“稻子”一词从华东向四周传播的痕迹

Trace of the Word Rice Spreading Around from the Eastern China

中国长江中下游是比较重要的栽培稻发源地。早期在这里从事水稻耕作的民族的语言中“水稻”一词分别向周围传播，向东传入日本和朝鲜半岛，向南传到台湾、菲律宾和印度尼西亚，向西则经过苗瑶先民分布地区，再传入藏缅语地区，进而传入阿拉伯世界再进入英语。

The Yangtze River Valley was an important area for the original paddy rice.The word ' rice' there spread over the world,easterly to Japan and Korean Peninsula,southerly to the Taiwan Island, Philippines and the Indonesia,westerly through the area of Miaoyao languages area to the area of the Tibetan-Burma languages, then in to the Arabic world and was adpoted in English at last.