Popular culture and regionalization in East and Southeast Asia

Throughout most of the twentieth century, Asia was a relatively divided continent.¹ In terms of regional formation, the term "Asia" itself was not much more than a matter of nomenclature, which merely indicated the continent's geographic location. Previous attempts to promote solidarity among Asians did take place,² but those seemed to have been futile or stagnant at best. However, in the last two decades, areas within Asia are increasingly being "pushed" towards each other. A new international maneuvering away from the American and Soviet Union dominated Cold War era politics, together with the ever-evolving political and economic integrating forces, provided the right incentives for this region's governments and markets to come closer together. In addition, ideas and ambitious possibilities regarding the emergence of some sort of "Asian region" and sub-regions in Asia have been repeatedly mentioned and discussed.³ During the period following the financial crisis of 1998, the necessity of cooperating in order to maintain political-economic stability was further realized. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, "Asia" and subregions within Asia have become more closely integrated within the last half-century than ever before. This continues despite an obvious lack of formal regional institutionalization and an emphasis on the informal, negotiated, and inclusive approach in regional policy.⁴ Regions in Asia might even now possess a few common, regionally shared characteristics.