Food is the foundation of civilization. The initial stages of civilization started around 10000 years ago when groups of hunter-gatherers were finally able to form communities and grow food after the end of the Great Ice Age. Their way of life changed in China’s Yangtze River Basin when they started to grow rice.
Rice is the most ancient and the most common food crop that is grown in every region of the world. Rice is the most versatile food and can be served as an accompaniment or be the base of a meal; it can be used for soups and appetizers to a dessert course. Each country and culture have developed its own cuisine around it such as the Paellas of Spain and the Risottos of Italy, from the fiery Cajun and Creole dishes of America to the exquisite delicacies of Japan.
Origin of Rice
It is not possible to identify whether rice originated in China, India or Thailand, hence a wider region of South and East Asia has been considered as the home of rice. Many historians believe that rice was domesticated as far back as 5000 to 7000 years BC. Archaeologists excavating in India discovered rice husks buried in earthen pottery dated to 5440 BC in the Ganga River Valley. It is widely considered that the English name of Rice was derived from the Tamil word “Arisi” from South India. Rice has a lot of cultural importance in India where it is considered as the symbol of fertility. It is a long-standing custom in India to shower newly wedded couples with grains of rice and rice is always the first food offered by a new bride to her husband.
The historical perspective on the domestication of rice changed in the early 2000s when a group of Chinese archaeologists excavated the region of Shangshan in the Yangtze River basin. They found evidence of a community dating back to 9400 years ago having a diet based around rice in the form of rice husk remains under shards of pottery along with crude stone tools that look like they were used for threshing and milling rice.
Rice in China
China has been the largest consumer as well as the largest producer of rice throughout the ages. The first recorded mention of rice is in the Chronicled histories of China in 2800 BC when the Chinese Emperor Shen Nung expressed the importance of rice to the culture of his realm. To honour the grain as the provider of food for his people, he established annual rice ceremonies to be held at the time of sowing when the emperor himself would scatter the first seeds. Similar festivities were practised throughout China with the presence of local lords and dignitaries. The Chinese still celebrate rice by designating one day of the New Year festivities to the grain.
Rice Across the Silk Road
Rice travelled across the Silk Road in the hands of the travellers, explorers, soldiers, merchants and pilgrims who took the grain across Arabia to Europe. However, not all seeds could be transplanted successfully. The British Isles have never been able to cultivate rice due to unsuitable climatic conditions. Rice requires immense quantities of water in its early days followed by a long and uninterrupted season of dry weather which is the perfect situation for Southern Europe especially Italy and Spain considering the tough Mediterranean climate. As a result, Britain has always depended upon trade for its demand for rice. One such journey of a British ship carrying a store of rice in 1694 met a disastrous storm in the Atlantic and brought rice to America.
Rice travelled to America
Battered by the storm winds and blown off course, the ship drifted ashore into the harbour of Charleston, South Carolina. The friendly colonists helped the crew repair the ship and provided them with food, medicine and shelter. The ship captain, James Thurber gifted a box of rice seeds to the colonists to express his gratitude. While the rice crop flourished in the colony, during the American Revolution, the British sent the entire harvest home without leaving any seed for sowing another crop! President Thomas Jefferson broke Italian laws to smuggle rice seeds out of Italy during diplomatic missions in the 18th century. These rice seeds were planted along the basin of the Mississippi River, especially in Arkansas which is now the largest producer of Rice in the Americas.
Culture & Rice
Rice is considered a key element in most cultures around the world. Japan and China considered rice as the symbol of a meal. The Chinese word “Fan” (饭) and the Japanese word “Gohan” (ご飯) meaning rice are also used to describe a meal. The East Asian countries start the day with a breakfast of rice which could be either in the form of a dish of fish, egg or tofu served on a warm bed of rice or a sweet congee (rice porridge). One of the most popular forms of breakfasts is rice cereals which provide a nutritious start to the day when enriched with milk.
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