[INDOLOGY] Rice farming in India much older than thought

[Witzel, Michael]

Dear Jarrod and All,

two points:  The cultivation of rice in the Indus Civilization is old news. I have known this for some 10 years, from my colleague here at HARP, the Harvard Excavation project at Harappa. Will ask him (Richard Meadow)

As for rice: genetic studies, also some 10 yeras ago, have shown that cultivated Indian rice is a hybrid of Chinese (“Japonica’) and local Indian wild rice (Nivara), see publications by Yoichiro Sato, Chikyu..Inst., Kyoto. 

The much hyped (also for early Iron) Lahuradeva in eastern UP., with its 6 rice grains, represents wild rice (Nivara)  — as can be seen in their pytholiths. Cultivated rice enters the picture only around 2500-2000 BCE (from memory)

I will look up the data, over Thanksgiving.

Cheers,
Michael

> On Nov 21, 2016, at 7:58 AM, Jarrod Whitaker <whitakjl at wfu.edu> wrote:
> 
> Some of you may be interested in this article on rice cultivation in the Indus Valley Civilization:
> 
> http://phys.org/news/2016-11-rice-farming-india-older-thought.html
> 
> 
> JW
> 
> Jarrod Whitaker, Ph.D.
> Associate Professor,
> Graduate Program Director,
> Department for the Study of Religions.
> 
> Faculty, Department of Women's,
> Gender and Sexuality Studies.
> 
> Wake Forest University
> P.O. Box 7212
> Winston-Salem, NC 27109
> whitakjl at wfu.edu
> p 336.758.4162
> 
> 
> 
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