The Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman is organizing an international conference, "Scripts in Asia: c. 1500–2000," which will be held—via Zoom—from 27 to 28 April 2021. All times are GMT + 8. Program subject to change anytime.
WATCH SELECT PRESENTATIONS ON YOUTUBE
-
PROGRAM: DAY 1 (April 27)
Presenters and non-presenters must (create and) sign in to their (at least a Basic/Free) Zoom account.
Click on each tab below to view/close the content. Multiple tabs can be open at once.
08:15 am • Keynote 1 | The Many Paths from Sound to Sign in Island Southeast Asia
8:15 am–09:30 am
KEYNOTE LECTURE 1
The Many Paths from Sound to Sign in Island Southeast Asia
Campbell Macknight, Honorary Professor, The Australian National University
Island Southeast Asia has a rich — but under-appreciated — heritage of writing systems. These all derive from systems originally developed outside the region, but the adaptions and innovations wrought on the models are the work of those who recording Southeast Asian languages whether as native speakers or as scholarly linguists. Some cases of derivation are relatively straightforward. Other cases, such as the development of the scripts used to write Makasar and Bugis in southwest Sulawesi, which I discuss in some detail, have long defied convincing demonstration. Moreover, in all cases, the adoption of a writing system involves much more than fixing a series of signs to represent the sounds of a language; the uses to which literacy has been put in particular historical and cultural contexts, as well as practical issues of media and preservation, deserve attention. The history of writing systems in island Southeast Asia from early in the first millennium CE onwards holds a mirror up to the wider story of the region and reveals much about the nature of external contacts throughout this long period.
09:45 am • Panel 1: Scripts, Art and Identity
09:45 am–11:00 am
PANEL 1: SCRIPTS, ART and IDENTITY
Islamic Calligraphy as Javanese Muslims’ Belief on God’s Existence and Artistic Expression in Sacred Buildings
Hee Sook Lee-Niinioja, PhD
Independent Scholar
Filipinnovation of the Traditional Script
Prof. Adelaida F. Lucero, PhD
University of the Philippines Diliman
The Making of Self-Knowledge in Tanah Jawi: Newspapers, Science and Roman Scripts, 1850s–1930
Nia Deliana, International Islamic University of Malaysia
11:00 am • Panel 2: Scripts, Conversion and Islamic Education
11:00 am–12:15 pm
PANEL 2: Scripts, Conversion and Islamic Education
Pegon Scripts and Islamic Teaching in Sumenep Madura Indonesia
Zakiyah
Office of Religious Research and Development
Ministry of Religious Affairs, Semarang Indonesia
Conversion and the Construction of the Poetic Self: Exploring Sadek Ali’s literary works in the Sileti Nagari Script, 19th C.E.
Madhubanti Chanda, MA
Centre of Studies in Social Sciences, Calcutta
Moral Values in the Kitab Pengajaran Manuscript
Bayu Aji Prasetya and Delima Novitasari, Sebelas Maret University
01:15 pm • Panel 3: Jawi—History and Collection
01:15 pm–02:30 pm
PANEL 3: JAWI—HISTORY and COLLECTION
Jawi, Baybayin and Latin Scripts in 16th-Century Manila
Isaac Donoso, Universidad de Alicante, Spain
Transcribing Jawi: Challenges and Patterns
David M. Karaj, University of Pavia
How the Collector/Manuscript Owner Define Their Collections
Fiqru Mafar, IAIN Jember
02:45 pm • Keynote 2: 'Jawi: Script, Language, People, Religion'
02:45 pm–04:00 pm
KEYNOTE LECTURE 2
Jawi: Script, Language, People, Religion
Mulaika Hijjas, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London
In 2019, controversy erupted in Malaysia over the introduction of material featuring Jawi--Malay written in an adapted form of Arabic script--to the school curriculum. Protestors objected to what they saw as the Islamisation of the syllabus. While in this instance these claims appear unfounded, it is true that recent decades have seen an ever closer association in the Malaysian public sphere between the Jawi script and Islam. Indeed, reaction to the protest took the form of asserting the inherently Islamic identity of Jawi and of the Malay language, conflating the two under the appellation bahasa Jawi (Jawi language). Yet, as recently as the 1980s, when Jawi was still a part of mainstream education in Malaysia, it was widely accepted as merely a way of writing the national language. A cursory survey of material written in Jawi over the centuries shows that (perhaps like any script) it included the sacred, the secular, and indeed the profane. This talk will trace the development of the Jawi script from its appearance around 1500 to the most recent controversy, with particular attention to the derivation of the term. It will consider how 'Jawi' has oscillated between a term for a script, a language, a people, and for Islamic identity itself. It will also introduce community-sourced transcription projects as a way of 'revitalising' Jawi that goes beyond religious and ethnic boundaries.
