Geography Archives - Arkansas NCTA

Map of Southeast Asia showing countries including Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and surrounding seas.

Introduction to Southeast Asia: History, Geography, and Livelihood | Asia Society

A general overview and introduction of the history, geography, and livelihood of Southeast Asia.

Teacher Resource

Historical painting of several Chinese and Dutch ships sailing at sea, with flags and sails visible, and part of a coastline in the upper left corner.

Maritime Asia: War and Trade

This digital world history project explores the fierce rivalry between the Dutch East India Company and the Zheng maritime network as they fought for control over key trades and sea routes in Northeast and Southeast Asia. The project includes digital exhibits, a timeline, biographies of key actors, an archive with primary sources, and an annotated bibliography for further exploration. It also features a classroom simulation exercise, “Pirates, States, and Diplomacy in a Multipolar Maritime Asia” for advanced high school and college students.

Student Resource Teacher Resource

The Amboyna Conspiracy Trial

This website provides an in-depth look at the 1623 Amboyna Conspiracy Trial, which took place on the island Ambon (or Amboyna), part of the Maluku Islands of Indonesia. This was the site of a colonial struggle between Dutch and English merchants involved in the spice trade. The website includes videos of expert opinion, primary sources, and a teaching guide.

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Two oval heraldic plaques: left features sea gods, weapons, and a sailing ship; right shows two lions with a red shield and key, titled BATAVIA.

In Our Time: The Dutch East India Company | BBC

This podcast episode on the Dutch East India Company may be useful for understanding Dutch Southeast Asia. Other episodes of interest may be the East India Company (England) and Angkor Wat.

Student Resource Teacher Resource

A close-up of a hand pointing at a specific location on a detailed nautical map featuring various islands and coastal areas, reminiscent of Early European Exploration, as seen in Esri GeoInquiries.

Early European Exploration | Esri GeoInquiries

In this lesson plan, students compare and contrast Spain’s and Portugal’s early sea explorations to reach Asia using maps.

Lesson Plan

Ancient stone gate with a large carved face at the entrance of Angkor Thom in Cambodia, surrounded by trees and under a partly cloudy sky—experience this iconic site through Virtual Angkor.

Virtual Angkor

The Virtual Angkor project is a virtual reality project that seeks to recreate the Cambodian metropolis of Angkor at the height of the Khmer Empire’s power and influence around 1300 C.E. The project includes three teaching modules that combine images and video from the project with readings and questions: Power & Place, Water & Climate, and Trade & Diplomacy.

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Golden-domed mosque with minaret in foreground reflects Islam diffusion, set against modern skyscrapers under a blue sky with some clouds.

Language and Religion: The Diffusion of Islam | GeoInquiries

While Islam is a world religion, this map activity helps students grasp how Islam spread to Southeast Asia and became a major center for the religion.

Lesson Plan

Stone serpent statues line the steps of an old brick staircase, with weathered walls and green trees in the background.

Southeast Asia Digital Library | Northern Illinois University

This collection contains a wide variety of materials published and produced in Southeast Asia. There are many interviews, videos, posters, photographs, periodicals, maps, manuscripts, and other archival materials.

Primary Source Teacher Resource

A volcanic landscape at sunrise with one volcano emitting a plume of smoke in the distance and another with smaller smoke in the foreground.

Teaching and Learning about Southeast Asia | Education About Asia

This short article from the journal Education About Asia highlights themes and questions teachers may want to focus on in teaching about Southeast Asia.

Teacher Resource

Map of Southeast Asia for Educators showing countries in different colors, labeled with their names and capitals, plus surrounding nations and bodies of water—ideal for exploring Central Themes in the region.

Southeast Asia Central Themes | Asia for Educators

An initiative of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute at Columbia, Asia for Educators aggregates materials to serve K-12 teachers across disciplines. This specific page outlines major themes about the region of Southeast Asia.

Lesson Plan

Belt and Road Tracker | Council on Foreign Relations

This tracker shows how China’s 2013 Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)—a plan to promote infrastructure development across Africa, Asia, and Europe with Chinese financing—changed countries’ bilateral economic relationships with the nation over time.

Teacher Resource

Three large ancient Buddha statues are carved into a rock cliff, with greenery in the foreground and a small structure to the right—echoing the cultural legacy of the Silk Road.

Yale Silk Road Database | Yale University Library

This collection includes 11,000+ images of major sites along the Silk Road taken between 2006-2010. These photographs take the viewer on a trip through multiple Chinese provinces and the regions of Inner Mongolia and Tibet to map out the modern-day Silk Road that was shaped by the interconnected web of trade routes linking medieval Asia.

Teacher Resource