Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-jn8rn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-26T03:34:49.825Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Rice and Social Differentiation on a Volcanic Island: An Archaeobotanical Investigation of Yerae-dong, Korea

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 April 2018

Minkoo Kim ,
Ranyeong Oh ,
Moonbae Bang ,
Jeong-Wook Rha  and
Youjin Jeong
Minkoo Kim
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Chonnam National University, Yongbong-ro 33, Gwangju, Republic of Korea E-mail: minkoo@jnu.ac.kr
Ranyeong Oh
Affiliation:
Gyeongdam Conservation Laboratory C & T Inc., Geumseong-gil 24, Naju, Republic of Korea Email: ohny1010@hanmail.net
Moonbae Bang
Affiliation:
Jeju Cultural Heritage Institute, Jeongsil 2 gil 3, Jeju-si, Republic of Korea Email: bae2618@hanmail.net
Jeong-Wook Rha
Affiliation:
Jeju Cultural Heritage Institute, Jeongsil 2 gil 3, Jeju-si, Republic of Korea Email: luozhengxu@naver.com
Youjin Jeong
Affiliation:
Naju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, Yeongsanpo-ro 263-23, Naju, Republic of Korea Email: yuzen01@naver.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This article presents evidence for prehistoric rice cultivation on the island of Jeju (Jejudo), Korea. It also discusses sociopolitical contexts in which the people of this island decided to incorporate rice into their lifeways. Although Jejudo is culturally closely related to the southern region of the Korean peninsula, the nearest landmass to the island, their environmental conditions are radically different. Jejudo is not suitable for intensive rice cultivation. Archaeobotanical research at Yerae-dong nonetheless confirmed that rice was consumed earlier than the emergence of institutionalized social hierarchy on the island. The evidence for status competition and exchange networks contemporaneous with rice remains raises the suggestion that rice was initially incorporated as an exotic and luxurious food, rather than a daily necessity. The earliest rice on Jejudo is unlikely to have been transferred to the island as a result of tributary trade between ancient states. Rather, this study demonstrated that the main agents of rice cultivation were the emergent local elites who attempted to express status and consolidate hierarchy with foreign objects.

Type
Research Article
Information
Cambridge Archaeological Journal , Volume 28 , Issue 3 , August 2018 , pp. 475 - 491
Copyright
Copyright © McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ahn, S.-M., 2010. The emergence of rice agriculture in Korea: archaeobotanical perspectives. Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences 2 (2), 89–98.Google Scholar
Ahn, S.-M., 2012. Exploitation patterns of nuts and nut-yielding trees from Neolithic to ancient periods in Korea based on plant remains. Journal of Hanam Archaeological Society 40, 5–47.Google Scholar
Blanton, R.E., Feinman, G.M., Kowalewski, S.A. & Peregrine, P.N., 1996. A dual-processual theory for the evolution of Mesoamerican civilization. Current Anthropology 37 (1), 1–14.Google Scholar
Bray, F., 1986. The Rice Economies: Technology and development in Asian societies. New York (NY): Blackwell.Google Scholar
Bray, T.L., 2003. The Archaeology and Politics of Food and Feasting in Early States and Empires, New York (NY): Kluwer Academic/Plenum.Google Scholar
Bronk Ramsey, C., 2017. OxCal 4.3 manual. http://c14.arch.ox.ac.uk/oxcalhelp/hlp_contents.htmlGoogle Scholar
Curet, L.A. & Pestle, W.J., 2010. Identifying high-status foods in the archeological record. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 29 (4), 413–31.Google Scholar
Dietler, M. & Hayden, B. (eds.), 2001. Feasts: Archaeological and ethnographic perspectives on food, politics, and power. Washington (DC): Smithsonian Institution Press.Google Scholar
Ervynck, A., Neer, W.V., Hüster-Plogmann, H. & Schibler, J., 2003. Beyond affluence: the zooarchaeology of luxury. World Archaeology 34 (3), 428–41.Google Scholar
