political circumstances of its time. Discusses the books' deficiencies and biases. Considers the changes in historiography since 1963. (RW)

This document is an index to Volume 34 of the Journal of World History. It includes a list of articles and reviews published in the journal, covering a wide range of topics related to global history. Some of the topics covered include Ottoman-British transimperialism in the Cape of Good Hope, collecting expeditions in Sarawak and the Philippines, the Chinese experience in rural Republican China, and the impact of imperialism on various regions. The index provides a comprehensive overview of the articles and reviews published in the volume, making it a valuable resource for researchers interested in global history. [Extracted from the article]

This article explores the emergence of graphic nonfiction as a new and accessible form of historical study. It focuses on three publications from the Graphic Mundi series by Penn State University Press, which offer interdisciplinary narratives that highlight global crises and connections to recent world history. The article discusses the unique aspects of reading and analyzing graphic novels, emphasizing their ability to engage with complex and emotional topics while reaching a broad audience. It also traces the historical roots of sequential art and its evolution into more mainstream comics. Additionally, the article discusses the rise of graphic novels and graphic nonfiction in the 20th century, examining their radical tendencies, social critiques, and the influence of censorship. It explores the subjective nature of graphic history and the international influences on the form and function of graphic narratives. The article concludes by discussing the emergence of Graphic Mundi as an academic series of graphic histories and its contribution to the field of nonfiction graphic narratives. [Extracted from the article]

The international history of Yugoslavia during the Cold War is dominated by two correct, but overly familiar images that through repetition have defined the Tito regime. The first is that of a Yugoslavia balancing between the superpowers while the second extends the image into the realm of ideology. But set within the language of International Relations, from the Tito-Stalin split of 1948 until the waning hours of the Cold War, Yugoslavia was a regional power that sought, and was to a degree successful, in cultivating a realm of strategic ambiguity between competing world hegemons. Therefore, this article seeks to show how a distinct strategy of self-determination on the part of the Yugoslav leadership broadens this history into something global. In other words, analyzing the role that Yugoslavia played specifically in Asia—or, its observations of Asian affairs—shows that smaller actors had important roles to play in the Cold War. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Volley fire with gunpowder weapons is often seen by modern scholars as one of the important innovations which allowed Europe to politically dominate other cultures and societies. Many historiographical theories, of the kind Lyotard termed metarécits, “metanarratives,” have attempted to explain this phenomenon. Recently, compelling evidence has emerged that other civilizations also practiced the technique, most notably China. This article brings together existing and new evidence that volley fire with firearms was developed and practiced in China long before it appeared in Europe and challenges several of the grand narratives of European exceptionalism. This new evidence shows that the volley fire technique arose in China primarily as a reaction to domestic and foreign (semi-)nomadic cavalry threats, belying geographically deterministic accounts, which suggest that sophisticated infantry tactics with firearms would not arise in states bordering the steppe. This article will also challenge the claim that volley fire in Europe benefitted from its emergence in a competitive system of states undergoing a traditionchallenging Renaissance. I call for a reconsideration of the innovative potential of Eurasian land empires bordering the steppe, and stress the importance of studying political contingencies and cultures of innovation in shaping world history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two recent books aim to bridge the world history/gender history divide, Susan Kingsley Kent's I Gender: A World History i and Karen Phoenix's I Gender Rules: Identity and Empire in Historical Perspective i . Ultimately, Phoenix hopes that after engaging with the book, readers will better understand the ways people have constructed gender in the past and become more conscious of the ways gender functions in their own lives today. [Extracted from the article]

Fear of disease, in turn, triggered a series of counter-measures that eventually reduced gastrointestinal disease mortality, especially in urban areas and the Global North. A more substantive critique, in my mind, is Webb's failure to consider the implications of Behavioral Immune System theory for his study of gastrointestinal disease. Readers looking for a study of "disease constructs" and popular perceptions of disease in the tradition of Sheldon Watts will be disappointed, though it was not Webb's intention to write such a book. [Extracted from the article]

This article charts the confluence and eventual overlap between two different fields: that of world/global history and that of material culture. At a basic level, world and global historians' interest in 'things' is the result of the fact that material artefacts--whether commodities, luxuries, scientific tools, ethnographic specimens or unique art objects--have been seen as mobile as than people. Yet, the so-called 'material turn' in world/global history also raises a series of methodological and theoretical questions. I start with a historiographic overview to map the major currents and areas of global history affected by a 'material turn.' Moving from a historiographical to a conceptual plane, the main body of this article is dedicated to showing how material culture might come to the assistance of world/global history. It provides a series of methodological and theoretical tools for historians to play with established narratives and to revise the conceptualization of connectivity--a key concept in global history. I conclude with some reflections on how a material approach might relate to recent forays into what is now called global microhistory, addressing issues of agency and the relationship between academic and public history. Keywords: early modern, material culture, global exchange, arts, consumption, connections., WHEN one talks about 'turns' there is a risk of overemphasizing change. This is why the 'cultural turn' and the 'linguistic turn' in history have been cut back to size, [...]