04:15 pm • Panel 4: Scripts and Cross-Cultural Contact
04:15 pm–5:30 pm
PANEL 4: Scripts and Cross-Cultural Contact
Internal and External Factors in the Fate of Scripts (MOVED TO PANEL 5, DAY 2, APRIL 28)
Christopher R. Miller, PhD
Mappila Literary Awakening of the 16th century: An Analysis on the Islamisation of Malabar Muslims through Mala, Mawlid, and Sabeena
Habeeb Moosa, Indira Gandhi National Open University
The Malay-Arabic Bible in Javanese Christian Church "Kyai Sadrach" Purworejo, Indonesia
Laras Aridhini, M.A., Gadjah Mada University
-
PROGRAM: DAY 2 (April 28)
Presenters and non-presenters must (create and) sign in to their (at least a Basic/Free) Zoom account.
Click on each tab below to view/close the content. Multiple tabs can be open at once.
08:15 am • Panel 5: Scripts, State and Society
08:30 am–9:30 am
Panel 5: Scripts, State and Society
Internal and External Factors in the Fate of Scripts
Christopher R. Miller, PhD (Moved from Panel 4 to Panel 5 due to technical difficulty on 4/27/2021)
Old Sundanese Script in Inscriptions and Manuscripts in the 1500s: Diplomacy of the Last Sunda Kingdom and the Portuguese
Sinta Ridwan
University of Indonesia, Aksakun
Anantarupa Studios
Writing in Korea: Mixed Script Versus Hangul Exclusivity
John Oliver B. Monghit, Hanyang University
Current Debate on Sexism in Spanish and Chinese Languages
Nerina Piedra Molina, PhD, University of Granada
09:45 am • Panel 6: Scripts and Technology
09:45 am– 11:00 am
Panel 6: Scripts and Technology
Transcribing Manipravala: The Interplay of Time, Tradition and Technology
Vinodh Rajan, PhD, Independent Researcher
Suganya Anandakichenin, PhD, University of Hamburg
Sundanese Calligraphy as Artistic Expressions of Identity
Agung Zainal Muttakin Raden, M.Ds
Indonesia Arts Institute Surakarta
Annotating the Islands: Bugis Script and Toponyms in [a] 19th Century Map of [the] Malay Archipelago
Muhammad Buana, B.A., LL.M. (main author), University of Leiden
Aditya Bayu Perdana, S.Ars. (co author), University of Indonesia
11:00 am • Panel 7: Scripts—Revival and Continuity
11:00 am–12:15 pm
PANEL 7: Scripts: Revival and Continuity
Whose Decline? Not Khojkī’s. Rethinking Khojkī’s Decline: Evidence of Continued Use of Khojkī Script in Sindh, Pakistan
Ali Jan Damani, Institute of Business Administration
Between the Brahmans and the Baptists: A History of Kaithi Script in Nineteenth-Century India
Anubha Anushree, PhD, Stanford University and Delhi University
The Tagalog Chronicles: A Study on the Entanglement of the Baybayin’s Historical Precedence and its Revival
Tyrone Kit B. Agres, University of the Philippines Diliman
Diane Marie U. Concepcion, University of the Philippines Diliman
Christopher Van A. Deita, University of the Philippines Diliman
01:15 pm • Panel 8: Scripts and Christian Missionaries
1:15 pm–2:30 pm
PANEL 8: Scripts and Christian Missionaries
From Syllabary to Alphabet: A Spanish Attempt at Transformation
Damon L. Woods, University of California Los Angeles
Questioning the Strategies behind the Creation of Chữ Quốc Ngữ (Vietnamese Romanized Script)
KIM, Bảo, Đặng, Faculdade de Ciencias Sociais e Humanas, Universidaded Nova de Lisboa
Analysis of an Invented Writing System for the Shanghainese Language
Logan Simpson, Wangka Maya Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre
02:45 pm • Roundtable 1: Scripts, Politics, and Heritage
02:45 pm–4:15 pm
Scripts, Politics, and Heritage
Dr. Birgit Tremml-Werner
Linnaeus University, Sweden
Dr. Elsa Clavé
Universität Hamburg, Germany
Mr. Louward Zubiri
University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA / Mangyan Heritage Center
Dr. Michael L. Tan
Department of Anthropology, University of the Philippines DIliman
Dr. Joefe B. Santarita
Asian Center, University of the Philippines DIliman
Dr. Ariel Lopez
Asian Center, University of the Philippines DIliman
04:15 pm • Closing Program
04:15 pm–04:30 pm
Closing Program
Summary
Closing Remarks
-
UPDATES
Added "Annotating the Islands: Bugis Script and Toponyms in [a] 19th Century Map of [the] Malay Archipelago" in Panel 6 (4/20/2021)
TIME ADJUSTMENTS
Panel 5 (April 28) now starts at 8:30 am (4/26/2021)
TRANSFERS/SWITCHES
"Internal and External Factors in the Fate of Scripts"
(Moved from Panel 4 to Panel 5 due to technical difficulty on 4/27/2021)
"The Making of Self-Knowledge in Tanah Jawi: Newspapers, Science and Roman Scripts, 1850s–1930"
(From Panel 6 to Panel 1)[4/20/2021]
Sundanese Calligraphy as Artistic Expressions of Identity
(From Panel 1 to Panel 6)[4/20/2021]
WITHDRAWAL(S)
"Writing in Korea: Mixed Script Versus Hangul Exclusivity" (Panel 5)[4/20/2021]
-
KEYNOTE LECTURES
0815 am, 27 April 2021
The Many Paths from Sound to Sign in Island Southeast Asia
Campbell Macknight, Honorary Professor
The Australian National University
Island Southeast Asia has a rich — but under-appreciated — heritage of writing systems. These all derive from systems originally developed outside the region, but the adaptions and innovations wrought on the models are the work of those who recording Southeast Asian languages whether as native speakers or as scholarly linguists. Some cases of derivation are relatively straightforward. Other cases, such as the development of the scripts used to write Makasar and Bugis in southwest Sulawesi, which I discuss in some detail, have long defied convincing demonstration. Moreover, in all cases, the adoption of a writing system involves much more than fixing a series of signs to represent the sounds of a language; the uses to which literacy has been put in particular historical and cultural contexts, as well as practical issues of media and preservation, deserve attention. The history of writing systems in island Southeast Asia from early in the first millennium CE onwards holds a mirror up to the wider story of the region and reveals much about the nature of external contacts throughout this long period.
