Cradle of Agriculture

Yan Haijun

Yan Haijun is a media person， and a well-known non-fiction writer. He has won awards such as the “11th Wenjin Book Award” in the social science category， and the “Most Beautiful Book” in 2022.

Along the Wei River lies a small village called Yabian， a region that is the birthplace of Chinese agricultural civilization. The author intertwines the twenty-four solar terms with agricultural activities， using field notes to vividly capture the sounds of falling grains. This book unfolds the changes in agricultural production over the past century， the farming life of traditional rural families， and the social fabric of a village community. It presents a rich tapestry of rural life， woven together with the passage of time.

Farming in Yabian: A Village Through the Twenty-Four Solar Terms

Yan Haijun

Peking University Press

June 2024

88.00 (CNY)

Every place here is etched with ravines， yet flowing water is scarce. Rivers that once carried water through the valleys are now gradually drying up. The Wei River lies not far away; all these gullies are connected to it， but their ability to nourish the river is diminishing， and the Wei River itself is edging closer to desiccation. Without water， greenery is sparse. Most of the mountains display bare shades of reddish-yellow， with some appearing scorched red or dark indigo. Living in this arid expanse， people find little comfort. Relying on the sky for food and the earth for survival， every day of agricultural life feels like a battle — each year cycles anew， sometimes yielding success， other times ending in complete crop failure.

This describes most regions west of the Longshan Mountains， historically referred to since the Qin and Han dynasties as Longxi or Longyou. In modern times， the former glory of Longxi has gradually faded into the mists of history， marked by warfare and strife. Due to its near-barren desolation， this area is now prominently known as Dingxi and Xihaigu.

Yabian (meaning cliffside) Village lies within this sea of drought.

Crossing the Longshan Mountains， the northern Shaanxi Plateau reveals similar landscapes; beyond the Yellow River， Shanxi’s terrain remains fragmented and rugged; over the Taihang Mountains， while the regions of Shanxi， Hebei， Shandong， and Henan no longer feature intersecting gullies， they still suffer from scant rainfall and limited water resources， presenting a canvas of arid yellows. This vast expanse of loess encompasses both the Loess Plateau and the Loess Plains. It is here， in the Yellow River basin， that Chinese agriculture originated and where Chinese civilization was nurtured.

There are three major cradles of agriculture on Earth: the Fertile Crescent， where wheat and barley were domesticated; China’s Yellow River basin， where millet and broomcorn millet were domesticated， alongside rice in the Yangtze River basin; and the border regions between North and South America， where corn， sweet potatoes， and potatoes were domesticated. All three regions are near the 30th parallel north and are not necessarily the most hospitable environments on the planet. Evidently， it was the pressure of harsh conditions that spurred the origin of agriculture and ignited the flame of civilization.

Yabian is situated between two significant Neolithic archaeological sites in China: Dadiwan and Majiayao. It is 98.4 kilometers east of the Dadiwan site in Qin’an and 96.8 kilometers west of the Majiayao site in Lintao. Yabian sits at latitude 35.12°N; Dadiwan at 35.01°N; and Majiayao at 35.31°N — hardly any difference in latitude among the three locations.

The Dadiwan site dates back 4，800 to 8，000 years. Carbonized remains of Panicum miliaceum (broomcorn millet) and Brassica (rapeseed) have been found there， providing ample evidence that broomcorn millet is an indigenous Chinese species and was first domesticated in China.

The Majiayao site dates back 4，400 to 5，200 years. Recent excavations have uncovered numerous animal and plant remains， leading scholars to believe that “during the introduction of crops like barley and wheat， livestock such as cattle and sheep， and metallurgical technology from the West into China， the Majiayao culture and its successor， the Qijia culture， played a special role.”

Within a 50-kilometer radius centered around the village， numerous prehistoric sites belonging to Tongwei and Longxi counties have been discovered. The intricate patterns on a wealth of painted pottery artifacts reflect a culture and lifestyle centered on agriculture.

The vast Loess Plateau stretching from Majiayao to Dadiwan belongs to the Wei River basin. This expansive and arid plateau is what we know today as Dingxi and Xihaigu.

Throughout the ten millennia since agriculture’s inception， the loess regions have consistently been the cradle of civilization. Although the ancient cities and kingdoms have left few traces， following the corridor of grottoes from Luoyang to Wushaoling Mountain reveals the profound historical splendor that once flourished on this yellow land. In modern and contemporary perspectives， China’s loess regions are considered underdeveloped areas. While the North China Plain remains China’s granary today， the Loess Plateau has indeed become one of the most backward regions. Every city， big or small， extracts surrounding water sources， struggling and groaning to sustain modernization. Approaching the history of the Loess Plateau from the present， one might imagine that during medieval or ancient times， the plateau was lush with water and grass， abundant with fertile fields. In reality， this is not the case.

As early as the 1960s， Mr. He Bingdi， through cross-verification of archaeological materials and ancient documents， concluded that the loess regions have always been arid. Based on the formation of loess， the inherent characteristic of these regions is dryness.

He Bingdi deduced that China’s earliest agriculture had no direct relation to the flooding Yellow River nor to irrigation. Considering the geography and terrain of ancient cultural sites， the core area of the Yangshao culture includes the Jing and Wei river basins in Shaanxi， the Fen River basin in southwestern Shanxi， and western Henan. Westward， it extends into eastern Gansu， overlapping with many slightly later Yangshao and other ancient cultural sites in Gansu; eastward， it spreads into the loess plains， overlapping with many later Longshan culture sites.

Overall， Neolithic sites across North China provinces， except for some along the upper and middle reaches of the Yellow River in Gansu and Shanxi， are mostly located along tributaries of the Yellow River or even smaller streams. These sites are often found on loess terraces and small hills， rising ten to several hundred feet above river level. This proves that China’s earliest agriculture was dry farming rather than irrigation based. Numerous prehistoric and Shang Dynasty sites have consistently lacked evidence of irrigation.

Throughout the ten thousand years since agriculture was invented， the Loess Plateau has experienced various climatic conditions， including extremely cold and relatively humid phases， but overall， aridity has been its true face. The saying “facing the yellow earth with one’s back to the sky” is a cultural summary soaked in the passage of time.

Given the nearly unchanging aridity， we can speculate that during the hunting and gathering stages， people living on the Loess Plateau were evidently in a state of poverty. With forests only in mountainous and low-lying areas， the plateau lacked abundant wildlife and wild fruits. Stepping out of the woods， one would face vast grasslands. “Adversity breeds change;” the most ingenious individuals invented the cultivation of wild millet and broomcorn millet， leading to the advent of agriculture. This land， least promising for hunting and gathering， gave birth to the most hopeful endeavor — agriculture.