Blog

New Video Material on “Fragrant Frontier”

Annuska Derks, co-editor of Fragrant Frontier: Global Spice Entanglements from the Sino-Vietnamese Uplands, has spearheaded the production of two magnificent videos promising interesting and important material on upland ethnic minority livelihoods. The …

Rethinking Community in Myanmar with Judith Beyer

A new podcast interview with Judith Beyer is out! NIAS Press author Judith Beyer joined Postdoctoral Researcher Mai Van Tran in a conversation on her latest book Rethinking Community in Myanmar. Judith and Van talk about the concept of “community”, how …

Editor-In-Chief Gerald Jackson celebrates 30th anniversary

When in January 1993, a bearded New Zealander walked through the doors of the Nordic Institute of Asian Studies (NIAS) at Leifsgade, no one could have imagined that publishing history was about to be made. Since then, three decades have passed and edit …

Outlook 2023

Four exciting publications are in our pipeline for the upcoming year. Take a look below to see what it’s all about and sign up for the NIAS Newsletter to be informed once the books are out. Jungle Heart of the Khmer RougeHenri Locard challenges the dom …

Annuska Derks and Jean-François Rousseau with the Nordic Asia Podcast

Where do the spices we find in our kitchen cabinets come from? What can we learn from tracing spices and their commodities and how does their trade impact the livelihoods of ethnic minority farmers in the Sino- Vietnamese uplands? Annuska Derks and Jea …

ICAS 2023 Book Prize Nominations

We’re pleased to share our nominations for the ICAS 2023 Book Prize in Social Sciences, English Edition. About the ICAS 2023 Book Prize:   The ICAS Book Prize (IBP) was established in 2003 by the International Convention of Asia Scholars (ICAS). The pr …

NIAS Press Books on Laos

Are you attending the 7th International Conference on Lao Studies from 15 – 17 Nov 22? As one of the main publishers on Lao studies collections, we’ve put together a selection of all our works on the Southeast Asian country. Organised by the Alfred Dea …

NIAS Press at Jin Ping Mei Book Symposium

On Oct 26- 29th 2022 an international symposium on Jin Ping Mei, the famous late 16th century Chinese novel, took place in Copenhagen. Organised by Vibeke Børdahl (NIAS) and Søren Møller Christensen (Vandkunsten) with the support of  S.C. Van Foundatio …

Vibeke Børdahl with the Nordic Asia Podcast

Our author Vibeke Børdahl joined Julia Heinle discussing her upcoming publications on Jin Ping Mei, a classic of Chinese literature. The late 16th-century novel has been described as a landmark in the development of the narrative art form. Vibeke has t …

#Insights into the publishing business

This week, our dear friend and former colleague Marie Yoshida stopped by our office to pick up her hardcopies of ‘Community Still Matters’. The book is our latest addition to the NIAS Press catalogue, and explores with twenty essays multiple aspects of …

Editor-in-Chief receives EuroSEAS distinguished prize 2022

#Insights into the publishing business Gerald Jackson, editor-in-chief of NIAS Press, received a special award at the European Association for Southeast Asian Studies conference in Paris last month. He was given a distinguished prize for 2022 in recogn …

Two conferences- A sign of things to come?

In late June-early July, NIAS Press exhibited at two conferences: the EuroSEAS conference in Paris and the ASAA conference in Melbourne. Editor-In-Chief Gerald Jackson gives his hinsights on the status of book exhibitors, sales numbers and personal exp …

Bénédicte Brac de la Perrière and Peter A. Jackson with the Nordic Asia Podcast

Interview of with the Nordic Asia Podcast What is the relationship between Spirit Possession Rituals and Buddhism in mainland Southeast Asia? How has modernity transformed Spirit Possession cults in the 21st century and what has led to the efflorescenc …

New Titles in 2022

For the second half of 2022, we’ve got 6 new books in the making. To keep you informed, we’ve put together this outlook for our upcoming publications. Previous Next June 2022 Community Still Matters.Uyghur Culture and Society in Central Asian Context e …

Peter A. Jackson and Benjamin Baumann with the Nordic Asia Podcast

NIAS Press Authors Peter A. Jackson and Benjamin Baumann joined the Nordic Asia Podcast discussing their new book “Deities and Divas, Queer Ritual Specialists in Myanmar, Thailand and Beyond” (NIAS Press 2021). Listen to the interview here wherever you …

Recent NIAS Press Books on Thai Studies

For visitors in Thailand or other parts of Southeast Asia, you can also find our the books with our partners in Chiang Mai, Silkworm. Click here

Interview with Bertil Lintner

NIAS Press Lunch Interview with Bertil Lintner and Postdoctoral researcher at NIAS Mai Van Tran

NIAS Press Outlook

We are currently working on some exciting projects that will be out within the next few weeks and months!  Here is a sneak peek to what we are looking forward to Previous Next Stay updated on our outlook with more details and other surprises on NIAS Pr …

