East and South East Asian History studies the historical development of countries that make up East Asia (China, Taiwan, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea) and countries that make up South East Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, Brunei, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, East Timor). Although each of these countries and regions has a unique identity, they share common philosophies, customs, and practices. To bring out what these countries have in common, we will study them together while respecting their uniqueness. We begin with Asian pre-history and conclude with modern East Asia.