New Evidence Confirms China as the Birthplace of Rice Cultivation

In a recent study published in the journal "Science", Chinese scientists utilized phytolith analysis and other techniques to trace the 100,000-year evolution of rice from its wild form to domesticated varieties. The research confirms China as the birthplace of rice and provides clues to the origin of agricultural civilization.

Over the past century, research on the origin of rice has been a topic of debate. It wasn't until the 1970s, with the discovery of archaeological evidence related to rice in areas such as Hemudu and Shangshan along the Yangtze River in Zhejiang, that the international scientific community recognized this region as an important birthplace of rice. However, identifying long-term distinguishing markers between wild and domesticated rice in the Yangtze River Basin since the last ice age, revealing the process and mechanisms of human harvesting and domesticating wild rice, remains a key challenge in research.

The study indicates that approximately 100,000 years ago, wild rice was widely distributed in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, laying the foundation for subsequent rice utilization and domestication. Around 24,000 years ago, as the climate entered the last ice age, humans began collecting and using wild rice, indicating human efforts to seek new food sources in response to cooling climates. Approximately 13,000 years ago, humans began pre-domestication of wild rice. Around 11,000 years ago, the phytolith ratio of domesticated rice increased rapidly, reaching the domestication threshold, marking the origin of East Asian rice agriculture.

This study suggests that the origins of East Asian rice agriculture and Southwest Asian wheat agriculture occurred almost simultaneously, representing a significant milestone in human development history and greatly deepening our understanding of the origins of global agriculture.