Giuseppe Bolotta for the Nordic Asia Podcast

Giuseppe Bolotta joined the Nordic Asia Podcast to give insights into his work and experiences of writing his highly praised ethnography ‘Belittled Citizens: The Cultural Politics of Childhood on Bangkok’s Margins’. Giuseppe shares experiences from the …

Chris Chaplin’s book lauch and podcast episode

Previous Next Podcast episode with Chris Chaplin   The Nordic Asia Podcast released an episode with Chris Chaplin. In it, Petra Desatova and author of ‘Salafism and the State’, discuss the importance of Islam to Indonesian’s identity, the difference be …

From 9/11, 2001, to 8/15, 2021: Regime Change in Afghanistan

By Michael Fredholm Michael Fredholm is a historian and former military analyst who has published extensively on the history, defence strategies, security policies, and energy sector developments of Eurasia. He is the author of the book Afghanistan Bey …

China’s Rise/Asia’s Response

‘China’s Rise/ Asia’s Response’ – the theme of  the 15th Biennial Conference of Nordic Association for China Studies (NACS) & NIAS-Nordic Institute of Asian Studies 14th Annual Nordic NIAS Council Conference. NIAS Press joins in on this complex and …

AAS 2021 Giveaway

AAS 2021 conference and giveaway From the 22nd until the 26th of March you will be able to find our virtual booth at the ASS conference. Besides presentations, talks, and fascinating books, there is also a giveaway to look forward to. Are you attending …

Living Kinship and Fearing Spirits in Laos with Rosalie Stolz

A new podcast about a NIAS Press book is out! Rosalie Stolz, author of “Living Kinship and Fearing Spirits: Sociality among the Khmu of Nothern Laos” joined us in a conversation about her fascinating new ethnography.  This book is an intimate study of …

On the detention of Sean Turnell

We are extremely concerned to learn that NIAS author Sean Turnell, an economist at Macquarie University and an advisor to the Myanmar government, has been detained in the country. Professor Turnell is the first foreign national known to be arrested sin …

State, Religion and the South China Sea with Edyta Roszko

New podcast published about a NIAS Press book! Edyta Roszko is the author of “Fishers, Monks and Cadres: Navigating State, Religion and the South China Sea in Central Vietnam”. “In a nutshell, this book explores how the fishermen and fisherwomen in the …

“Nation, City, Arena: Sports Events, Nation Building and City Politics in Indonesia”

NIAS Press is delighted to have recently published Friederike Trotier’s book “Nation, City, Arena: Sports Events, Nation Building and City Politics in Indonesia”. This book is the first comprehensive study of international multi-sport events in Indones …

Photographing Laos with Martin Stuart-Fox

Fifty years ago, the Vietnam War was still raging and had spread into neighbouring Laos and Cambodia. One of the Western journalists reporting on the conflict on the ground was Martin Stuart-Fox who, based at the University of Queensland, went on to be …

Dogmeat Diaries 9: Down the Tanintharyi River

This post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South and is adapted from an article first published in The Irrawaddy (11-1-2017). Read the first entry here for an explanation about the series’ title choice. Dr Ashley South is an independen …

Winter sale

Dogmeat Diaries 8: From Fearing Army to Fearing Thieves: Karen Communities along the Sittaung River

This post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South and is adapted from an article first published in Tea Circles (5-5-2017), reprinted in The Irrawaddy (10-5-2017). Read the first entry here for an explanation about the series’ title cho …

Thai Military Power: A Critical Juncture Approaching?

In this post, Gregory V. Raymond writes about the latest development of the Thai’s monarchy role in politics, and the shifting relationship between the monarchy, the military, the people and the parliament in Thailand. Gregory is the author of “Thai Mi …

Book launch & discussion of “Future Forward: The Rise and Fall of a Thai Political Party”

By NIAS Pres On Monday 16th, the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand hosted a book launch and discussion of the book “Future Forward: the rise and fall of a Thai political party”, in collaboration with NYSEAN and NIAS. All five speakers at the eve …

Interview with Pétur Mar Gudmundsson from Sigvaldi books

In October 2019, Adela from NIAS Press had the immense pleasure of talking to Pétur Mar Gudmundsson from Sigvaldi books, a specialised book service and bookstore in Iceland. According to their website, Sigvaldi is based on two things: ‘the old-fashione …

‘Thanathorn: the rise and fall of a Thai political icon’ – Nikkei Asia

‘Can the movement he founded thrive in his absence?’ asks Duncan McCargo in a painstakingly researched text published in Nikkei Asia this week. The piece is an adapted extract from the book “Future Forward: The Rise and Fall of a Thai Political Party” …

Dogmeat Diaries 7: Mae Sot – milk-shakes and mercenaries

This post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South. (Read the first entry here for an explanation about the title choice.)  Dr Ashley South is an independent author, researcher and consultant, and a Research Fellow at Chiang Mai Universi …

Podcast: Hidden Histories of Thai Nuns with Martin Seeger

In this podcast, Martin Seeger from the University of Leeds joins Petra Desatova to talk about his recent book ‘Gender and the Path to Awakening: Hidden Histories of Nuns in Modern Thai Buddhism’ jointly published by Silkworm Books and NIAS Press. Mart …

Letter from Ternate

In this letter from Ternate, Carol Ann Boshier explores one of the islands of the Indonesian Archipelago and reveals its connection to the Theory of Natural Selection Early one morning in March 2017, our Lion Air flight flew low over the pellucid water …

You can now buy ‘Everyday Justice in Myanmar’ on our website!

