Forums | HES 健康与环境科学

Agriculture represents one of the most sensitive systems to global warming, underscoring the importance of examining the resilience of agricultural practices within shifting environmental contexts as a key case of human-environment interaction. To predict future trajectories of such interactions, it is essential to investigate the historical relationship between agriculture and the environment, thereby providing a long-term perspective on adaptation and sustainability. This study focuses on the origins and spread of key domesticates in East Asia—Asian rice (Oryza sativa), millets (Panicum miliaceum and Setaria italica), and wheat (Triticum spp.)—using Bayesian and spatio-temporal modelling of radiocarbon data and palaeoecological approaches. Evidence shows rice cultivation began around 7430 BCE along the southwestern margin of Hangzhou Bay and spread to the middle Yangzi and Huai River regions by 6680–6650 BCE. Major dispersal events occurred during the 4th–3rd millennia BCE and again between the 1st millennium BCE and 1st millennium CE. The latter phase saw rice spread northward into the Korean Peninsula and the Japanese Archipelago, where it coincided with pivotal cultural shifts. Millet-based agriculture emerged around 5800 BCE and is linked to the early development of the Sino-Tibetan language family. Wheat, introduced from Southwest Asia via the Eurasian Steppe, reached eastern China by around 2600 BCE, likely as an elite commodity. These developments were closely tied to coastal environments. Following the deceleration of early Holocene sea-level rise, coastal wetlands, such as those around the Bohai coast and Hangzhou Bay, provided fertile, resource-rich settings for early agricultural communities. However, such areas were also vulnerable to sea-level fluctuations. In the lower Yangzi region, marine intrusions disrupted agricultural activity and led to site abandonment. Comparative analysis of the Taihu and Ningshao Plains reveals that the former was better protected by deltaic progradation, while the latter remained more exposed, influencing long-term cultural trajectories. The findings underscore the dual role of coastlines as productive yet fragile zones for early agriculture, offering historical insights relevant to modern societies facing sea-level rise.