1997 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Cultural Ecology of Local Towns in a Multiethnic Nation : A Case Study of Malaysia.
| Project/Area Number |
07041024
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for international Scientific Research
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | Field Research |
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| Research Field |
Human geography
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| Research Institution | The University of Tokyo (1997)
Komazawa University (1995-1996) |
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Principal Investigator |
NAGATA Junji The University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Associate Professor, 大学院・総合文化研究科, 助教授 (30218002)
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| Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) |
VOON Phing Keong University of Malaya, Depaertment of East Asian Studies, Professor, 東アジア研究科, 教授
IZUMIDA Hideo Toyohashi University of Technology, Department of Architecture and Civil Enginee, 建設工学科, 助教授 (70203057)
MIZUSHIMA Tsukasa The University of Tokyo, Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology, Professor, 大学院・人文社会系研究科, 教授 (70126283)
KATO Tsuyosi Kyoto University, The Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Professor, 東南アジア研究センター, 教授 (60127066)
TACHIMOTO Narifumi Kyoto University, The Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Professor, 東南アジア研究センター, 教授 (50027588)
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| Project Period (FY) |
1995 – 1997
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| Keywords | Malaysia / cultural ecology / local town / multiethnic nation / urbanizaton / industrialization / urban-rural relationship / urban history |
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| Research Abstract |
Malaysia is a multiethnic nation which is composed of various kinds of ethnic groups such as Malays, Chinese, Indians, and Indonesians. These ethnic groups have developed many towns as a nodal place of local administration and economic and cultural activities since the colonial era through the process of nation building after independence. This study attached great importance to the role of local towns in the development process of Malaysian society and investigated the nature of local towns from cultural ecological viewpoints based on the intensive field syudies in some selected area.
The evolutional process of urban centers in Malaysia is divided into three stages : (1) its infancy in the early colonial period, (2) the rapid growth under the colonial economy, (3) the development and transformation after independence, especially after the 1970s when the New Economic Policy was implemented. In the early colonial period we can see the involvement of not only Chinese immigrants but also wealthy Malay families in the formation of urban centers in such places as royal towns. However, under the expanding colonial economy the Malay communities never became important actors in the development of urban centers all over Malaysia. The situation has changed after independence, especially since the 1970s. Under the development policy of the government in which the Malays take the leadship, urban middle-class Malays have grown in number and begun to involve in the urban development actively. Under the colonial regine most of the urban population is Chinese. Now it is important to understand the mechanism of coexistence of various ethic groups, especially Malays and non-Malays, in the specific urban settings.
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