2024 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
The Making of Modern Siamese-Burmese Boundaries: The Ethnographic Factor
| Project/Area Number |
22K00911
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Review Section |
Basic Section 03030:History of Asia and Africa-related
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| Research Institution | Kyoto University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2022-04-01 – 2025-03-31
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| Keywords | Territorial disputes / Siam history / Border demarcation / Ethnicity / Colinial politics / Siam-Burmese relations / Religion and politics / Historical treaty |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
This research revealed that the Burma;Thailand border was shaped not merely by imperial fiat, but through negotiations deeply embedded in ethnographic classification and field encounters. British and Siamese surveyors used inconsistent and often politicized ethnic categories to map and legitimize territorial claims, effectively “placing” certain groups on one side of the border to serve strategic goals. Rather than creating a clear boundary, this process produced zones of ambiguity where identity and sovereignty overlapped. The study demonstrates that ethnic classification was not just a tool of governance but a dynamic force that influenced the very contours of the state. These findings challenge conventional, top-down accounts of border formation by showing how local knowledge, political interest, and ethnographic practice worked together to shape territorial order in mainland Southeast Asia, offering new insights into the co-production of identity, space, and sovereignty.
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| Free Research Field |
Politics
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| Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements |
This research advances border studies by revealing how ethnographic practices shaped state formation in Southeast Asia. It highlights the political use of identity in mapping and offers insights into how local agency contested colonial and national authority.
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