Margin to mainstream, periphery to center
| Date | 01 September 2018 |
| Published date | 01 September 2018 |
| DOI | 10.1177/2057891117749947 |
| Subject Matter | Research articles |
Research article
Margin to mainstream,
periphery to center:
Geopolitics and the
anthropology of Burma
and the Silk Roads
Naoko Kumada
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
Abstract
Once one of the most remote and forgotten regions in the world, the rugged upland of Myanmar,
between China and India, is moving from periphery to center. Both resource rich and strategically
critical, this mountainous area bordering five countries plays a role of heightened geopolitical
significance with the opening up of Myanmar, the rise of China, and India’s attempt to ‘Act East.’ As
a way to explore the Silk Road Ethos, by decolonizing the global order and understanding local
contexts (Ling and Perrigoue, 2018), this article focuses on the upland region of Myanmar where
the southern land routes of the old Silk Roads pass. The relatively unknown routes are now being
revived, as the China-led ‘One Belt, One Road’ (OBOR) strategy gains momentum. Building on
classic descriptions of the anthropological context for the region’s resistance against and
accommodation with the economic and political claims of the continental states whose ‘roads’
traverse it, the article will explore new ways to think about the upland as it undergoes a trans-
formation that places it at the heart of the rise of a new Asia.
Keywords
anthropology, geopolitics, Myanmar, the Silk Roads
Burma and the old and new ‘Silk Roads’
Located in between China and India, land routes connecting these two civilizations pass through
Burma, today called Myanmar. The routes had ‘global significance,’ forming part of the Silk
Corresponding author:
Naoko Kumada, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Block S4, Level B3, 50
Nanyang Avenue, 639798, Singapore.
Email: isnkumada@ntu.edu.sg
Asian Journal of Comparative Politics
2018, Vol. 3(3) 258–268
ªThe Author(s) 2018
Article reuse guidelines:
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DOI: 10.1177/2057891117749947
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