Until recently, Gaza attracted little attention in historical scholarship. This volume innovates by examining late Ottoman Gaza’s diverse society, its built environment, and its political dynamics. The introduction sets the stage to better understand the vital contexts impacting the role and status of Gaza as compared to other cities in the Eastern Mediterranean, provides analyses and new resources for the study of late Ottoman Gaza, and presents state-of-the-art methodology in urban history as applied to Gaza.

The introduction outlines the scope of the book, its purpose and research questions. The three regions of investigation – the Sulu Sea, the Strait of Malacca and Indochina − are introduced, and the basis for the comparative research design is explained. A critical discussion of the historiography of piracy in Southeast Asia to date serves to situate the study in the international research frontlines in the field. The dichotomy between the absolutist and relativist perspectives on piracy in Southeast Asia is clarified. The biases and problems of the latter perspective, which currently dominates in the field of research, is discussed at some length. It is concluded that a cross-cultural concept of piracy is both possible and fruitful as a point of departure for research. The historiographic and methodological point of departure for the study, particularly New Imperial History, Connected Histories of Empire and the framework of Concurrences, are introduced along with the main historical sources and disposition of the book.