Prof. Dr. Arndt Graf, Chair, Department of Southeast Asian Studies, Goethe-University Frankfurt, Germany;

Prof. Tan Sri Dato’ Dzulkifli Abdul Razak, Vice-Chancellor, Universiti Sains Malaysia, and

Assoc. Prof. Ampuan Dr Haji Brahim Bin Ampuan Haji Tengah, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam

invite interested scholars to participate in the following jointly organised International Seminar:

Merantau:
Imagining Migration in the Malay World.
International Seminar in Honour of Prof. E. U. Kratz

DATE AND VENUE: University of Frankfurt, Germany, 30-31 March 2011

DEADLINE: Paper title and abstract: 20 Dec. 2010; full paper: 15 March 2011.

No conference fee for paper presenters. Presenters are expected to find their own funding for travel and hotel costs.

On the topic of the seminar:

Located at the major sea route between East and South Asia, Insular Southeast Asia has a long tradition of migration, exchange and cultural contact, both in the region and internationally. This International Seminar is mainly focusing on the traces of this long-standing flow of ideas in the imagination of Indonesia and the Malay World. In this, concepts of migration, exchange, and cultural contact from Insular Southeast Asia, such as merantau, are an important point of departure for the analysis of the underlying cultural and social process. With this framework, this International Seminar is also conducted in honour of Professor E.U. Kratz as one of the precursors in the study of mutual literary influence between Insular Southeast Asia and Europe. Contributions from a multitude of disciplinary perspectives are highly welcome.

Conference languages: English and Malay. The organisers plan for a conference publication in English aimed toward a broader international audience. If enough Malay-language contributions are presented, a separate Malay-language publication might be possible.