———
0245 pm, 27 April 2021
Jawi: Script, Language, People Religion
Mulaika Hijjas, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London
In 2019, controversy erupted in Malaysia over the introduction of material featuring Jawi--Malay written in an adapted form of Arabic script--to the school curriculum. Protestors objected to what they saw as the Islamisation of the syllabus. While in this instance these claims appear unfounded, it is true that recent decades have seen an ever closer association in the Malaysian public sphere between the Jawi script and Islam. Indeed, reaction to the protest took the form of asserting the inherently Islamic identity of Jawi and of the Malay language, conflating the two under the appellation bahasa Jawi (Jawi language). Yet, as recently as the 1980s, when Jawi was still a part of mainstream education in Malaysia, it was widely accepted as merely a way of writing the national language. A cursory survey of material written in Jawi over the centuries shows that (perhaps like any script) it included the sacred, the secular, and indeed the profane. This talk will trace the development of the Jawi script from its appearance around 1500 to the most recent controversy, with particular attention to the derivation of the term. It will consider how 'Jawi' has oscillated between a term for a script, a language, a people, and for Islamic identity itself. It will also introduce community-sourced transcription projects as a way of 'revitalising' Jawi that goes beyond religious and ethnic boundaries.
-
28 April 2021: 2:45 pm–4:15pm (GMT + 8)
Scripts, Politics, and Heritage
Dr. Birgit Tremml-Werner
Linnaeus University, Sweden
Dr. Elsa Clavé
Universität Hamburg, Germany
Mr. Louward Zubiri
University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA / Mangyan Heritage Center
Dr. Michael L. Tan
Department of Anthropology, University of the Philippines Diliman
Dr. Joefe B. Santarita
Asian Center, University of the Philippines DIliman
Dr. Ariel Lopez
Asian Center, University of the Philippines DIliman
-
REMINDERS for PRESENTERS
Please take time to go through these reminders to help ensure a smooth webinar experience for everyone. These may all be subject to change, so please check back regularly, by 26 April, and even during the conference, for updates here and/or via email.
Join Link and Sign-In
- Presenters DO NOT NEED to fill out the registration link above. That is only for the audience (non-presenters).
- Sometime before the conference, panelists will receive an email containing the link to join the webinar/conference as a panelist.** Please check your email's Spam folder. It is advised that you star this email or add it to your email's favorites to help you locate it easily. The subject line is "Panelist for Scripts in Asia....."
- If you have not received your "Join Link" by 23 April 2021, please inform the Conference Secretariat.
- Your join link is tied to your Zoom account, so it is unique/exclusive to you. Please don't share it with anyone else.
- Presenters must click the said link and just sign in to their Zoom account. To help ensure a smoother log-in experience, sign in to your Zoom account first before clicking on the link.
- The same "Join Link" will be used for both days of the conference There is no need to re-register.
**The conference secretariat will notify presenters if and when they should expect the Join link, and receive additional instructions. As with the audience, signing in to a Zoom account is required for panelists.
Q&A
Please consult the Q&A tab to read how the Q&A will proceed.
Call Time
Presenters must log in at least 30 minutes before their panel, though they may of course attend the other sessions. This early start can help you get settled and address any technical issue.
Renaming Your Zoom Profile
Sometime before the conference, please log in to the Zoom website, go to Profile, and click "Edit" to rename yourself thus: P1 Amy Peralta. P1 means Panel 1, and so on. This will help the conference team to identify you more easily and anytime during the webinar.
Introduction of Panelists
The moderators/emcees will introduce each panelist before playing the recording of his/her presentation.
