Language: English
2001; Hardcover;210x140mm;560
Swiddening, or swidden agriculture, has already become very rare in cold and temperate regions, but in the subtropical and especially in the tropical regions, it is still quite commonly practiced. China is one of the parts of the world that saw the earliest beginnings of agricultural civilization, and swidden agriculture as a form of forest agriculture has a very long history in our country. In ancient times, it was very widespread. Even so, there have been very few field investigations and very little research done overall in this field. This state of affairs does not fit very well with the position which China has as an ancient country with five thousand years of civilization, and with countless historical documents. Yunnan is one of the areas of China where swidden agriculture is still preserved to a considerable extent. The author has spent many years concentrating on studies and research related to the Yunnan peoples that practice swidden farming. As a result, to date, two small books and a number of articles and reports have already been published on the subject. The present work can be said to build on these previous results, and represents an attempt to sum up, provide an overview, and to explore the issues involved even further.
Table of Contents
Contents
Part I History, Distribution and Typology
1. Historical Survey
2. The Distribution and Typology of Yunnan Swidden Agriculture
Part II Traditions of Swidden Agriculture
1. The Swidden acriculture of the Jingpo of Kachang
2. The Swidden Agriculture of the Bulang of Menghai
3. The Swidden Agriculture of the Wa of Ximeng
4. The Swidden Agriculture of The Jinuo
5. The Swidden Agriculture of the Dulong
Part III Comparative Research
1. Comparison of Different Kinds of Fallow Regimes
2. Comparison of Different Cultivation Techniques
3. Comparison of Settlement Relocation Patterns
4. Comparison of the Human-Ecological systems of the Valleys and The
Mountains
Part IV Culture, Nature and Development
Select Bibliography
Epilogue
Appendix I
Appendix II
Annotation
