旧大陆棉的起源和传播

Origin and spread of old world cotton

对国外有关二倍体栽培种棉的古文献记载和考古发现进行梳理和分析.公元前1500年—公元前1000年的《梨俱吠咜》中,有最早关于棉的书面文献.探查世界棉花考古史发现,目前所知旧大陆棉花应用的最早实例是公元前第六个千年美赫尕尔棉纱线的发现.结合国外文献记载与考古发现,印度河流域是早期旧大陆棉花重要的种植区域,是栽培种亚洲棉的起源中心,同时也有草棉的种植.亚洲棉从印度次大陆传入地中海沿岸和欧洲.

Foreign literatures and archaeological findings of diploid cultivated cotton were sorted out and analyzed. The earliest lit-erature about cotton appeared in 〞Rig Veda〞 in the year of 1500—1000 BC. The cotton yarn from Neolithic Mehrgarh allowed us to consider the earliest use of cotton in the old world,dating to the 6th millennium BC. Based on foreign literatures and archaeological findings,it is found that the Indus Valley was the important early growing area of old world cotton,which was also the original center of G. arboreum. G. herboreum from the Indian subcontinent was introduced to the Mediterranean and Europe.