Cultural Interactions in Mainland and Island Southeast Asia and Beyond, 2000 BC-AD 200

Abstract

This chapter explores the archaeological record of cultural interactions in Southeast Asia (SEA), from the Neolithic past up through the period of historically reported kingdoms, from approximately 2000 BC through AD 200. Cultural interactions have been evidenced in different forms, such as human migrations in a large scale, traveling craftsmen and merchants in smaller scales, and overlapping patterns of exchange of knowledge, raw materials, finished products, new ideas, and people throughout SEA. Rivers and seas provided natural conduits for such networks across SEA, while overland routes also were developed. Communities were inter-connected across SEA and with other civilizations (e.g., China, India, Arabia, and Rome) by river, sea, and land. Through examining these networks, we can learn about the long-term and inter-linked developments of SEA cultures that we see today.