Pertanika J. Soc. Sci. & Hum. 24 (1): 25 - 42 (2016) ISSN: 0128-7702 © Universiti Putra Malaysia Press SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES Journal homepage: http://www.pertanika.upm.edu.my/ Article history: Received: 30 September 2015 Accepted: 23 November 2015 ARTICLE INFO E-mail addresses: victor.king@cmu.ac.th, v.t.king@leeds.ac.uk (Victor T. King) Review Article Conceptualising Culture, Identity and Region: Recent Refections on Southeast Asia Victor T. King 1, 2 1 Adjunct Professor, Center for Ethnic Studies and Development, Faculty of Social Sciences, Chiang Mai University, Huay Kaew Road, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand 2 Emeritus Professor, School of Languages, Cultures and Societies, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, United Kingdom ABSTRACT Debates concerning the defnition of Southeast Asia as a region are intense and on- going, and the delimitation and rationale for regional analysis have become increasingly problematical in the era of globalisation. Southeast Asia is characterised, though not clearly and unequivocally defned by cultural diversity and openness. It has a long history of cultural connections with other parts of the world and it demonstrates the importance of physical migrations and cultural fows into, across and out of the region, which have generated cross- cultural encounters and social intercourse, with the Indian sub-continent, East Asia, the Middle East, Europe and the Americas. These interactions have in turn resulted in cultural hybridisation, synthesis and mixed or mestizo communities, the phenomena of pluralism and multiculturalism within national boundaries, and in the co-existence of culturally different majority and minority populations. The processes of cultural differentiation and interaction have made Southeast Asia one of the most culturally complex regions in the world and have complicated the process of regional defnition. In spite of these cultural complexities, there are those who have argued that it is ‘the ubiquity of publicly displayed cultural forms’ and the fact that Southeast Asia is ‘arguably the best place to look for culture’ which serves to defne it as a region. The centrality of culture in the defnition of this region will be explored and it is proposed that the conceptualisation of the relationship between culture and identity might be a way forward in addressing these regional complexities. Keywords: Culture, identity, region, encounters, Southeast Asia