No. 29 Rhum, Michael R. 1994 The Ancestral Lords: Gender, Descent, and Spirits in a Northern Thai Village. 202 pp. 1-877979-79-1 $18.95.

Addresses the question of how bilateral kinship co-exists with cults of matrilineal ancestral spirits throughout Northern Thailand. Includes ethnographic descriptions of the Northern Thai (Yuan) kinship system, a Northern Thai village, the institutions and rituals pertaining to the guardian spirits, and the structural relationship of the matrilineal cult complex to indigenous concepts of space and to local Buddhist institutions. Issues of gender and kinship are also addressed throughout the volume.

No. 28 Sutton, R. Anderson 1993 Variation in Central Javanese Gamelan Music: Dynamics of a Steady State. 295 pp. 1-877979-78-3 $26.95.

Moving beyond a simple and occidental sense of "a variation on a theme," Variation in Central Javanese Gamelan Music: Dynamics of a Steady State is a comprehensive, analytical study of Javanese gamelan music by the noted ethnomusicologist R. Anderson Sutton. Sutton defines gamelan as "a generic term for instrumental ensembles consisting predominantly of percussion instruments (knobbed gongs, metal-keyed instruments, and drums)." It is also a music that is thoroughly and indigenously Javanese and, as Sutton eloquently demonstrates, the music that best captures, if not actually mirrors, the Javanese psyche and the Javanese notion of variation within a steady state.

No. 27 Ratliff, Martha 1992 Meaningful Tone: A Study of Tonal Morphology in Compounds, Form Classes, and Expressive Phrases in White Hmông. 275 pp. 1-877979-77-5 $19.95.

The significance of this book is twofold. First, it makes a contribution to our understanding of a language that has become important to many Westerners since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975 and the subsequent arrival of tens of thousands of Hmông refugees to the United States. Prior to this time, only two dictionaries and one grammar by missionary linguists existed for White Hmông. Since the arrival of the Hmông refugees, linguists have started to take the task of describing the language seriously. The publication of this major study of Hmông language will bring multiple benefits: to students of Hmông, students of the Southeast Asian linguistic area and language history, and to students of the nature of human language. Second, it corrects the mistaken notion that Asian tone languages do not use tone for grammatical purposes as do African tone languages.

No. 26 Kingshill, Konrad 1991 Ku Daeng—Thirty Years Later: A Village Study in Northern Thailand, 1954-1984. 314 pp. 1-877979-76-7 $19.95.

The fourth edition of a study begun in 1953-54 and updated with new field data every ten years, Kingshill's volume contains valuable material on Northern Thai village life, rituals, and beliefs. Ku Daeng--Thirty Years Later is the first of the four editions to be published outside Thailand and is the most comprehensive of the three updates.

No. 25 Bickner, Robert J. 1991 An Introduction to the Thai Poem Lilit Phra Law (The Story of King Law). 254 pp. 1-877979-75-9 $16.95.

The ancient Thai poem entitled Lilit Phra Law holds a position of great importance in the literary heritage of Thailand. Countless Thai students have read it, and many can cite parts of it from memory. Despite the enduring popularity of the story, those who composed the poem are frequently criticized for seeming flaws in their poetic forms. There is a curious dichotomy of opinion among modern scholars who have studied the classics: the ancient poets are appreciated for their skill and storytelling, but they are also criticized for the imagined limits of that skill. This study addresses the curious dichotomy in modern treatments of this ancient work by examining the text Lilit Phra Law and the verse forms used to create it, as well as the criticism made of it by contemporary scholars, especially from the point of view of linguistic analysis.

No. 24 Wessing, Robert 1986 The Soul of Ambiguity: The Tiger in Southeast Asia. 148 pp. 1-877979-74-0 $14.95.

Drawing on library research and on fieldwork in Sumatra and Java, The Soul of Ambiguity examines beliefs and symbolism of the tiger throughout Southeast Asia. Special concentration on Indonesia and Malaya

No. 23 Scanlon, Jr., Phil 1985 Southeast Asia: A Cultural Study Through Celebration. 185 pp. 1-877979-73-2 $16.95.

This book is a guide to the festive life and major public holidays of the nations of Southeast Asia. It is an introduction to popular celebrations as they are encountered by the average visitor to the region, and as they are practiced and enjoyed by Southeast Asians themselves. Discussion includes the origins of each observance and the traditions and practices associated with it. Countries covered include Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Burma, and the Philippines

No. 21 Bofman, Theodora Helene 1984 The Poetics of the Ramakian. 258 pp. 1-877979-71-6 $16.95.

An introduction to the classic Thai epic poem, the Ramakian, including detailed analysis of the poem's structure. Also includes a highly readable translation of the section in which Hanuman goes to Lanka.

No. 19 Morais, Robert J. 1981 Social Relations in a Philippine Town. 151 pp. 1-877979-69-4 $12.95.

Describes the cognitive, affective, and behavioral content of real and ritual kinship ties, friendship, patron-client bonds, dyadic ties based on debts of gratitude, and market exchange relationships in a small provincial town in Luzon. Stresses the interweaving and mutual definition, and redefinition, of these relationships.

No. 16 Smith, George Vinal 1977 The Dutch in Seventeenth Century Thailand. 133 pp. 1-877979-66-X $14.95.

A history of a western trading company in Thailand from a political, social, and economic perspective.