This volume consists of three major sections on fertility, disease and mortality, and marriage and family, which together with five introductory chapters combine depth of analysis with breadth of source material.

The first comprehensive survey of Chinese environmental history, this book crystallizes a new field of scholarship that studies the creation of distinct environments as a result of the interaction of human social systems with the natural world. Pioneering essays explore new methodologies of historical environmental research, comparisons of China with the West and Japan, and the impact of the early modern ecological transformation on the spread of disease. An indispensable book for those trying to understand the foundations of modern China or the origins of many of contemporary China's most...

Environmental history has evolved into a well-established historical subfield which has broadened the horizons of historical research, beyond human affairs, to include the study of human interactions with natural and man-made environments. This broadened scope has attracted scholars from many different fields; a development which is reflected by this volume as it highlights the recent studies on East Asian environmental history by scholars of History, Economic History, Political ecology, Sociology and Environmental Studies.

This book examines the local realities and environmental...

Environment, Modernization and Development in East Asia critically examines modernization's long-term environmental history. Using local-level studies and the idea of co-production, it suggests new frameworks for understanding as inter-related processes environmental, social, and economic change across China and Japan. The volume opens up new points of comparison and exchange within East Asia and among East Asia, Europe, and North America. Environment, Modernization and Development in East Asia adds significant new perspectives to Chinese, Japanese, and global environmental history, as well...