A STUDY OF RICE-CULTURE IN WEST ASIA AND MEDITERRAENAN REGION

日本人一直认为，最重要的水稻种植在东亚或东南亚的季风天气。他们认为日本出产的大米是世界上最好的品种之一。我们不应该强调大米应该只来自季风区。大米是世界各地的主食，但在许多方面和风格上都是如此。我们开始在西非地区研究湿地水稻文化，那里的土地非常干燥，与季风区完全相反，沿着地中海地区和西非。第一年，我们在土耳其欧洲的梅里克河地区、安纳托利亚中部的克齐勒马克河、意大利的波河、西班牙东北部的埃布罗河和突尼斯北部研究了湿地水稻和饮食习惯。第二年，我们在土耳其、埃及、葡萄牙、西非、加纳、科特迪瓦和塞拉利昂工作。于是，我们发现了一条从土耳其到地中海东部，再到西非的一条宽阔的水稻之路。我们被告知，水稻种植始于中国，后来转移到印度。有必要对这两个关系作进一步的研究。第三年，我们沿着北部的水稻种植道路，从帕米尔向西，向中亚，沿着土耳其的黑海地区，一直到高加索地区。我们访问了哈萨克斯坦、吉尔吉斯斯坦和乌兹别克斯坦。在所谓的世界屋脊帕米尔高原上，锡尔代里亚和阿姆达里亚这两条大河发源于该地区的北部。沿着这两条大河种植水稻。特别是，沿乌兹别克斯坦以东锡尔达里亚河上游的费尔干纳盆地，用河水种植水稻。这一地区的人叫大米或麸皮沙利。在上游的费尔干纳盆地，吉尔吉斯斯坦的乌兹根人种植红米。乌兹根大米非常珍贵，售价是其他大米的两倍。乌兹根米饭波洛夫与伊朗的波罗、土耳其的皮拉夫和西班牙的海鲜饭非常相似。

Japanese people have always thought that the most important rice was grown in East Asia or South east Asia in the Monsoon weather. They believed that Japan produced one of the best kinds of rice in the world. We should not emphasize that rice should come from only the Monsoon area. Rice is consumed as staple but in many ways and styles around the world. We started studying wet-land rice culture in the area of West Africa where the land is very dry, quite opposite from Monsoon area, along toward the Mediterranean area and to west Africa.In the first year, we studied wet-land rice and eating habits in the area of the Meric River in European Turkey, on the Kizilirmak river in the middle of Anatolia, on the Po river of Italy, on the Ebro river in the northeast of Spain and in North Tunisia. In the second year, we worked in Turkey, Egypt, Portugal, West Africa, Ghana, Cote d'lvore and Sierra Leone. As result, we found a kind of wide Rice Road from Turkey towards the eastern Mediterranean to west Africa.We were told that the rice cultivation started in China and moved to India. It is necessary to further study those two connections. In the third year, we followed the northern rice cultivation road from Pamir to the west, toward middle Asia, to the Caucasus along the Black Sea area of Turkey. We visited Kazakistan, Kirgistan and Uzbekistan.In the so called roof of the world, the Pamir plateau, the two big rivers, Sirdairiya and Amdariya, start to the north of the area. Along these two big rivers rice is cultivated. Particularly, along the upper stream of the Sirdariya east of Uzbekistan in the Fergana basin, Japonica rice is cultivated using river water. People in this area call rice or bran shali. In the upper stream Fergana basin the Uzgen of Kirgistan cultivate red rice. Uzgen rice is very precious and it is sold at twice the price of other rice. The Uzgen rice polof is very similar to the polou of Iran, the pilav of Turkey and the paella of Spain.