History links

This page contains useful History-related sites. For English sites with an Asia focus, click here and for some general sites, here. If you would like to suggest a site, please email us.

Asia for Educators

This site from the Weatherhead East Asia Institute and Columbia University provides an extensive collection of resources for teachers and students on Asian history from pre-4000 BC to current events and issues. Users can browse resources, which are drawn from a number of museums and institutions, by time period, country (China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam and Southeast Asia in general) and theme. The site features a series of learning modules with image galleries, profiles of key figures, primary sources, class materials, online readings, video content and maps presented in a format that will engage and interest students. Titles include: East Asia in Geographic Perspective; Living in the Chinese Cosmos; The Grandeur of the Qing Dynasty, China and Europe: What is ‘Modern’?; The Song Dynasty in China; and The Mongols in World History. This site also links to Education about Asia, a journal published in the United States which features stimulating articles for teachers. To sample the journal, click here

British Museum: Ancient India

This impressive site from The British Museum allows students and teachers to explore Ancient India. Users can explore India’s ancient culture through the key areas of The Buddha, Geography, Early Hinduism, the Indus Valley civilisation, Time and Writing. The site features animated stories, photos, maps and activities, which include a pilgrimage through ancient Buddhist sites and an introduction to Hindu gods.
Glossary definitions are provided throughout and a dedicated Staff Room page shows teachers how to get the most out of the website for their class.

China Institute in America (Education section)

This site has several rich resources including an entire book, From Silk to Oil: Cross-Cultural Connections Along the Silk Road. This book begins in the second century BCE and ends in the contemporary period. The book is published online with PDFs containing twenty-three curriculum units with lesson plans, written and visual documents, maps and tables, and a Silk Roads board game. Topics include Geography; Ethnic relations and political history; Exchange of Goods and Ideas; Religions and Art. The site also includes two units of work, one of which enables students to compare the Roman and Han Chinese empires.

Cool Planet, Oxfam UK

Opens students' eyes to the different lifestyles and cultures of the world. Included on this site are profiles of Vietnam, India, Bangladesh and Afghanistan which give basic facts about the geography, climate, history and culture, as well as case studies of Oxfam’s work in these communities. Case studies include combating waterlogged land and salination in Pakistan and the life of a refugee in Afghanistan. The site also has visitor experiences to different countries, including a young Londoner's visit to cotton farmers in Southern India.

Cultures on the Edge

This online magazine seeks to promote diversity and bring contrasting communities together; that is, communities in developing countries develop cultural awareness by connecting with other societies using technology and modern countries learn about ancient cultures and practices that are very much alive today. We learn about unfamiliar cultures through case studies, articles and photographic essays. Included is a profile of the Karen people who have lived in refugee communities along the Thai-Burmese border for six decades and an essay on the preservation of Bhutanese culture.

Duanhaung Project: The Silk Road Online

This website brings together manuscripts, paintings, textiles and artefacts. Collections from Britain, France, Germany, Russia, China and Japan are freely available and accompanied by text outlining the history of each country’s involvement or connection with the Silk Road. The site features a dedicated education section with units on the themes of Cultural Dialogue; Trade, Travel, War and Faith; Dash: The Dogs; Bookbinding and Buddhism.

East Asian Studies Centre, Indiana University

The site hosts a selection of lessons plans about the region in general and on specific countries. Themes include People, Places and Environment; Technology, Production, Distribution, and Consumption; Cultures, Continuity, and Change; Aesthetics, Celebrations, and Values; and Instructions, Power, and Government. 

Immigration Museum (Melbourne)

This site hosts resources that focus on the lives of the Muslim cameleers who travelled to Australia between 1860 and the 1930s. They complement the Immigration Museum exhibition Australia’s Muslim Cameleers – Pioneers of the Inland.

There are Teacher Notes, activities for a range of year levels and links to other useful resources.

The Khmer Empire: Cambodia’s Medieval Splendor, National Geographic

This feature on Cambodia’s famous landmark explores the site at the height of the Khmer rule in the 13th century. The interactive timeline, animations and impressive photo gallery give a glimpse into life in Angkor 600 years ago and what remains of the buildings, landscape and practices today. As well as the interactive site there are links to a Cambodia quiz, Angkor feature article and video.

Nagasaki University Historical Photo Collection

View Nagasaki University Library’s collection of high definition photographs of Japanese landscape and culture of the 19^th century. The University invites you to view Japan as it entered a period of modernisation on the Edo and Meiji Periods. Photos can be searched using interactive historical maps.

Northeast Asian History Foundation

The Northeast Asian History Foundation promotes peace and cooperation throughout the region by seeking to resolve historical and territorial issues between countries. Based in South Korea, the Foundation conducts extensive research and analysis to determine the root causes of regional tension and refute distorted historical interpretations that have been presented over time. Focus is given to Korea’s bilateral relations with China and Japan from ancient times through to the contemporary era. Extensive background information is given to provide teachers with historical contexts, as well as useful timelines and proposed resolutions to conflict which can be used to form the basis of classroom discussion. Topics of historical controversy covered include post World War II compensation, Japanese comfort women, Yasukuni Shrine, territorial ownership of Dokdo and historical accounts presented in Japanese textbooks following the withdrawal of the US military in 1952. The site also features video content, a useful Q&A section outlining key issues covered on the site and journal articles for further research.

Smithsonian Resources

Smithsonian Education has a number of online resources for students and teachers on Asian themes for different age groups. Included is an excellent guide to the work and style of Japanese artist Hokusai who lived from 1760 to 1849; and the journal of a 14 day trip to remote panda habitats in China.

Urbanphoto

Urbanphoto is a photo blog documenting urban life and architecture. The site is an international collaboration with bases in both Hong Kong and Montreal. The photos and accompanying commentaries, stories and interviews give a beautiful insight into the small things that make a city, for example rooftop gardens, street art, street signs and even air conditioning units clinging to the sides of buildings. Posts are searchable by city and theme and the site has an extensive archive and links to contributors Flikr galleries and individual sites.

Visualising Cultures

Visualising Cultures is a rich site focusing on the histories of China and Japan. It explores the cultures of modernisation, war and peace and consumerism amongst other themes. Units include 'Ground Zero 1945: A Schoolboy's Story', 'Black Ships and Samurai', 'John Thomson's China 1' and many other image-rich resources.

Yale University, Genocide Studies Program

Yale University’s Genocide Studies Program has information, news articles, essays and bibliographies about the phenomenon of genocide. Research projects are a key feature of the unit’s operations and the site provides a good resource for those investigating the violence in East Timor (1999), Cambodia (1970s), Indonesia (1960s) and the ongoing tensions in West Papua.