Welcome!

Boston University is home to a vibrant community of scholars and students of Asia working across the university in disciplines ranging from language, literature, music, archeology, and philosophy to geography, politics, and public health. BU’s Asia-related resources are among the largest and most comprehensive in the northeastern United States, and BU scholars, students, and alumni have made significant contributions to the study of Asia at both the national and international levels.

The BU Center for the Study of Asia (BUCSA), created in 2008, coordinates and supports the activities of scholars and students across the university. Its mission is to foster communications and build community within the university, while also expanding the public outreach efforts of faculty and students in order to contribute to interest in Asia among the broader community.

News from the Center

• Merry White, Professor of Anthropology at Boston University, receives the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon

  

  Press Release April 29, 2013On April 29th, the Japanese Government announced that the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, will be conferred upon Ms. Merry White, Professor of Anthropology at Boston University, in recognition of her significant contributions to the development of Japanese studies and the introduction of Japanese culture in the United States of America. In order to study the contemporary society and culture of Japan, Professor White visits Japan almost every year.  She has recently focused her attention on social space and social changes in urban Japan.  Her many books cover the areas of... [ More ]

• College of Communication Names Jeremy Page of The Wall Street Journal the 2013 Hugo Shong Journalist of the Year

  

  Award Ceremony Friday April 26 Trustees Ballroom One Silber way, 9th Floor Boston UniversityTo RSVP for luncheon attendance, please contact Ms. Lisa Cohen, Office the Dean, College of Communication:  lisann@bu.edu Penning a series of exclusive reports at the heart of China’s biggest political story in decades, The Wall Street Journal‘s Jeremy Page broke open an investigation into the death of British businessman Neil Heywood, which led to the fall of one of China’s top Communist Party leaders, Bo Xilai. Page, who has been covering China intermittently since 1997, joined The Wall Street Journal in 2010. Since then he has covered foreign... [ More ]

• Rob Weller, BU China anthropologist, recipient of 2013 Guggenheim Fellowship

  

  BUCSA is delighted to announce that Robert Weller, Chair of the BU Department of Anthropology, and an expert in Chinese and Taiwanese anthropology, is the recipient of a prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship for 2013. Guggenheim Fellowships are intended for men and women who have already demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts. The Foundation receives between 3,500 and 4,000 applications each year, and approximately 200 Fellowships are awarded each year. Weller’s project as a Guggenheim Fellow grows in part out of theoretical work done over the past few years with Adam Seligman, [ More ]

• BU at the National Chinese Language Conference

  

  From April 7-9 2013, the National Chinese Language Conference (NCLC), which is "dedicated to encouraging dialogue in the field of Chinese language education and ensuring wide-scale success," had their 6th annual conference in Boston. Boston University took part in two panels at the Conference. The first was entitled Next Steps for Our Chinese Language Students: Study In and About China at the University Level. In this session, panelists will draw from Boston University’s programs of study to demonstrate the  continuity of experiences available to students who are already interested in China and the Chinese  language. Members of the panel... [ More ]

• EVENT REVIEW: BU at the 2013 Association for Asian Studies Annual Conference

  

  Our Asian Studies Presenters and the American Institute of Indian Studies Board meeting Several faculty and graduate students attended the Annual Conference of the Association for Asian Studies in San Diego, March 21-24, 2013. Marié Abe, Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology, Presenter,“Shaking Bodies on Shaky Ground: Henoko Peace Music Festa and the Anti-US Military Base Struggles in Okinawa” In February 2007, on Henoko Beach in northern Okinawa, a group of musicians held the first “Peace Music Festa” in protest against the construction of a new offshore U.S. military base. A constellation of various musical sounds and political aspirations... [ More ]