Further Information

The nineteenth century witnessed an unprecedented surge in newspapers and periodicals publishing in Victorian Britain as well as in British colonies in Southeast Asia, such as Burma, Malaysia, and Singapore, plus Thailand, a country that, though never colonized by any Western powers, had been heavily influenced by British politics and culture during the same period. The trend continued well into the twentieth century, even after these former colonies gained independence in the 1950s and 1960s.

These newspapers and periodicals—which were usually founded and run by colonial officials, Western merchants, missionaries, and local entrepreneurs and educated elites—played an important part in these countries during both the colonial and postcolonial periods: facilitating the colonial administration; promoting the spread of Western knowledge, culture, and institutions; providing a “contact point” between the settlers/colonists and the native people; and raising the awareness among local population of nationalism and anti-colonialism.

This digital archive contains a total of 36 English-language newspapers and periodicals—with approximately 1 million pages (majority on film)—selected from the prestigious British Library’s abundant Asia, Pacific & Africa collections, covering a period of approximately 170 years (1806–1977). This is the first time these rare historical English newspapers and periodicals originally published in these four Southeast Asian countries are assembled for digitisation. The digitised collection provides a rare and invaluable collection for all those teaching and studying in the fields of History, Area Studies, Political Science, Economics, Journalism, Anthropology, and Sociology.

This archive consists of 36 English-language newspapers and periodicals published during 1806–1977.  Some standout examples are:

• The Government Gazette: One of the oldest English-language newspapers from this region. It was published in Penang (then George Town) by the colonial administration under multiple names.
• The Malacca Observer: A regular paper that represented the voice of the Chinese community in Malaya.
• The Malay Mail: One of the longest running newspapers and is still publishing today.
• The Sarawak Gazette: Another government gazette publishing in East Malaysia (then British Borneo).
• Straits Produce: A satirical magazine that sought to illustrate the lives of the white colonial rulers and settlers in tropical Malaya and Singapore through humorous caricatures and amusing sketches. 
• New Times of Burma: A locally published paper that championed nationalism and the independence of Burma, then controlled by British India.