ABSTRACT
From the 17th century right up to the present time, most observers of the Southeast Asian scene—European, indigenous and Chinese alike—have tended to believe that Chinese do not assimilate overseas. By way of challenging the bit of social mythology, it should be noted that many parts of Southeast Asia have been continuously settled by Chinese for several centuries. In both Thailand and Java, there has been a continuity of settlement since at least the 15th century. In Thailand, almost all grandchildren and certainly all great-grandchildren of Chinese immigrants were completely assimilated to Thai society. In Java, by contrast, descendants of Chinese immigrants as a rule retained their Chinese name and continued to identify generation after generation as Chinese. The chapter considers all the factors which seem to major importance in accounting for the differential persistence of Chinese culture in Thailand and Java. There is, however, a marked difference between Thailand and Java in the nature and scope of anti-Sinicism.