Many of the essays in the Piracy in World History deal with piracy in the context of imperial expansion but take non-Eurocentric views of piracy in the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries. Buchan and Östlund argue that, although the dissertation ultimately concluded that pirates were the common enemy to all, Thelaus was also realistic in debating how negotiating with pirates could strengthen the Swedish state. Its authors also avoid writing only top-down histories of how European state actors defined piracy and they often actively challenge Eurocentrism in the way that piracy was defined by those engaged in such activity. [Extracted from the article]

During the late nineteenth century large numbers of long-distance travelers, often elites from imperial states, ventured abroad. The purposes of these travels included for scientific or academic research, for reporting or other information-gathering purposes, and for touristic experiences. These imperial travelers' observations and experiences can be analyzed to provide us a fuller picture of imperial peripheries. Most existing studies of long-distance travel focus on individual travelers' accounts of specific journeys in isolation, rather than in a comparative framework. Comparative study of travel accounts can be used to better understand why different imperial actors supported these sorts of travels, and how written descriptions provide us with varied views of empire. Each travelers' experiences should be analyzed holistically, by investigating their biographical information, identities, class positions, and other individual characteristics, to effectively analyze the significance of their observations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

I See i Chen, Kunlong, Jianjun Mei, Lu Wang, and Anke Hein I The Warrior, the Voyager, and the Artist: Three Lives in an Age of Empire i , by Kate Fullagar (reviewed by Eric Hinderaker), 177-179 Webb, Clive. I See i Thomas, Julia Adeney, and Geoff Eley, eds. "Abie Nathan and his Double-Edged Missions: The Transnational Humanitarian and Human Rights Activist during the Nigeria-Biafra War", by Taiwo Bello, 139-168 "African Americans and the Lynching of Foreign Nationals in the United States", by William D. Carrigan and Clive Webb, 669-702 "Akan Relations, Commercial Networks, and the Portuguese Empire in West Africa, 1482-1637", by Edmond Smith and Mariana Boscariol, 609-638 "Altruism and Realpolitik: A History of the U.S. Agency for International Development", by Mary Jane Maxwell, 353-359 Bello, Taiwo, "Abie Nathan and his Double-Edged Missions: The Transnational Humanitarian and Human Rights Activist during the Nigeria-Biafra War", 139-168 Best, Jeremy, I Heavenly Fatherland: German Missionary Culture and Globalization in the Age of Empire i (reviewed by Justin Reynolds), 363-366 Boscariol, Mariana. [Extracted from the article]

The author rebuts the general assumption that maritime trade arose since 1500 suffocated the ancient inland trade of the Silk Roads. As every aspect of the caravan trade is complicated story itself, digestion of each variable reveals intimate knowledge of the caravan trade world. The British Empire was a sea power and maritime trade was the tool of exerting its power to India. [Extracted from the article]

The Frontier Complex: Geopolitics and the Making of the India-China Border, 1846-1962 by Kyle J. Gardner (review) A core argument made by Gardner is that the creation of a borderland is not merely a routine exercise in map-making. A central aim of Kyle Gardner's The Frontier Complex is to demonstrate how colonial border-making shaped ideas about territory that created legacies still felt in contemporary Asia (p. xvi). [Extracted from the article]

Takeda carefully unpacks this vast Enlightenment literature on the political convulsions that shook Persia. Takeda's work clearly demonstrates the importance of the tumultuous political events in Persia during the eighteenth-century as models for French-empire building. Takeda unearths a truly global Enlightenment era in which Frenchmen watched events in Persia and responded, revealing the commercial and intellectual intertwining of Asian and European Empires. [Extracted from the article]

The first United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), held in 1964, is often regarded as a pivotal moment in the history of relations between Global North and Global South. Yet there were a handful of countries at UNCTAD that sought to present themselves as not fitting into this system. These countries included Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Using Australia as a case study, this paper will demonstrate that the dominant dichotomy oversimplifies the developmental arguments that were presented at UNCTAD. Australia's policy at the Conference, which was generally referred to as the "Middle Zone," revolved around presenting Australia as being neither a "developed" nor "developing" country. By examining the Australian arguments, a more nuanced understanding of North-South relations is possible. Ultimately, the Australian case study provides a new way of understanding the significance of UNCTAD in the history of international development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It would not be difficult to make a case that the history of development and world history are one and the same—or almost. Both fields have been centrally concerned with how socioeconomic transformations have shaped the relative positions of nations and empires in the world and the living conditions of their populations. Both have been very sensitive to how these processes have both contributed and responded to technological advancements, ideological, and religious belief system as well as to political power relations. Both fields are interested in how environmental circumstances, including economically relevant resources, have interacted with human belief systems and policies in creating poverty or wealth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is threefold. First, it argues in favor of continuity into the early modern world overseas of the institutional family of trading stations around the medieval Mediterranean. The Portuguese feitoria represents a "missing link" between the medieval funduq and fondaco and the early modern factory overseas. Second, it puts the supposed "colonialistic" nature of early modern trading stations overseas in perspective by comparing these stations with their medieval counterparts around the Mediterranean and the Black Sea on the one hand and by showing that early modern factories more often than not could be founded and exist only thanks to some sort of recognition by local powers. Finally, it offers a functional model for global comparison of trading stations which allows to cross existing temporal and spatial divides, mainly those between medieval and early modern historiography and between the study of trading stations around the Mediterranean and those in the rest of Africa, Asia, and America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The field of global history has been thriving for over two decades; however, unlike Europe, the United States, and Asia, which have witnessed a true "boom" in this area, there has been no such significant development in Latin America. In fact, there is even an attitude of rejection toward what many academics in the region consider an "Anglo-Saxon trend." This article argues that this lack of attachment to global history lies in conceptual flaws, as well as in the continuous production of academic work that lacks nuance and is predominantly based on secondary literature written in English. To counteract these tendencies and better adapt the field to the academic and historical realities of Latin America, this article engages in a dialogue with representatives of decolonial studies. This article suggests that an approach to this movement—whose followers condemn the implicit Eurocentrism of Western historiography—will contribute to the necessary decolonization of global history. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]