The center was established in 1955 as the Center for East Asian Research, and on the retirement of its founding director,
John K. Fairbank, was renamed the John K. Fairbank Center for East Asian Research. From its beginnings in 1955, its focus was on modern and contemporary China, diverging from classic
sinology, which emphasized the study of texts from a humanistic perspective.
Directors List of directors of the Fairbank Center: •
Ezra Vogel, 1973–75 •
Dwight H. Perkins, 1975–76 (acting) •
Roy Hofheinz Jr., 1975–79 •
Philip A. Kuhn, 1980–86 •
Benjamin Schwartz, 1983–84 (acting) •
Roderick MacFarquhar, 1986–92 •
James L. Watson, 1992–95 •
Ezra Vogel, 1995–99 •
Elizabeth J. Perry, 1999–2002 •
Wilt L. Idema, 2002–2005 • Roderick MacFarquhar, 2005–2006 •
William C. Kirby, 2006–2007 •
Martin King Whyte, 2007–2008 • William C. Kirby, 2008–2010 •
Mark Elliott, 2010–2011 • William C. Kirby, 2011–2013 • Mark Elliott, 2013–2015 •
Michael Szonyi, 2016–present ==Notes==