ABSTRACT
This paper illustrates the collaborative efforts of scholars from three East Asian countries (the PRC, Japan and South Korea) to compile a history that transcends national borders, and to critically examine why and how some issues remain contentious in East Asian history in light of these collaborative processes. It identifies three levels in understanding the transnational dialogues on East Asian history: political (amongst governments), emotional (ordinary people’s collective memories as victims of war) and scholarly (amongst academics). The three levels of dialogue mutually influence one another and guide national understandings of East Asian history, and the scholarly level of dialogue is the most effective starting point in pursuing a transnational understanding of regional history. Understanding the process of East Asia’s transnational collaborative attempt to write a regional history sheds light on the potential for similar efforts to be undertaken for other regional histories that remain contentious.
