Shows
The World Through FictionNever-Ending ExpansionThis episode delves into why colonization occurs, looking to the structure of the world economy for answers and applying this lens of analysis to the two classic westerns Red River and My Darling Clementine
Concepts:
Colonization
Core and periphery
Never-ending expansion
Capitalism
The safety valve
Race
The usable past
Sources:
For more on the early history of colonization:
Tan, Fidellithy. The History of Colonization. Podcast audio. https://open.spotify.com/show/2GgKjR09jep79DkU74xUH9?si=c979...
2024-02-2919 min
HERstory: Southeast Asia21 | The Black and White Amahs of PenangIn this episode, we’re going to talk about the Black and White Amahs — Chinese women from the southern provinces of China who emigrated to the Straits Settlements and the Malay States in the 1930s and established themselves as domestic servants par excellence. The beautiful song in this episode is Penang Hill by Malaysian singer songwriter RJ Kevin.
HERstory Southeast Asia was a finalist at the Asia Podcast Festival Awards held in Singapore on December 4. Our category was best arts, society, and culture podcast and it was ultimately won by Miss Conduct: An Indian True Crime Podcast with...
2022-12-1822 min
HERstory: Southeast Asia20 | Erb Bunnag's Photographs of Early 20th-Century SiamIn this episode, we are going to meet Erb Bunnag, a woman whose photographs give us a rare and important glimpse into the early 20th-century Siamese royal court. Chao Chom (royal consort) Erb Bunnag is a rather unique historical figure. I’m happy to report that there ARE sources of information about her, although they’re mostly academic. "Erb's insightful photos of Bangkok women suggest the ease of an aristocrat long acknowledged in Siamese society and politics. At a time when European colonizers considered annexing Siam, Thais accepted and imitated the culture and tastes of the outside world, especially comm...
2022-10-0223 min
The History of ColonisationEp 19: Verrazzano and the Cèllere CodexWe look at the first European voyage to the US Eastern coast undertaken by Giovanni da Verrazzano in 1524, which produced the first ethnological and geographical account of the region known as the Cèllere Codex. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com. This episode was co-written with Satya.
2022-03-2711 minThe History of ColonisationEp 18: The "German" Colonisation of VenezuelaWe explore a forgotten period in the history of colonisation in Latin America, when the Welser banking family briefly colonised Klein-Venedig (Little Venice) in Venezuela from 1526-1546. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com. This episode was co-written with Satya.
2021-11-3016 min
The History of ColonisationEp 17: The Aztec-Spanish War (Part 3)In this final installment to the Aztec-Spanish War series, we wrap up the events leading up to the 1521 fall of Tenochtitlan. We also examine the aftermath of the war, and rebut the conventional 'explorer' narrative. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2021-07-0714 minThe History of ColonisationEp 16: La Malinche: Interview with Laura EsquivelIn this episode, we focus on Malinche, the interpreter for Hernán Cortés. In an interview with Laura Esquivel, the author of Malinche (2006), she shares her insight into Malinche’s perspective, and her reinterpretation of the figure of Malinche as a Mexican herself. The full interview is available on Youtube and both the Spanish and English transcriptions are available on https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com/2021/06/12/ep-16-la-malinche-interview-with-laura-esquivel.
2021-06-1221 minThe History of ColonisationEp 15: The Aztec-Spanish War (Part 2)In the second part of the Aztec-Spanish War, we venture into Tenochtitlan and deconstruct a few myths around the encounter between the Spanish and the Mexica. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2021-05-1817 minThe History of ColonisationEp 14: Retelling the Aztec-Spanish War: Interview with Paul GuinanPaul Guinan, writer and artist of the graphic novel, Aztec Empire, speaks about his creative process, combing through Spanish and indigenous sources, and popular depictions of the Aztec-Spanish War. Read Aztec Empire for free on https://www.bigredhair.com/books/aztec-empire, and check out their Twitter @AztecEmpire1520. The transcript of the interview is available at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com/2021/04/03/ep-14-retelling-the-aztec-spanish-war-interview-with-paul-guinan.
2021-04-0333 minThe History of ColonisationEp 13: The Aztec-Spanish War (Part 1)We're back in the Americas! The Aztec-Spanish War was so much more than the narratives centered around Hernán Cortés versus Moctezuma II. We look at the history of Mesoamerica, historical sources and the events leading up to the war. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2021-03-1018 minThe History of ColonisationEp 12: Enrique of Malacca in Postcolonial LiteratureHarun Aminurrashid's 1957 postcolonial novel Panglima Awang portrayed the first circumnavigation from Enrique of Malacca's perspective. Dr Pitchay Gani Aziz, educator/writer and winner of the 2020 Singapore Literature Prize for creative non-fiction in Malay, speaks about Harun's life, the significance of the novel and nationalist Malay literature in postcolonial Malaya. Check out notes on the interview at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com. Also subscribe to HERstory Southeast Asia at https://linktr.ee/herstoryseapod, and follow them on Twitter @herstoryseapod.
