Southeast Asia is located on the southeastern part of the continent of Asia, so obviously it would be called that, right?

If only humans were so simple.

Today, we will be diving into the story of how Southeast Asia came to be called Southeast Asia. For several centuries, it wasn't quite so obvious for outsiders to grasp this vast and dynamic place we all know today as Southeast Asia. The region has been known by many names such as Suvarnabhumi, Golden Chryse, Nanyang, Indochina, East Indies, Nusantara, and many others.

Edit error: 7:30 poster reads result of the Japan-French-Indochinese collaboration.

Now with proper (English) subtitles!

#history #southeastasia

Sources:

For the modern history of the modern name read:

Donald K. Emmerson, "Southeast Asia: What's in a Name," Journal of Southeast Asia (1984)

Wilhem G. Solhem II, "'Southeat Asia'" What's in a Name, Another Point of VIew," Journal of Southeast Asian Studies (1985)

For classical period names see:

Russel H. Fifield, "Southeast Asia as a Regional Concept," (1983).

For the pre-modern origins of the name Asia see:

Douglan Huang, "The Concept of 'Asia' in the Context of Modern China" (2019)

00:34 Classical Period Names
02:48 Modern Period
06:51 Conclusions