CityU hosts international conference on East Asia’s maritime history

Academics from different countries discussed the maritime history of East Asia from the 16th to 19th century during a conference held at City University of Hong Kong (CityU) from 7 to 8 July.

Titled “International Conference on the Maritime World of East Asia in 16th-19th Century”, the conference was held in collaboration with the National Palace Museum (NPM) in Taipei to promote academic exchange.
 
The conference was hosted by CityU’s Department of Chinese and History and co-organised by the NPM and Hong Kong Maritime Museum. Professor Way Kuo, CityU President, and Professor Li Hsiao-ti, Head of the Department of Chinese and History, delivered addresses at the opening ceremony on 7 July.
 
More than 20 academics from the US, Singapore, Taiwan, mainland China and Macau together with local scholars of culture and history took part in the conference. They discussed various topics, including China’s contemporary ship-building technology; pirates and merchants active in South East Asia, North East Asia and China’s coast from the 16th to 19th century; and the defensive measures taken by China’s central and local governments against pirates from Japan and other areas during the Ming and Qing dynasties.