When can the history of rice cultivation in China be traced back?

According to archaeological and research results, the earliest history of planting rice can be traced back to the early Neolithic Age more than 10,000 years ago.

The three ancient rice farming sites over ten thousand years are Yuchanyan site in Daoxian county, Hunan province, Xianrendong site in Wannian county, Jiangxi province and Diaotongyuan site. Yuchanyan site is over 12000 years ago. At this time, rice is between wild rice and cultivated rice (with indica-japonica characteristics), so it is considered to be the most primitive ancient cultivated rice type that evolved from ordinary wild rice to cultivated rice.

The latter two sites were earlier, belonging to the late Paleolithic to the early and middle Neolithic, but no carbonized rice grains were found, only plant silicide of rice was found.

In the past, our textbooks told us that the earliest discovery of rice in China was in Hemudu culture period more than 7,000 years ago, but according to Professor Yan Wenming's Origin of Rice Culture in China, "the rice remains found here are extremely rich. From the winter solstice of 1973 to the first excavation in the spring of 0974, about 400 square meters of rice, rice husk and straw were found in the fourth cultural layer. . . The grain size is close to that of cultivated rice and much larger than that of wild rice. In addition, there are many rice farming tools, so it is certain that these rice accumulation remains belong to the harvest of cultivated rice, which shows that the rice planting in Hemudu period in the middle of Neolithic Age has developed to a certain extent, so it must have been unprecedented before this, that is to say, Hemudu rice planting was spread, not developed independently.

However, China is so big, with the discovery of archaeology, we may find more new achievements, so we will wait and see!

References:

On the Origin of Rice Culture in Huang Jianhua, China

Re-discussion on the Origin of Rice Agriculture in China

The Origin of Rice Farming in China