Abraham Lincoln's bicentennial birth was the occasion for the only international conference on him in Asia which was held at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras in 2009 in collaboration with the Forum on Contemporary Theory, Baroda and International Lincoln Center, Louisiana State University in Shreveport, USA. These original essays by Asian and American scholars are among the first studies in print on the "Great Emancipator's" legacy in Asia (India, China, Japan, Korea, Malay sia, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, and Sri Lanka), Australia, and Latin America (Nicaragua). They suggest that his democratic leadership provides an alternative to Karl Marx's economic determinism. Lincoln's cross-cultural appeal is found among elites and masses who prefer human dignity over ideological conformity. Readers of the world may rejoice in discovering his extensive legacy outside the USA despite the fact that he never traveled abroad and served in the presidency for less than five years. Though he attended school for less than a year and never wrote a book, America's sixteenth president is the subject of more books than any other democratic leader in world history. This volume will be useful for students and teachers of history, political science, and American Studies all over the world.