The long rice story. A comparison of rice’s introduction into Italy and Japan

The spread of rice is one of the most debated topic in East Asian archaeology due to the long history and multiple roles of rice in the region. Following domestication, how and when rice spread to various regions still remain disputed and unclear issues. Here, a comparison of the introduction of rice into Italy and Japan reveals great complexity in the modalities and timelines of the spread of rice into both of these territories. The comparison also reveals that while in Japan scholars for a long time considered that rice spread into the archipelago in a very short period in a linear mode, the situation is in fact extremely articulated. A further conclusion of this research isthat there is chronological discrepancy regarding the rice introduction into Japan from the Asian mainland.