Dogmeat Diaries 6: Jungle College

This post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South. (Read the first entry here for an explanation about the title choice.)  Dr Ashley South is an independent author, researcher and consultant, and a Research Fellow at Chiang Mai Universi …

What’s new in NIAS Press?

After an energising summer break, all of us at NIAS Press are back to business! Read on to find out about the fantastic books that we have planned for this fall at NIAS Press. Click on the image to learn more about each book, and stay posted! We will s …

From Queer Comrades to Queer China

By Hongwei BaoIn this blog entry, author Hongwei Bao introduces his two books on queer Chinese cultures and reflects upon how he documents China’s LGBTQ community history and conceptualises a postsocialist queer politics in the context of a neoliberali …

Dogmeat Diaries 5: Into the Interior (and a wedding)

This post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South. (Read the first entry here for an explanation about the title choice.)  Dr Ashley South is an independent author, researcher and consultant, and a Research Fellow at Chiang Mai Universi …

Podcast: Everyday Justice in Myanmar with Helene Maria Kyed

We are thrilled to share the latest episode of the Nordic Asia Podcast, co-hosted by NIAS in Copenhagen and CEAS in Turku. In this episode of the Nordic Asia Podcast, Duncan McCargo has a conversation with Helene Maria Kyed, the editor of the upcoming …

Dogmeat diaries 4: Rooftop Lunch

This post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South. (Read the first entry here for an explanation about the title choice.)  Dr Ashley South is an independent author, researcher and consultant, and a Research Fellow at Chiang Mai Universi …

Dogmeat Diaries 3: On the Ye River

By Ashley SouthThis post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South. (Read the first entry here for an explanation about the title choice.)  Dr Ashley South is an independent author, researcher and consultant, and a Research Fellow at Chia …

Dogmeat Diaries 2: First Trip to Monland

By Ashley SouthThis post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South. (Read the first entry here for an explanation about the title choice.)  Dr Ashley South is an independent author, researcher and consultant, and a Research Fellow at Chia …

‘Gender and the Path to Awakening’

By Emma Kiedyk  Martin Seeger is ‘a rare case among western scholars of Thai Buddhism and culture’, says Thai thinker and activisit Sulak Sivaraksa in Seeds of Peace (Vol 35, No.3)¹. The book ‘Gender and the Path to Awakening’, published by Silkworm an …

Dogmeat Diaries 1: Drip

By Ashley SouthThis post is part of the series ‘Dogmeat Diaries’ by Ashley South. (Read the first entry here for an explanation about the title choice.)  Dr Ashley South is an independent author, researcher and consultant, and a Research Fellow at Chia …

Is Consumption in Bangkok Becoming More Sustainable?

By Sophorntavy Vorng -Ever since my first trip to Bangkok as a PhD student to do my initial field research for A Meeting of Masks, I’ve been back many times. Shopping malls continue to be important social hubs, and consumption remains as popular an act …

Migrant labour and care in times of COVID-19, an interview with Dr Megha Amrith

Dr Megha Amrith is the lead researcher of the ‘Ageing in a Time of Mobility’ Research Group at Max Planck Institute, in Germany. She and her team focus on ageing, migration and translocal mobility in Asia, Africa and South America. This week, I had the …

‘Dehijabbing’ in Malaysia

‘The moral responsibilities placed on young women draw the limits around the multicultural and multireligious society that Malaysia is claiming to be’, claims Sylva Frisk in this thought-provoking entry. In April 2019, the book Unveiling Choice was lau …

Performing the Arts of Indonesia

”This book is a forum for information and discourse on the previously little known history, politics and identity of the performing arts of the small island region of Kepri” Read Margaret Kartomi’s account of ‘Performing the Arts of Indonesia’ a book …

A Day in the Life of a Publishing Assistant

Ever wondered what is it to work in NIAS Press? In this blog post, publishing assistant Adela describes a normal working day By Adela Brianso, Publishing Assistant at NIAS Press Each working day at NIAS Press varies widely. As a publishing assistant, I …

The Fog of War Again Descends on Afghanistan

Michael Fredholm brings us un update on Afghanistan, the Afghan Taliban and the recent peace agreement. Read his book ‘Afghanistan Beyond the Fog of  War’ for a fascinating account on this topic. On 9 November 2018, representatives of the Afghan Taliba …

Alien Romance

As our inaugural post, we bring you a fascinating piece on the agency of Indonesian domestic workers when engaging in relationships abroad. By Jafar Suryomenggolo, editor and translator of ‘At a Moment’s Notice’ (NIAS Press, 2019) ‘At a Moment’s Notice …