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Lunar New Year Celebration: Year of the Pig
February 8 | 10am
To celebrate this important holiday in both Chinese and Korean cultures, we would like to invite you to come and enjoy wonderful performances, great food, and interesting hands-on activities. You will gain more cultural knowledge, make new friends, and win special prizes! Learn more |
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International Mother Language Day
February 21
Every year IMLD is celebrated with multilingual presentations, performances, and multicultural festivities, representing diverse languages from around the world. Please join us in this wonderful celebration of our mother languages and multilingualism! Learn more |
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2019 Asian Studies Annual Careers Night
March 5 | 6pm
One of our best events of the year! Gain advice and network with people who have found exciting careers after an Asian Studies degree. We will be inviting alumni with diverse experiences – at home and in Asia – to come share their inspiring stories with you.
We also invite all Asian Studies Alumni interested in participating or being a speaker to email our event coordinator, Oliver Mann at oliver.mann@ubc.ca. Read more |
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2019 Harjit Kaur Sidhu Memorial Program
March 14 | 5pm
Now in its 11th year, this event celebrates the rich life of Punjabi language and culture and its importance in BC, in memory of a woman who shared such passions. This year's program features poet, critic and public intellectual Mushtaq Soofi. Read more |
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| Featured Term 2 Courses |
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| Islam in South Asia |
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Modern Iran through Literature and the Arts
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Buddhist, Brahamanical and Jain Philosophers in Interaction
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Japan from Feudal to Modern State
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Global Chinese Cinemas
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Documenting Punjabi Canada
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Faculty Spotlight with Leo Shin
At the helm of the Hong Kong Studies Initiative, Dr. Leo Shin has been engaging the broader community on and off campus while also encouraging the telling of the story of Hong Kong from both local and global perspectives.
Watch video
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Lecturer of the Year 2018: Xueshun Liu
Teaching Chinese Language at UBC since 2001, Dr. Xueshun Liu is recognized as one of our lecturers of the year. In this video, Liu shares his hopes for what students can gain through the study of Chinese and advice for those hoping to learn the language. Watch video |
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Lecturer of the Year 2018: Misuzu Kazama
Recognized for her service to the Department, Misuzu Kazama is our other lecturer of the year. In this video, we visit Kazama in the classroom and learn what she hopes students will gain through the study of Japanese. Watch video |
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| RECENT HIRES |
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Dr. Alison Bailey
Assistant Professor in Pre-Modern Chinese Literature
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Dr. Dagmar Schwerk
Khyentse Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow in Tibetan Buddhist Studies
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Dr. Ayaka Yoshimizu
Instructor for the UBC-Ritsumeikan Academic Exachange Program
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| RESEARCH |
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Bruce Fulton Awarded the 22nd Manhae Grand Prize in Literature
Dr. Bruce Fulton, Chair in Korean Literature and Literary Translation, was recognized for his years of teaching Korean literature and literary translation and his nearly 40 years of worth of translation work with Ju-Chan Fulton. Previous prize recipients include the Dalai Lama and Nelson Mandela.
Read more |
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Alison Bailey Awarded the Hampton New Faculty Award Research Grant
The $10,000 grant will support Dr. C. D. Alison Bailey complete research for her book, A Shield for a Pillow: A Cultural Study of Filial Revenge in China. The project is an interdisciplinary study of filial revenge in China, as act and as discourse, as legal dilemma and literary trope, from its earliest beginnings to its modern manifestations.
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Marc Turin Awarded SHHRC Grant
This grant was awarded to Dr. Marc Turin for his project documenting the endangered oral tradition of Shadpa. The research team will support the documentation, preservation, and dissemination of this unique oral tradition, aligned with the broader goal of Tibetan language standardization and conservation.
Read more |
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Bringing Big Data to Religious History
A new Database of Religious History (DRH) spearheaded by Dr. Edward Slingerland aims to provide a clearer picture on polygamy and Mormon faith.
Read more |
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Meiji at 150 Digital Teaching Resource Now Available
The Meiji at 150 DTR presents open-source scholarly content that will be useful for educators and academics looking for new images and topics to introduce into their classroom teaching, while highlighting the academic research made possible using UBC Library’s digital archives.
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| FALL HIGHLIGHTS |
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2018 UBC International Conference on Korean Religions
(한국의 종교문화: 전통과 변용)
July 15-17
This conference featured presentations from eight Korean scholars of various prestigious universities across the globe.
Read more |
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Tianzhu Book Prize Lecture
Sunday, August 12
Professor Jiang Wu, winner of the inaugural Tianzhu Book Prize for Excellence in Chan Studies, delivered a lecture on Dilemma and Dogma in Chan Studies: Further Thoughts on East Asian Buddhism in Later Centuries. This lecture was also part of the closing ceremony for the UBC Intensive Program on Buddhism.
