Why are Japan and Korea rice (rather than wheat) growing cultures when they on the same latitude as northern China?

Jay Liu
Jay Liu, I've been told I'm Chinese...
Answered Sep 16, 2015

They're not.

In pre-modern Korea and Japan, rice production, while highly treasured, was not the main source of nourishment for the masses. Millet, barley, and other rough grains were what most people actually ate most of the time. Rice was considered a luxury, especially in Korea and the northwestern half of Japan where the climate is quite unsuitable for rice cultivation. The fact that Southern Chinese farmers could enjoy an all rice grain diet was considered no small miracle in those days by the Japanese and Koreans.

The key to efficient rice cultivation is how many crops a year can be squeezed out. In places like Thailand were there's basically no such thing as winter, they could easily manage 3 crops a year. In Southern China, the traditional practice is 2 crops, in Northern China it's 1 crop.

In Japan, on the Kanto, Kansai, Kyushu areas, they can do 2 crops a year. But the arable land is so small in size, and the population so dense, it was never enough to support a large surplus.