The objectives of the Association for Asian Studies are to:

• Form a scholarly, nonpolitical, and nonprofit professional association of all persons interested in Asian studies.
• Promote interest in and scholarly study of Asia.
• Provide means for the publication of scholarly research and other materials designed to promote Asian studies.
• Improve Americans' knowledge of Asia by encouraging better teaching at all levels of the educational system.
• Facilitate contact and exchange of information between scholars and scholarly organizations interested in Asian studies in the U.S. and abroad.

History And Development: Half the world, its oldest living civilizations, and its largest countries lie in Asia. American involvement with and study of Asia, including its politics, economics, and culture, increased dramatically in the 1940s and has continued to develop rapidly. The Association for Asian Studies, founded as The Far Eastern Association, was at the forefront of this movement.

With the financial support of several educational institutions and individuals, The Far Eastern Association, a non-membership society, was established in 1941 to publish The Far Eastern Quarterly. This quarterly filled the gap that then existed between journals that dealt with contemporary opinions and events and the specialized professional and academic publications. As American scholarship on Asia grew, so, too, did the need for an area-oriented, national organization that would encompass the needs of Asia specialists from all fields. Before 1948 no society adequately served the broad interests of those concerned with Asia. Therefore, in January 1948 about 200 East Asia specialists met in Washington, DC, and decided to organize a membership society that would unite all persons interested in Asia and provide a forum for the promotion and exchange of information about Asia. This new Far Eastern Association continued to publish The Far Eastern Quarterly, but now had 600 members and quickly became the largest society of its kind in the world.

By 1955 the Association became large enough to warrant establishing a permanent Secretariat. In the following years the Association expanded its area of interest to include South and Southeast Asia. It changed its name to The Association for Asian Studies and the title of its quarterly to The Journal of Asian Studies. In the past twenty-five years the Association has gone through a series of reorganizations to serve better the broadening disciplinary, professional, and geographical interests of its membership, now numbering over 8,000. In addition to the Journal, the Association publishes the Asian Studies Newsletter, Education About Asia, the online Bibliography of Asian Studies, a scholarly monograph series, and booklets intended for pedagogical use in the classroom. In addition to its publications program, the Association conducts an annual conference having well over 350 formal panel sessions and around 3,000 attendees.

Field Development: Activities include raising funds for and administering small fellowships and grants-in-aid for Asia scholars, providing a venue for over 100 specialized committees and other groups in specialized fields of Asian studies (including libraries and language teaching), conducting surveys and other studies of needs in the field, and representing the interests of Asian studies in various academic and public fora. The AAS is a constituent member of the American Council of Learned Societies.

New Directions: The AAS has pursued several new priorities in recent years: reaching out to the broader community of Asianists at the K-12 and community college levels through Education About Asia; expanding our international reach through joint memberships and other cooperation with associations overseas; and electronic dissemination of bibliographic and other information in Asian studies.

Corporate Facts: The Association was incorporated in the State of New York on July 3, 1941, under the name of The Far Eastern Association, Inc., as a not-for-profit corporation. On February 6, 1957, a Certificate of Amendment was filed, changing the Association's name to The Association for Asian Studies, Inc.

The Secretariat is located at 825 Victors Way, Suite 310, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48108, U.S.A. Telephone: (734) 665 2490. www.asian-studies.org

Tax Status: The Association is a tax-exempt organization under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and is not a private foundation as defined in section 509(a) of the IRS Code. Contributions to the Association are deductible as charitable contributions to the extent permitted by law.

Administration: Ultimate authority in the Association is exercised by the membership who elect Officers, Directors, and Council and Conference members by ballot. The affairs of the Association are administered by the Board of Directors, whose members consist of four elected officers serving four-year terms, five directors serving one-year terms representing the councils, and the board-appointed chair of the Program Committee, editor of the Journal of Asian Studies, and the Executive Director.

Organization: Four elective area councils were established in 1970 to stimulate new research in their respective areas and guarantee representation of their constituencies on the Board of Directors. The councils represent the four areas of China and Inner Asia, Northeast Asia (Japan and Korea), South Asia, and Southeast Asia.

Regional conferences stimulate activity, hold annual regional meetings, and serve the needs of Asian studies scholars in different parts of the United States and the world. In 1977 a Council of Conferences (COC) was established in recognition of the long-standing functions of the several regional conferences. There are currently nine regional conferences represented on the COC.

Membership: Membership in the Association is open to all persons interested in Asia and the study of Asia. The Association is a constituent member of the American Council of Learned Societies, and is the largest society concerned with Asian studies in the world. It counts among its 8,000 members, scholars, diplomats and other government officials, business people, journalists, and interested lay persons. About ten percent of its members reside abroad, mainly in Europe and Asia. Over 1,000 members are students whose memberships are substantially subsidized and who usually go on to positions in business, research, and teaching.

External links

• The Association for Asian Studies homepage