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  • © 2013

Water Civilization

From Yangtze to Khmer Civilizations

  • This is the first book which shows the origin and development of rice cultivating civilization in relation to the water environment in the Southeast Asia
  • This book presents a series of analyses conducted by various scientists in various fields and outlines an environmental history of East and Southeast Asia
  • Archaeological papers provide a detailed first-hand information of material evidence (including the first detailed ceramic chronology), which is valuable for all researchers working in the East and Southeast Asia

Part of the book series: Advances in Asian Human-Environmental Research (AAHER)

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Table of contents (14 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xxi
  2. Discovery of the Yangtze River Civilization

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1
  3. Discovery of the Yangtze River Civilization

    1. Decline of the Yangtze River Civilization

      • Yoshinori Yasuda
      Pages 47-63
  4. Origin and Development of the Khmer Civilization

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 65-65
  5. Angkor’s Demise

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 329-329
  6. Angkor Demise

    1. Climate Deterioration and Angkor’s Demise

      • Yoshinori Yasuda, Hiroo Nasu, Toshiyuki Fujiki, Kazuyoshi Yamada, Junko Kitagawa, Katsuya Gotanda et al.
      Pages 331-362
  7. Water Civilization

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 405-405
    2. Reconstruction of an 8,000-year Environmental History on Pollen Records from Lake Buyan, Central Bali

      • Xun Li, Yoshinori Yasuda, Toshiyuki Fujiki, Makoto Okamura, Hiromi Matsuoka, Kazuyoshi Yamada et al.
      Pages 407-426
    3. The Great East Asian Fertile Triangle

      • Yoshinori Yasuda
      Pages 427-458
  8. Back Matter

    Pages 459-477

About this book

Water Civilization: From Yangtze to Khmer Civilizations comprises three major topics: 1) Discovery of the origin of rice agriculture and the Yangtze River civilization in southern China was mainly based on investigation of the Chengtoushan archaeological site, the earliest urban settlement in East Asia. The origin of rice cultivation can be traced back to 10000 BC, with urban settlement starting at about 6000 BP; 2) The Yangtze River civilization collapsed around 4200 BP. Palaeoenvironmental studies including analyses of annually laminated sediments in East and Southeast Asia indicate a close relationship between climate change and the rise and fall of the rice-cultivating and fishing civilization; and 3) Migrations from southern China to Southeast Asia occurred after about 4200 BP. Archaeological investigation of the Phum Snay site in Cambodia, including analyses of DNA and human skeletal remains, reveals a close relationship to southern China, indicating the migration of people from southern China to Southeast Asia. This publication is an important contribution to understanding the environmental history of China and Cambodia in relation to the rise and fall of the rice-cultivating and fishing civilization, which we call water civilization.

Editors and Affiliations

  • Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan

    Yoshinori Yasuda

Bibliographic Information

Buy it now

Buying options

eBook USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access