西藏高原史前麦类作物的发现与研究

Discovery and Study on Prehistoric Wheat and Barley Utilization on the Tibetan Plateau

麦类作物是现代西藏高原居民最主要的粮食作物。考古证据显示,麦类作物在公元前第二千纪传入西藏高原,而在麦类作物传入以前,以粟黍为主的农作物体系已经在西藏高原得以建立。文章系统梳理了有关麦类作物起源与传播路径等的主要观点,在此基础上,分析了西藏及其周边地区发现的麦类作物,尝试厘清西藏高原麦类作物的传播以及高原先民对麦类作物传入的回应。研究结果显示,麦类作物率先自西藏高原东西两端传入,其中东侧传入的麦类作物年代最早,主要是小麦。在高原西部地区,麦类作物在墓葬中多次出现,表明其特殊的仪式性内涵。而现代西藏高原以大麦为主体的农作物格局早在公元前第二千纪中期,就已经在雅鲁藏布江上游、中游地区建立。西藏高原上的先民对麦类作物的接纳和利用经历了和周边云贵高原、川西北等山地地区大致相似的路径,从与原有的粟作农业混合种植到单纯地种植麦类作物,对新作物的快速接纳和作物体系的转变反映出先民在高原地区持续地迁移和流动,以及对更加适合在高原严酷生态环境中应用的生业方式所进行的持续探索。

Today in Tibetan Plateau, hexaploid wheat(Triticum aestivum) and naked barley(Hordeum vulgare var. nudum) are the major food crops for highland residents. Archaeological evidence shows that wheat and barley were introduced into Tibetan Plateau during the second millennium BC. However, before they were introduced, a millet-based agriculture system had been established in the east edge of the Tibetan Plateau.This article systematically presents the main viewpoints on the origin and transmission path of wheat and barley, and on this basis combines the archaeobotanical evidence discovered in Tibet and its surrounding areas, in an attempt to explore the spread of wheat and barley in the Tibetan Plateau and the response of ancestors to the introduction of these crops. Our results indicate that wheat and barley were first introduced from both the east and west edge of the Tibetan Plateau, while the east side introduced at an earlier age. It is worth noting that in the west Tibetan Plateau, wheat and barley always appeared in the tombs, indicating their special ritualistic connotation. As early as the middle period of the second millennium BC, the modern barley-based agriculture had been established in the upper and middle reaches of the Brahmaputra River in Tibetan Plateau. Moreover, as an important part of southwest China, the ancestors lived in Tibetan Plateau had experienced a similar pathway on the acceptance and utilization of wheat and barley with its surrounding areas like Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, and Northwest Sichuan, which has been transformed from the original agricultural practice into the wheat and barley based agriculture. The rapid acceptance for the new crops reflects the constant migration and translocation of inhabitants in plateau area, as well their continuous exploration for the more appropriate subsistence strategies against the harsh ecological environment in the Tibetan Plateau.