Feinman, G.M., 1995. The emergence of inequality, in Foundations of Social Inequality, eds. Price, T.D. & Feinman, G.M.. New York (NY): Springer, 255–79.Google Scholar
Flad, R.K., Li, S., Wu, X. & Zhao, Z., 2010. Early wheat in China: results from new studies at Donghuishan in the Hexi Corridor. The Holocene 20 (6), 955–65.Google Scholar
Frachetti, M.D., Spengler, R.N., Fritz, G.J. & Mar'yashev, A.N., 2010. Earliest direct evidence for broomcorn millet and wheat in the central Eurasian steppe region. Antiquity 84, 993—1010.Google Scholar
Fuller, D.Q. & Qin, L., 2009. Water management and labour in the origins and dispersal of Asian rice. World Archaeology 41 (1), 88—111.Google Scholar
Goody, J., 1982. Cooking, Cuisine and Class: A study in comparative sociology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Gosden, C. & Hather, J.G., 1999. The Prehistory of Food: Appetites for change, New York (NY): Routledge.Google Scholar
GumermanG., IV G., IV, 1997. Food and complex societies. Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory 4 (2), 105–39.Google Scholar
Han, C., Ku, J. & Kim, G., 2014. Date and implication of the carbonized crops from the Daecheon-ri Neolithic site. Journal of the Korean Neolithic Research Society 28, 41–60.Google Scholar
Hastorf, C.A., 2016. The Social Archaeology of Food: Thinking about eating from prehistory to the present. New York (NY): Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Hayden, B., 2003. Were luxury foods the first domesticates? Ethnoarchaeological perspectives from Southeast Asia. World Archaeology 34 (3), 458–69.Google Scholar
Hayden, B. & Villeneuve, S., 2011. A century of feasting studies. Annual Review of Anthropology 40 (1), 433–49.Google Scholar
Hillman, G.C., Mason, S., de Moulins, D. & Nesbitt, M., 1996. Identification of archaeological remains of wheat: the 1992 London workshop. Circaea 12 (2), 195–209.Google Scholar
Hunter-Anderson, R.L., Thompson, G.B. & Moore, D.R., 1995. Rice as a prehistoric valuable in the Mariana Islands, Micronesia. Asian Perspectives 34 (1), 69–89.Google Scholar
Jacomet, S., 2006. Identification of cereal remains from archaeological sites. IPAS, Basel University. http://arkeobotanika.pbworks.com/f/Jacomet%20cereal%20ID.pdfGoogle Scholar
Jeju Cultural Heritage Institute, 2013. Jeju Yerae-dong Site. Jeju-si: Jeju Cultural Heritage Institute.Google Scholar
Museum, Jeju National, 2001. History and culture of Jeju. Jeju-si: Jeju National Museum.Google Scholar
Jeju Provincial Government, 2017. Jeju Island Natural Environment Ecology Information System. Jeju-si: Jeju Provincial Government. http://nature.jeju.go.kr/Google Scholar
Jeong, G., 2012. Jeju region: past and present, in Geography of Jejudo, ed. National Geographic Information Institute. Seoul: National Geographic Information Institute, 523–36.Google Scholar
Jeong, G., 2014. Histo-geographical Study of Rice Cultivation in Jejudo. Unpublished MA thesis, Jeju National University.Google Scholar
Jin, G., Yan, S., Udatsu, T., Lan, Y., Wang, C. & Tong, P., 2007. Neolithic rice paddy from the Zhaojiazhuang site, Shandong, China. Chinese Science Bulletin 52 (24), 3376–84.Google Scholar
Kang, C., 2006. Prehistoric times, in Chronicle of Jejudo 2, ed. Jejudo Chronicle Compilation Committee. Jeju-si: Jeju Provincial Government, 45–145.Google Scholar
Kang, C., 2009. Formation and development of ancient Tamra, in History and Culture of Jeju Revealed by Sites and Artifacts, ed. Jeju National Museum. Jeju-si: Jeju National Museum, 97–120.Google Scholar
Kang, C., 2017. The past and present of archaeological Tamra study, in The 25th Annual Meeting for the Honam Archaeological Society. Jeju-si: The Honam Archaeological Society, 7–22.Google Scholar
Kim, G., 2001. An archaeological study on reddish brown hard pottery of Jeju island. Journal of Ancient Historical Society 35, 59–88.Google Scholar
Kim, G., 2005. Formation and development of settlements during the Tamra period. Journal of the Honam Archaeological Society 22, 93–117.Google Scholar