Read more |
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Asian Studies Welcome Back Lunch
Tuesday, September 4
Over 80 students participated in this year’s Welcome Back Lunch on Imagine Day, making for an engaging afternoon. As the event went on, it proved to be a wonderful space for reunions, new connections, and ultimately a shared sense of community in the Department.
Read more |
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Himalaya Program Welcome Reception and Photo Exhibition Opening: Life with the Forest in Sikkim
With Saori Ogura
Monday, September 24
Scholar and artist Saori Ogura lived in Sikkim to better understand the indigenous Lepcha, or Rongkup, people’s ways of life. Saori captured portraits of the villagers’ warmth and strength, as well as their livelihoods – especially the great diversity of traditional crops which are on the cusp of disappearing.
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A Conversation with Michelle Kim, Author of Running Through Sprinklers
With Michelle Kim
Wednesday, September 26
Students in ASIA 452, Literature of the Korean Diaspora, were joined by alumnus Michelle Kim, who discussed and read from her novel Running Through Sprinklers, about coming of age in Surrey, BC. Copies of the book were also provided for purchase and signing.
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The 2018/19 Yip So Man Wat Memorial Lecture
With Dr. Helen Siu
Wednesday, October 3
Titled "the Worldly Engagement of the Greater Pearl River Delta Region", Professor Siu’s lecture explored South China as a hub of cultural fusion and the history of the region’s spectacular mobility of goods, peoples, and ideas, as well as speculations about where Hong Kong and Cantonese studies might take us in the future.
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Dr Ambedkar's Legacy: Our Campaign to Outlaw Caste Discrimination in Great Britain
Thursday, October 11
The Annual Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Memorial Lecture was founded to celebrate the life, work, and legacy of Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, the most prominent leader of the Dalit communities of South Asia in the late colonial and early independence period.
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A City Lost or Found? Sketching Hong Kong’s History of the Present
With Dr. Ching Kwan Lee
Thursday, October 18
Inspired by the notion “history of the present,” this public seminar hosted by Ching Kwan Lee (professor of Sociology at UCLA) explored the major analytical and historical themes that inform the political sociology of Hong Kong in the post-1997 era.
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The Age of Irreverence at the UBC Bookstore
With Dr. Christopher Rea
Thursday, October 18
Drawing from his award-winning book The Age of Irreverence: A New History of Laughter in China, Dr. Christopher Rea gave a talk at the UBC Bookstore about how the first decades of the twentieth century transformed how Chinese people thought and talked about what’s funny. Copies of the Chinese and English editions of the book were both available for purchase.
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2018/19 John Howes Lecture in Japanese Studies
With Dr. Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney
Thursday, November 22
This year’s lecture with Dr. Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney discussed “The Social and Political Lives of Japanese Cherry Blossoms.” With roughly 200 people in attendance, the lecture focused on the history of the cherry blossom in Japan, and the ways that the image has been used and even abused, especially during WWII.
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| STUDENT NEWS |
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Chinese Fun Night
Monday, October 1
In spirit of the Mid-Autumn Festival, this event, hosted by the Chinese Language Program, was filled with activities, prizes, and mooncakes.
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UBC Chinese Poetry Society's 3rd Gathering
Saturday, October 20
Chinese language students and poetry lovers gathered to discuss submitted photos inspired by Chinese classical poetry.
Read more |
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Diwali Celebration with the Asian Library
Friday, October 26
Celebrating Diwali (Festival of Lights), the most widely celebrated festival in India, participants enjoyed the diversity of culture through music, Henna, and delicious refreshments.
Read more |
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JAPN Department’s 4th Japanese Movie Night
Friday, November 2
Approximately 100 JAPN students, instructors and UBC-RITS students enjoyed a screening of a classic Japanese comedy film with snacks.
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The First Annual Cantonese Fun Night
Friday, November 2
From karaoke, mahjong and board games to sharing home-cooked dishes, Cantonese Fun Night provided an opportunity for students to mingle and share their passion of Cantonese learning.
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Chinese Language Program Volunteer Appreciation Event
Tuesday, November 6
The Chinese Language Program hosted an appreciation party, thanking faculty members, teaching assistants, work learns, and volunteers for contributing their time and dedication to the program.
Read more |
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Mohsen Namjoo Visits UBC
Thursday, November 8
Hosted by the UBC Persian Club, Iranian musician, Mr. Mohsen Namjoo held a workshop on traditional Persian music, titled “Ritm-ha-ye do-zarbi” and a lecture titled “Dar rad va tamanna-ye nostalji”.
Watch video |
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2018 Chinese Heritage Festival
Friday, November 23
The final exhibition project, “Mapping China,” allowed Heritage Chinese learners from different course levels to demonstrate, display, and promote Chinese culture from various angles.
Watch video |
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Thinking of buying a holiday gift for a friend (or maybe yourself)? Check out our brand new selection of Asian Studies items! Our new tote bags, pencil cases and pins were designed by an Asian Studies Alumnus!
Check our full selection of merch here! |
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