This book is a history reader and cultural primer for students and aspiring scholars of past and contemporary interactions among civilizations over the Eurasian landmass. Tracing a human journey that spans several million years, this general survey of civilizations comprises seven sections: Studies on Civilization, Silk Road, Survey of Greater Central Asia, Portrait of India, Persian Cultural Sphere, Caucasus, and Turkish March. The first section introduces methodologies and perspectives for civilization studies. The second focuses on the concept and connotations of the ancient Silk Road as well as China's 21st-century strategic Belt & Road Initiative. In the remaining five sections, the trilingual, peripatetic author, based on his experiences and reflections, provides introductions to and comments on the history, literature, art, social tensions, and future development of five key areas along the Silk Road, i.e., Central Asia, India, Iran, Caucasus, and Turkey.
Professor H. K. Chang is a Foreign Member of the Royal Academy of Engineering (UK) and a Chevalier of France's L'ordre national de la Légion d'honneur. A renowned scholar in biomedical engineering, he served as Dean of Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh and President of City University of Hong Kong. During more than a half century of travel, he has set foot in some 105 countries, and been a visiting professor at the University of Paris, Cairo University, Istanbul's Bosporus University, and University of Delhi. He is the author of a dozen books on civilizations, Silk Road history, and education. His academic interest is now engaged in cultural exchanges across Eurasia.