Kim, G., 2016. The Early-Iron culture in Jejudo, in Development of Bronze and Early-Iron Age Culture in Jejudo, ed. Society for Korean Bronze Culture. Jeju-si: Jeju National Museum and Society for Korean Bronze Culture, 89–114.Google Scholar
Kim, G., 2017. Diplomatic activities and relationships of Tamra, in The 25th Annual Meeting for the Honam Archaeological Society. Jeju-si: Honam Archaeological Society, 123–51.Google Scholar
Kim, J., 2014. Jejudo 1935–1965: Jejudo report of a cultural anthropologist over thirty years. Seoul: Yeoreum Eondeok.Google Scholar
Kim, J., 2016. Re-examining dolmens of Jejudo, in Development of Bronze and Early-Iron Age Culture in Jejudo, ed. Society for Korean Bronze Culture. Jeju-si: Jeju National Museum and Society for Korean Bronze Culture, 73–88.Google Scholar
Kim, M., 2015. Rice in ancient Korea: status symbol or community food? Antiquity 89, 838–53.Google Scholar
Kim, M. & Kwon, G., 2010. Stone-tool assemblages and alternative subsistence economy of the Songguk-ri culture in Jeju. Journal of the Honam Archaeological Society 36, 63–95.Google Scholar
Kim, O., 2009. A Study on the Climate and the Prevention Measures of the People in Jejudo During the Joseon Dynasty. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Konkuk University.Google Scholar
Kim, S.-o., 2007. Bronze age social organization and its change revealed by burial data, in Emergence of Hierarchical Society and Leaders, ed. Korean Archaeological Society. Seoul: Korean Archaeological Society, 61–139.Google Scholar
Kim, S.-o., 2015. Characteristics and change in burial, in Introduction to Korean Bronze Age, ed. Jungang Institute of Cultural Heritage. Daejeon: Jininjin, 86–108.Google Scholar
Kim, T., 2012. Jeju region: nature and ecology, in Geography of Jejudo, ed. National Geographic Information Institute. Seoul: National Geographic Information Institute, 537–61.Google Scholar
Ko, G., 2002. Acorn and traditional technology. Tamra Culture 22, 127–32.Google Scholar
Korean Archaeological Society, 2010. Lectures on Korean archaeology. Seoul: Sahwe Pyeongron.Google Scholar
Korean Archaeological Society, 2013. Archaeology of Agriculture. Seoul: Sahwe Pyeongron.Google Scholar
Kwon, O., 2009. Ancient Jeju and East Asia, in History and Culture of Jeju Revealed by Sites and Artifacts, ed. Jeju National Museum. Jeju-si: Jeju National Museum, 77–95.Google Scholar
Lee, C., 1995. Study of Jejudo Archaeology. Seoul: Hakyeon Munhwasa.Google Scholar
Lee, G.-A., 2011. The transition from foraging to farming in prehistoric Korea. Current Anthropology 52 (S4), S307–29.Google Scholar
Lee, G.-A., 2013. Archaeological perspectives on the origins of azuki (Vigna angularis). The Holocene 23 (3), 453–9.Google Scholar
Lee, G.-A., Crawford, G.W., Liu, L., Sasaki, Y. & Chen, X., 2011. Archaeological soybean (Glycine max) in East Asia: does size matter? PLoS ONE 6 (11), e26720.Google Scholar
Lee, H., French, C. & Macphail, R.I., 2014. Microscopic examination of ancient and modern irrigated paddy soils in South Korea, with special reference to the formation of silty clay concentration features. Geoarchaeology 29, 326–48.Google Scholar
Lee, J., 2016. The Songguk-ri culture in Jejudo, in Development of Bronze and Early-Iron Age Culture in Jejudo, ed. Society for Korean Bronze Culture. Jeju-si: Jeju National Museum and Society for Korean Bronze Culture, 47–70.Google Scholar
Lee, J., Kim, J., Lee, S., et al., 2009. Seeds of Wild Plants of Korea. Daejeon: The Wild Plants Seed Bank of Korea.Google Scholar
Lee, M., 2006. Topography, in Chronicle of Jejudo 1, ed. Jejudo Chronicle Compilation Committee. Jeju-si: Jeju Provincial Government, 43–55.Google Scholar
Lee, M. & Son, I., 2006. Geological features, in Chronicle of Jejudo 1, ed. Jejudo Chronicle Compilation Committee. Jeju-si: Jeju Provincial Government, 57–101.Google Scholar
