Asia

This academic essay considers what decolonial and postcolonial approaches mean in the context of Asian Studies and how it offers an alternative mode of understanding the region’s place in the world and in knowledge production. In particular, it addresses how the current knowledge environment continues to reflect hegemonic modes of knowledge production, prioritising dominant discourse, values, and canon that has historically emerged from the ‘West’. While it is not to say that this knowledge is not valuable or does not have a place in the future of Asian Studies, decolonial and postcolonial approaches seek to empower scholars from the region to see value in their research and discourses, advocate for theories emerging from the region, and shift to a more Asia-centric approach to studying Asian Studies.