During the Presentations
The conference staff will play your pre-recorded presentation, but we do ask that you have it (both the file of presentation and the video) on hand and be ready to screen-share, just in case the conference staff encounters a technical difficulty. We hope it doesn't come to this, but you'll never know.
In-Webinar Communications Outside Zoom
We will use the Zoom chat feature as much as possible to send messages to all presenters, so kindly monitor the chat window as often as you can. However, the Chat window can sometimes get too crowded, and it may be difficult to backread.
Thus, please always be on the lookout for email announcements (to be sent to your Zoom email address). Also, you may also wish contact us via Facebook Messenger (https://www.facebook.com/upasiancenter) or via Google Hangout (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or just email the conference secretariat.
Full Paper Guidelines
Full papers are to be emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. on or before 19 April 2021. A select number of papers will be edited/vetted for publication.
6,000–8,000 words, including references
Citation style: Chicago-Turabian (use footnotes)
Abstract and five keywords
Author affiliation and email address
If written in Filipino, supply an abstract in English
Recording of the Webinar
The entire conference will be recorded.
-
REMINDERS for the AUDIENCE
Please take time to go through these reminders to help ensure a smooth webinar experience for everyone. These may all be subject to change, so please check back regularly, by 26 April, and even during the conference, for updates here and/or via email.
For Non-Presenters (Audience)
- Please click on the registration button above. Registration is free.
- Upon registration, you will receive an email containing a link to join the conference. Please check your Spam folder if you don't see it in your main inbox. The sender should be "no-reply[at]zoom.us" and subject line of the confrimation email is "My Scripts in Asia...Confirmation."
- Please do not share that link with anybody else; it is unique/exclusive to you.
- Signing in to at least a basic/free Zoom account is required to attend the conference. To help ensure a smoother log-in experience, sign in to your Zoom account first before clicking on the "Join link."
- The webinar can accommodate only 500 at any given time, so joining/participation is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Please keep comments and questions fair and professional from sending rude/derogatory comments or questions to the panelists/organizers. The organizers reserve the right to remove from the webinar participants who send rude/demeaning messages.
- The same "Join Link" sent to you can be used for all sessions even on a different days. There is no need to register again.
- Livestream may be initiated ONLY IF the participants exceed 500, so please register still.
Q&A System
See Q&A tab.
Recording Notice
The entire conference will be recorded.
-
Q&A Format
-
The audience can post—anonymously if they wish—their questions on the Q&A window of the Zoom webinar. They must indicate the speaker to whom they are addressing the question: "Dr. Jones, why do....." This will help everyone keep track.
-
During the Q&A, the moderator will choose, read aloud, and answer on air any open question (s). However, the panelists/presenters are also free to type in their answers to other questions anytime during the Q&A.
-
Just before the first presentation of a panel ends, all remaining open questions will be dismissed. However, panelists-presenters have the option to reopen and respond to these questions during break time or until just before the first presentation of the next panel ends (see Item # 2). This, we hope, can help ensure that only questions for the current panel's Q&A are visible and thus easier to see/read through.
- Please minimize (extensive) discussions with the audience/panelists via the Zoom Chat window.
- Kindly check back before, and even during the conference to see updates. Major updates will be announced during the conference.
-
ABOUT THE CONFERENCE
The European arrival in Asia in the 16th century was a turning point not only in the political trajectories but also in the writing traditions of Asian states and societies. In maritime Southeast Asia for instance, indigenous literacy in Indic-derived scripts was long widespread in societies such as the Batak (si-sia-sia script), Tagalog (baybayin) and Bugis (lontara). However, increasing European influence occuring alongside Islamization engendered the transition to Latin or Jawi (Arabic-derived) scripts. This conference intends to explore the impact of European presence in the various writing traditions of Asia. In what ways were certain languages and especially scripts privileged by colonial states? How is the transition from one writing script to the other reflected in the sources? How do postcolonial societies across Asia view or instrumentalize their varied epigraphical, textual, and codicological traditions?
SUBTHEMES
Asian religious textual and manuscript cultures
Repositories: archives, museums, and libraries
Scripts as artistic expressions
Living cultural bearers
Literary scripts and cultures
Christian missionary education
Sinic, Indic and Arabic writing cultures: origins and expansions
Islamic (madrasah) literacy education
Comparative colonial acculturation and assimilation
Script and language extinction
Cultural nationalism and imperialism
Language and script renewal movements
Western education in Asia
Colonial and postcolonial language/script policy
CONFERENCE CHAIRS
- Joefe B. Santarita, PhD, Dean and Professor, Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman
- Ariel C. Lopez, PhD, Assistant Professor, Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman
CONFERENCE STAFF
- Julie de La Paz (Secretariat)
- Katrina Yap (Secretariat)
- Janus Nolasco (Website and Publicity)
- Danae Pantano (Graphic Design)
- Miccah Frayna (Graphic Design)
-
CONTACT: HOW CAN WE HELP YOU?
Please direct all inquiries to the Conference Secretariat via email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
GET UPDATES
Please join our mailing list and/or follow us on Facebook to receive updates.
