History

The Association for Asian Studies was founded in 1941, originally as publisher of the Far Eastern Quarterly (now the Journal of Asian Studies). It has gone through a series of reorganizations to serve better the broadening disciplinary and geographical interests of its membership.

In 1970 four elective Area Councils—China and Inner Asia (CIAC), Northeast Asia (NEAC), South Asia (SAC), and Southeast Asia (SEAC)—were established to guarantee each area constituency its own representation and a proportionate voice on the Board of Directors. In 2022, the Board of Directors voted to rename CIAC the East & Inner Asia Council (EIAC).

In 1977 a Council of Conferences (COC) was established as a liaison with several regional conferences which serve the needs of Asian studies scholars in different parts of the U.S. and abroad.

The AAS is a member of the American Council of Learned Societies, actively participating with its sister societies in a wide range of activities, including joint participation in research and informational exchanges.

The AAS Secretariat is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which we acknowledge occupies the ancestral, traditional, and contemporary lands of the Anishinaabeg (including Odawa, Ojibwe, and Boodewadomi) and Wyandot peoples.