2021-01-1326 minThe History of ColonisationEp 11: Enrique of Malacca — The First Man Around the World?Enrique of Malacca may have been the first person to round the globe - but why isn't he mentioned as often as Ferdinand Magellan or Juan Elcano? Our first guest, Professor Romain Bertrand (Sciences Po), speaks about the role Enrique played in the circumnavigation and his evolving legacy in Europe and Southeast Asia. Check out the interview transcript at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com, and my interview for New Naratif's Political Agenda at https://newnaratif.com/podcast/a-faithful-history-of-colonisation. Do also subscribe to HERstory Southeast Asia at https://linktr.ee/herstoryseapod, and follow them on Twitter @herstoryseapod.
2020-12-2035 min
New Naratif's Political AgendaA Faithful History of ColonisationFidellithy Tan is writer and host of the "History of Colonisation" podcast. Beginning with the Portuguese colonisation of Ceuta in 1415, at the start of the so-called “Age of Discovery”, she aims to provide an introduction to Western colonisation of Latin America, Africa, and Asia and how colonialism continues to impact our lives today. She discusses with PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han (Wake Up Singapore) about how she came up with the podcast, what she aims to achieve, and her thoughts on history, colonialism, and education in Singapore.
For more information, visit hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
This...
2020-12-1741 minThe History of ColonisationEp 10: The First Circumnavigation — Ferdinand MagellanThis episode examines the life and legacy of Ferdinand Magellan, who led the first circumnavigation around the world. We look at how he has been remembered not just in the West, but also in the Philippines. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-12-0618 minThe History of ColonisationEp 09: Aden and HormuzThis episode explores the failed conquest of Aden (1513) and the colonisation of Hormuz (1515). What was the significance of the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf in early Portuguese expansion? For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-10-2316 minThe History of ColonisationEp 08: Of Spice and Men in MalukuThe 1512 Portuguese colonisation of the Spice Islands (Moluccas/Maluku) was part of a much bigger desire to partake in the spice trade. But why were these islands so important? What were spices used for in Europe? For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com. [Correction: At 15:15 - The Treaty of Zaragoza was signed in 1529, not 1524.]
2020-09-3016 minThe History of ColonisationEp 07: The Capture of Malacca in 1511We’re finally in Southeast Asia - this episode traces the history of Malacca as a port under the Malacca Sultanate to the 1511 Portuguese conquest, marking the beginning of European colonisation in Southeast Asia. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-09-0918 minThe History of ColonisationEp 06: The Portuguese Goa-shore in 1510We turn to Goa in this episode, and the roles that the Battle of Diu, Afonso de Albuquerque, and Portuguese exiles played in its colonisation. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-08-0919 minThe History of ColonisationEp 05: The Portuguese Meet the Indian Ocean Trade Route (Part 2)In 1500, Pedro Álvares Cabral lands in Brazil on his way to India and claims it for Portugal. Two years later, Vasco da Gama sails to Calicut again. Their attempts to claim a slice of the lucrative trade profits in the region comes at a cost. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-07-2620 minThe History of ColonisationEp 04: The Portuguese Meet the Indian Ocean Trade Route (Part 1)We look at the first Portuguese voyage to Asia, where Vasco da Gama and his crew sailed along the Cape Route for the first time and arrive in Calicut (located in modern day India) in 1498. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-07-1223 minThe History of ColonisationEp 03: Christopher Columbus and the New WorldWith recent news of the dismantling of statues of Christopher Columbus and various colonial figures, this episode comes at a timely moment. This is the story of a sailor encountering a portion of a population on another continent in 1492, and this very meeting would mark the beginnings of the devastation of one continent’s inhabitants and of Europeans gaining power and dominion over much of the world. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-06-2829 minThe History of ColonisationEp 02: The Treaties that Divided the Early Colonial WorldWhile Portugal was busy colonising islands off the Western African coast, Spain was emerging into its own, conquering the Canary Islands over a span of about 90 years. The second part of the episode highlights the Treaty of Alcáçovas (1479) and the Treaty of Tordesillas (1494) which split the early colonial world into two. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-05-2713 minThe History of ColonisationEp 01: Ceuta and the Beginning of the "Age of Discovery"In the first episode, we look at the beginnings of Portuguese colonisation in Ceuta in 1415, at the start of the so-called "Age of Discovery". The next part of the episode then touches on a brief timeline of islands colonised by the Portuguese along the West African coast just before the end of the 15th century. For further reading, check out the sources used in this episode at https://hocpodcast.wordpress.com.
2020-05-1311 minThe History of ColonisationEp 00: An Introduction to the PodcastWhat is colonisation? In this podcast, we explore the history of Western colonisation in a chronological fashion: from the Spanish and Portuguese explorers in the Americas in the late 15th century, to the British Empire at its apex in the 18th/19th centuries, and then the Scramble for Africa in the late 19th century. Follow for new releases along the way!
2020-05-0606 min