-
PROGRAM: DAY 1 (April 27)
Presenters and non-presenters must (create and) sign in to their (at least a Basic/Free) Zoom account.
Click on each tab below to view/close the content. Multiple tabs can be open at once.
08:15 am • Keynote 1 | The Many Paths from Sound to Sign in Island Southeast Asia
8:15 am–09:30 am
KEYNOTE LECTURE 1The Many Paths from Sound to Sign in Island Southeast Asia
Campbell Macknight, Honorary Professor, The Australian National UniversityIsland Southeast Asia has a rich — but under-appreciated — heritage of writing systems. These all derive from systems originally developed outside the region, but the adaptions and innovations wrought on the models are the work of those who recording Southeast Asian languages whether as native speakers or as scholarly linguists. Some cases of derivation are relatively straightforward. Other cases, such as the development of the scripts used to write Makasar and Bugis in southwest Sulawesi, which I discuss in some detail, have long defied convincing demonstration. Moreover, in all cases, the adoption of a writing system involves much more than fixing a series of signs to represent the sounds of a language; the uses to which literacy has been put in particular historical and cultural contexts, as well as practical issues of media and preservation, deserve attention. The history of writing systems in island Southeast Asia from early in the first millennium CE onwards holds a mirror up to the wider story of the region and reveals much about the nature of external contacts throughout this long period.
09:45 am • Panel 1: Scripts, Art and Identity
09:45 am–11:00 am
PANEL 1: SCRIPTS, ART and IDENTITYIslamic Calligraphy as Javanese Muslims’ Belief on God’s Existence and Artistic Expression in Sacred Buildings
Hee Sook Lee-Niinioja, PhD
Independent ScholarFilipinnovation of the Traditional Script
Prof. Adelaida F. Lucero, PhD
University of the Philippines DilimanThe Making of Self-Knowledge in Tanah Jawi: Newspapers, Science and Roman Scripts, 1850s–1930
Nia Deliana, International Islamic University of Malaysia11:00 am • Panel 2: Scripts, Conversion and Islamic Education
11:00 am–12:15 pm
PANEL 2: Scripts, Conversion and Islamic EducationPegon Scripts and Islamic Teaching in Sumenep Madura Indonesia
Zakiyah
Office of Religious Research and Development
Ministry of Religious Affairs, Semarang IndonesiaConversion and the Construction of the Poetic Self: Exploring Sadek Ali’s literary works in the Sileti Nagari Script, 19th C.E.
Madhubanti Chanda, MA
Centre of Studies in Social Sciences, CalcuttaMoral Values in the Kitab Pengajaran Manuscript
Bayu Aji Prasetya and Delima Novitasari, Sebelas Maret University01:15 pm • Panel 3: Jawi—History and Collection
01:15 pm–02:30 pm
PANEL 3: JAWI—HISTORY and COLLECTIONJawi, Baybayin and Latin Scripts in 16th-Century Manila
Isaac Donoso, Universidad de Alicante, SpainTranscribing Jawi: Challenges and Patterns
David M. Karaj, University of PaviaHow the Collector/Manuscript Owner Define Their Collections
Fiqru Mafar, IAIN Jember02:45 pm • Keynote 2: 'Jawi: Script, Language, People, Religion'
02:45 pm–04:00 pm
KEYNOTE LECTURE 2Jawi: Script, Language, People, Religion
Mulaika Hijjas, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of LondonIn 2019, controversy erupted in Malaysia over the introduction of material featuring Jawi--Malay written in an adapted form of Arabic script--to the school curriculum. Protestors objected to what they saw as the Islamisation of the syllabus. While in this instance these claims appear unfounded, it is true that recent decades have seen an ever closer association in the Malaysian public sphere between the Jawi script and Islam. Indeed, reaction to the protest took the form of asserting the inherently Islamic identity of Jawi and of the Malay language, conflating the two under the appellation bahasa Jawi (Jawi language). Yet, as recently as the 1980s, when Jawi was still a part of mainstream education in Malaysia, it was widely accepted as merely a way of writing the national language. A cursory survey of material written in Jawi over the centuries shows that (perhaps like any script) it included the sacred, the secular, and indeed the profane. This talk will trace the development of the Jawi script from its appearance around 1500 to the most recent controversy, with particular attention to the derivation of the term. It will consider how 'Jawi' has oscillated between a term for a script, a language, a people, and for Islamic identity itself. It will also introduce community-sourced transcription projects as a way of 'revitalising' Jawi that goes beyond religious and ethnic boundaries.
04:15 pm • Panel 4: Scripts and Cross-Cultural Contact
04:15 pm–5:30 pm
PANEL 4: Scripts and Cross-Cultural ContactInternal and External Factors in the Fate of Scripts (MOVED TO PANEL 5, DAY 2, APRIL 28)
Christopher R. Miller, PhDMappila Literary Awakening of the 16th century: An Analysis on the Islamisation of Malabar Muslims through Mala, Mawlid, and Sabeena
Habeeb Moosa, Indira Gandhi National Open UniversityThe Malay-Arabic Bible in Javanese Christian Church "Kyai Sadrach" Purworejo, Indonesia
Laras Aridhini, M.A., Gadjah Mada University -
PROGRAM: DAY 2 (April 28)
Presenters and non-presenters must (create and) sign in to their (at least a Basic/Free) Zoom account.