Lee, Y., 2016. The Bronze culture in Jejudo, in Development of Bronze and Early-Iron Age Culture in Jejudo, ed. Society for Korean Bronze Culture. Jeju-si: Jeju National Museum and Society for Korean Bronze Culture, 115–30.Google Scholar
Liu, C.J., Jin, G.Y. & Kong, Z.C., 2008. Archaeobotany: Research on seeds and fruits, Beijing: Science Press.Google Scholar
McGovern, P.E., Zhang, J., Tang, J., et al., 2004. Fermented beverages of pre- and proto-historic China. PNAS 101 (51), 17593–8.Google Scholar
National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, 2015. Archaeobotanical Data in East Asia: Korean prehistoric age. Daejeon: National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage.Google Scholar
Nelson, S.M., 1993. The Archaeology of Korea. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Nelson, S.M., 2017. Gyeongju: The capital of Golden Silla. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Obata, H., 2008. Identification of legumes, in Prehistoric and Ancient Cereals in the Far East 3, ed. Obata, H.. Kumamoto: Kumamoto University, 225–52.Google Scholar
Obata, H., 2011. Paleoethnobotany in Northeast Asia and Jomon Agriculture. Tokyo: Douseisha.Google Scholar
Obata, H., Sakamoto, K. & Otsubo, Y., 2003. Acorn identification for archaeologists, in Study of Prehistory and Archaeology IV, ed. Tatsuda Archaeological Society. Kumamoto: Tatsuda Archaeological Society, 225–88.Google Scholar
Oh, W., 2016. Examination on the formation and development of the Early Bronze Age in Jejudo, in Development of Bronze and Early-Iron Age Culture in Jejudo, ed. Society for Korean Bronze Culture. Jeju-si: Jeju National Museum and Society for Korean Bronze Culture, 21–46.Google Scholar
Ohnuki-Tierney, E., 1993. Rice as Self: Japanese identities through time, Princeton (NJ): Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Otsubo, Y., 2011. Study of Prehistoric Stone Ornaments. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Kumamoto University.Google Scholar
Palmer, C. & Van der Veen, M., 2002. Archaeobotany and the social context of food. Acta Palaeobotanica 42 (2), 195–202.Google Scholar
Park, G., 2013. A Study on Mumun Pottery Culture in Jeju Island. Unpublished MA thesis, Yeungnam University.Google Scholar
Park, G.-T., 2011. Settlement patterns during the establishment phase of Tamra. Journal of Korean Archaeology 2011, 72–83.Google Scholar
Pearsall, D.M., 2000. Paleoethnobotany: A handbook of procedures. San Diego (CA): Academic Press.Google Scholar
Reimer, P.J., Bard, E., Bayliss, A., et al., 2013. IntCal13 and marine13 radiocarbon age calibration curves 0–50,000 years cal BP. Radiocarbon 55 (4), 1869–87.Google Scholar
Toyama, S., 2014. Rice agriculture and geomorphological environment of the Korean peninsula, in Archaeology of the Bronze Age 1: People and environment, eds. Lee, H. & Lee, H.. Seoul: Seogyeong Munhwasa, 133–45.Google Scholar
Trubitt, M.B.D., 2000. Mound building and prestige goods exchange: changing strategies in the Cahokia chiefdom. American Antiquity 65 (4), 669–90.Google Scholar
Van der Veen, M., 2003. When is food a luxury? World Archaeology 34 (3), 405–27.Google Scholar
Wiessner, P.W. & Schiefenhövel, W., 1996. Food and the Status Quest: An interdisciplinary perspective. Providence (RI): Berghahn Books.Google Scholar
Yim, Y.J., 1977. Distribution of forest vegetation and climate in the Korean peninsula: IV. Zonal distribution of forest vegetation in relation to thermal climate. Japanese Journal of Ecology 27, 269–78.Google Scholar
Yoshizaki, M. & Tsubakisaka, Y., 2001. Prehistoric legumes: an archaeobotanical perspective. Mamerui Jihou 24, 1–9.Google Scholar
Zhao, Z., 2010. Plants Archaeology: Theories, methods and practice. Beijing: Science Press.Google Scholar
Zhao, Z., 2011. New archaeobotanic data for the study of the origins of agriculture in China. Current Anthropology 52 (S4), S295–S306.Google Scholar
Zong, Y., Chen, Z., Innes, J.B., Chen, C., Wang, Z. & Wang, H., 2007. Fire and flood management of coastal swamp enabled first rice paddy cultivation in east China. Nature 449, 459–62.Google Scholar