This collection contains an introductory essay by Wang Gungwu and 22 studies originally read to an international conference organized by the Department of History, National University of Singapore. The contributions investigate diverse aspects of coastal China’s commercial, demographic and other ties with the Nanyang region and other maritime areas, such as Japan, mainly in the period circa 1750–1850. This includes themes related to the microlevel of local changes, such as Chinese migration to Taiwan and various Southeast Asian destinations, as well as broader approaches to regional, institutional and other trends, combining philological and theoretical knowledge. In most cases both Asian and colonial sources were used to illustrate the dynamics of China’s maritime orientation under the Qing, the growth of its overseas communities, and the impact of Chinese traders and sojourners on Europe’s outposts in the Malay world and around the South China Sea.