Click on each tab below to view/close the content. Multiple tabs can be open at once.08:15 am • Panel 5: Scripts, State and Society
08:30 am–9:30 am
Panel 5: Scripts, State and SocietyInternal and External Factors in the Fate of Scripts
Christopher R. Miller, PhD (Moved from Panel 4 to Panel 5 due to technical difficulty on 4/27/2021)Old Sundanese Script in Inscriptions and Manuscripts in the 1500s: Diplomacy of the Last Sunda Kingdom and the Portuguese
Sinta Ridwan
University of Indonesia, Aksakun
Anantarupa StudiosWriting in Korea: Mixed Script Versus Hangul Exclusivity
John Oliver B. Monghit, Hanyang UniversityCurrent Debate on Sexism in Spanish and Chinese Languages
Nerina Piedra Molina, PhD, University of Granada09:45 am • Panel 6: Scripts and Technology
09:45 am– 11:00 am
Panel 6: Scripts and TechnologyTranscribing Manipravala: The Interplay of Time, Tradition and Technology
Vinodh Rajan, PhD, Independent Researcher
Suganya Anandakichenin, PhD, University of HamburgSundanese Calligraphy as Artistic Expressions of Identity
Agung Zainal Muttakin Raden, M.Ds
Indonesia Arts Institute SurakartaAnnotating the Islands: Bugis Script and Toponyms in [a] 19th Century Map of [the] Malay Archipelago
Muhammad Buana, B.A., LL.M. (main author), University of Leiden
Aditya Bayu Perdana, S.Ars. (co author), University of Indonesia11:00 am • Panel 7: Scripts—Revival and Continuity
11:00 am–12:15 pm
PANEL 7: Scripts: Revival and ContinuityWhose Decline? Not Khojkī’s. Rethinking Khojkī’s Decline: Evidence of Continued Use of Khojkī Script in Sindh, Pakistan
Ali Jan Damani, Institute of Business AdministrationBetween the Brahmans and the Baptists: A History of Kaithi Script in Nineteenth-Century India
Anubha Anushree, PhD, Stanford University and Delhi UniversityThe Tagalog Chronicles: A Study on the Entanglement of the Baybayin’s Historical Precedence and its Revival
Tyrone Kit B. Agres, University of the Philippines Diliman
Diane Marie U. Concepcion, University of the Philippines Diliman
Christopher Van A. Deita, University of the Philippines Diliman01:15 pm • Panel 8: Scripts and Christian Missionaries
1:15 pm–2:30 pm
PANEL 8: Scripts and Christian MissionariesFrom Syllabary to Alphabet: A Spanish Attempt at Transformation
Damon L. Woods, University of California Los AngelesQuestioning the Strategies behind the Creation of Chữ Quốc Ngữ (Vietnamese Romanized Script)
KIM, Bảo, Đặng, Faculdade de Ciencias Sociais e Humanas, Universidaded Nova de LisboaAnalysis of an Invented Writing System for the Shanghainese Language
Logan Simpson, Wangka Maya Pilbara Aboriginal Language Centre02:45 pm • Roundtable 1: Scripts, Politics, and Heritage
02:45 pm–4:15 pm
Scripts, Politics, and HeritageDr. Birgit Tremml-Werner
Linnaeus University, Sweden
Dr. Elsa Clavé
Universität Hamburg, Germany
Mr. Louward Zubiri
University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA / Mangyan Heritage CenterDr. Michael L. Tan
Department of Anthropology, University of the Philippines DIlimanDr. Joefe B. Santarita
Asian Center, University of the Philippines DIliman
Dr. Ariel Lopez
Asian Center, University of the Philippines DIliman04:15 pm • Closing Program
04:15 pm–04:30 pm
Closing ProgramSummary
Closing Remarks
-
UPDATES
Added "Annotating the Islands: Bugis Script and Toponyms in [a] 19th Century Map of [the] Malay Archipelago" in Panel 6 (4/20/2021)
TIME ADJUSTMENTS
Panel 5 (April 28) now starts at 8:30 am (4/26/2021)
TRANSFERS/SWITCHES
"Internal and External Factors in the Fate of Scripts"
(Moved from Panel 4 to Panel 5 due to technical difficulty on 4/27/2021)"The Making of Self-Knowledge in Tanah Jawi: Newspapers, Science and Roman Scripts, 1850s–1930"
(From Panel 6 to Panel 1)[4/20/2021]Sundanese Calligraphy as Artistic Expressions of Identity
(From Panel 1 to Panel 6)[4/20/2021]WITHDRAWAL(S)
"Writing in Korea: Mixed Script Versus Hangul Exclusivity" (Panel 5)[4/20/2021]
-
KEYNOTE LECTURES
0815 am, 27 April 2021
The Many Paths from Sound to Sign in Island Southeast Asia
Campbell Macknight, Honorary Professor
The Australian National UniversityIsland Southeast Asia has a rich — but under-appreciated — heritage of writing systems. These all derive from systems originally developed outside the region, but the adaptions and innovations wrought on the models are the work of those who recording Southeast Asian languages whether as native speakers or as scholarly linguists. Some cases of derivation are relatively straightforward. Other cases, such as the development of the scripts used to write Makasar and Bugis in southwest Sulawesi, which I discuss in some detail, have long defied convincing demonstration. Moreover, in all cases, the adoption of a writing system involves much more than fixing a series of signs to represent the sounds of a language; the uses to which literacy has been put in particular historical and cultural contexts, as well as practical issues of media and preservation, deserve attention. The history of writing systems in island Southeast Asia from early in the first millennium CE onwards holds a mirror up to the wider story of the region and reveals much about the nature of external contacts throughout this long period.
