ABSTRACT
Monsoons are highly variable, complex climate patterns that directly affect the lives of half of the world. They cover landmasses in Asia, Africa, North and South America. As defined in the most recently published 2014 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s report, ‘a monsoon is a tropical and subtropical seasonal reversal in both the surface winds and associated precipitation, caused by differential heating between a continental-scale land mass and the adjacent ocean’ (IPCC 2014, p. 1458). Beyond being a heavily studied climate phenomena, monsoons also reflect deep cultural notions across the globe. As Fein and Stephens (1987, p. ix) argue, monsoons are not only rain and wind patterns but also are deeply connected to every aspect of culture.