———
0245 pm, 27 April 2021
Jawi: Script, Language, People Religion
Mulaika Hijjas, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of LondonIn 2019, controversy erupted in Malaysia over the introduction of material featuring Jawi--Malay written in an adapted form of Arabic script--to the school curriculum. Protestors objected to what they saw as the Islamisation of the syllabus. While in this instance these claims appear unfounded, it is true that recent decades have seen an ever closer association in the Malaysian public sphere between the Jawi script and Islam. Indeed, reaction to the protest took the form of asserting the inherently Islamic identity of Jawi and of the Malay language, conflating the two under the appellation bahasa Jawi (Jawi language). Yet, as recently as the 1980s, when Jawi was still a part of mainstream education in Malaysia, it was widely accepted as merely a way of writing the national language. A cursory survey of material written in Jawi over the centuries shows that (perhaps like any script) it included the sacred, the secular, and indeed the profane. This talk will trace the development of the Jawi script from its appearance around 1500 to the most recent controversy, with particular attention to the derivation of the term. It will consider how 'Jawi' has oscillated between a term for a script, a language, a people, and for Islamic identity itself. It will also introduce community-sourced transcription projects as a way of 'revitalising' Jawi that goes beyond religious and ethnic boundaries.
-
28 April 2021: 2:45 pm–4:15pm (GMT + 8)
Scripts, Politics, and Heritage
Dr. Birgit Tremml-Werner
Linnaeus University, Sweden
Dr. Elsa Clavé
Universität Hamburg, Germany
Mr. Louward Zubiri
University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA / Mangyan Heritage Center
Dr. Michael L. Tan
Department of Anthropology, University of the Philippines DilimanDr. Joefe B. Santarita
Asian Center, University of the Philippines DIliman
Dr. Ariel Lopez
Asian Center, University of the Philippines DIliman -
REMINDERS for PRESENTERS
Please take time to go through these reminders to help ensure a smooth webinar experience for everyone. These may all be subject to change, so please check back regularly, by 26 April, and even during the conference, for updates here and/or via email.
Join Link and Sign-In
- Presenters DO NOT NEED to fill out the registration link above. That is only for the audience (non-presenters).
- Sometime before the conference, panelists will receive an email containing the link to join the webinar/conference as a panelist.** Please check your email's Spam folder. It is advised that you star this email or add it to your email's favorites to help you locate it easily. The subject line is "Panelist for Scripts in Asia....."
- If you have not received your "Join Link" by 23 April 2021, please inform the Conference Secretariat.
- Your join link is tied to your Zoom account, so it is unique/exclusive to you. Please don't share it with anyone else.
- Presenters must click the said link and just sign in to their Zoom account. To help ensure a smoother log-in experience, sign in to your Zoom account first before clicking on the link.
- The same "Join Link" will be used for both days of the conference There is no need to re-register.
**The conference secretariat will notify presenters if and when they should expect the Join link, and receive additional instructions. As with the audience, signing in to a Zoom account is required for panelists.
Q&A
Please consult the Q&A tab to read how the Q&A will proceed.
Call Time
Presenters must log in at least 30 minutes before their panel, though they may of course attend the other sessions. This early start can help you get settled and address any technical issue.
Renaming Your Zoom Profile
Sometime before the conference, please log in to the Zoom website, go to Profile, and click "Edit" to rename yourself thus: P1 Amy Peralta. P1 means Panel 1, and so on. This will help the conference team to identify you more easily and anytime during the webinar.
Introduction of Panelists
The moderators/emcees will introduce each panelist before playing the recording of his/her presentation.
During the Presentations
The conference staff will play your pre-recorded presentation, but we do ask that you have it (both the file of presentation and the video) on hand and be ready to screen-share, just in case the conference staff encounters a technical difficulty. We hope it doesn't come to this, but you'll never know.
In-Webinar Communications Outside Zoom
We will use the Zoom chat feature as much as possible to send messages to all presenters, so kindly monitor the chat window as often as you can. However, the Chat window can sometimes get too crowded, and it may be difficult to backread.
Thus, please always be on the lookout for email announcements (to be sent to your Zoom email address). Also, you may also wish contact us via Facebook Messenger (https://www.facebook.com/upasiancenter) or via Google Hangout (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or just email the conference secretariat.
Full Paper Guidelines
Full papers are to be emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. on or before 19 April 2021. A select number of papers will be edited/vetted for publication.
6,000–8,000 words, including references
Citation style: Chicago-Turabian (use footnotes)
Abstract and five keywords
Author affiliation and email address
If written in Filipino, supply an abstract in EnglishRecording of the Webinar
The entire conference will be recorded.
-
REMINDERS for the AUDIENCE
Please take time to go through these reminders to help ensure a smooth webinar experience for everyone. These may all be subject to change, so please check back regularly, by 26 April, and even during the conference, for updates here and/or via email.
For Non-Presenters (Audience)
- Please click on the registration button above. Registration is free.
- Upon registration, you will receive an email containing a link to join the conference. Please check your Spam folder if you don't see it in your main inbox. The sender should be "no-reply[at]zoom.us" and subject line of the confrimation email is "My Scripts in Asia...Confirmation."
- Please do not share that link with anybody else; it is unique/exclusive to you.
- Signing in to at least a basic/free Zoom account is required to attend the conference. To help ensure a smoother log-in experience, sign in to your Zoom account first before clicking on the "Join link."
- The webinar can accommodate only 500 at any given time, so joining/participation is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Please keep comments and questions fair and professional from sending rude/derogatory comments or questions to the panelists/organizers. The organizers reserve the right to remove from the webinar participants who send rude/demeaning messages.
- The same "Join Link" sent to you can be used for all sessions even on a different days. There is no need to register again.
- Livestream may be initiated ONLY IF the participants exceed 500, so please register still.
Q&A System
See Q&A tab.
Recording Notice
The entire conference will be recorded.
-
Q&A Format
-
The audience can post—anonymously if they wish—their questions on the Q&A window of the Zoom webinar. They must indicate the speaker to whom they are addressing the question: "Dr. Jones, why do....." This will help everyone keep track.
-
During the Q&A, the moderator will choose, read aloud, and answer on air any open question (s). However, the panelists/presenters are also free to type in their answers to other questions anytime during the Q&A.
-
Just before the first presentation of a panel ends, all remaining open questions will be dismissed. However, panelists-presenters have the option to reopen and respond to these questions during break time or until just before the first presentation of the next panel ends (see Item # 2). This, we hope, can help ensure that only questions for the current panel's Q&A are visible and thus easier to see/read through.
- Please minimize (extensive) discussions with the audience/panelists via the Zoom Chat window.
- Kindly check back before, and even during the conference to see updates. Major updates will be announced during the conference.
-
-
ABOUT THE CONFERENCE
The European arrival in Asia in the 16th century was a turning point not only in the political trajectories but also in the writing traditions of Asian states and societies. In maritime Southeast Asia for instance, indigenous literacy in Indic-derived scripts was long widespread in societies such as the Batak (si-sia-sia script), Tagalog (baybayin) and Bugis (lontara). However, increasing European influence occuring alongside Islamization engendered the transition to Latin or Jawi (Arabic-derived) scripts. This conference intends to explore the impact of European presence in the various writing traditions of Asia. In what ways were certain languages and especially scripts privileged by colonial states? How is the transition from one writing script to the other reflected in the sources? How do postcolonial societies across Asia view or instrumentalize their varied epigraphical, textual, and codicological traditions?
SUBTHEMES
Asian religious textual and manuscript cultures Repositories: archives, museums, and libraries Scripts as artistic expressions Living cultural bearers Literary scripts and cultures Christian missionary education Sinic, Indic and Arabic writing cultures: origins and expansions Islamic (madrasah) literacy education Comparative colonial acculturation and assimilation Script and language extinction Cultural nationalism and imperialism Language and script renewal movements Western education in Asia Colonial and postcolonial language/script policy
CONFERENCE CHAIRS- Joefe B. Santarita, PhD, Dean and Professor, Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman
- Ariel C. Lopez, PhD, Assistant Professor, Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman
CONFERENCE STAFF- Julie de La Paz (Secretariat)
- Katrina Yap (Secretariat)
- Janus Nolasco (Website and Publicity)
- Danae Pantano (Graphic Design)
- Miccah Frayna (Graphic Design)
-
CONTACT: HOW CAN WE HELP YOU?
Please direct all inquiries to the Conference Secretariat via email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
GET UPDATES
Please join our mailing list and/or follow us on Facebook to receive updates.
![Annotating the Islands: Bugis Script and Toponyms in [a] 19th Century Map of [the] Malay Archipelago](/acmedia/images/conferences/scriptsasia/abstracts/P6C.jpg){kind=link}
