Rice Agriculture in Japan: Culture, Geography, and Nihonjinron
Location
Wedgewood Conference Center, Room 4094
Presentation Type
Presentation
Start Date
28-9-2015 2:00 PM
Description
Rice occupies an important place in Japanese culture, history, society, and political economy. Rice is the staple of every Japanese meal, and Japanese farmers pride themselves on producing the highest quality rice in the world with distinctive traits unique to every available acre of soil. The Japanese word “gohan” literally means cooked rice, but rice is so important to Japanese cuisine that when one says “asagohan” or “yuuhan” (meaning breakfast or dinner), one is literally saying “the morning rice” or “the evening rice.” Japan’s rice market is highly competitive, but it is protected by tariffs, powerful profarming lobbyists, and assumptions that nowhere else in the world can grow rice as well. Dr. Thorndike will examine the history of rice cultivation, geography, and the current state of rice imports and exports in Japan. In addition, different qualities of rice will be discussed and tasted.
Recommended Citation
Thorndike, Jonathan, "Rice Agriculture in Japan: Culture, Geography, and Nihonjinron" (2015). Humanities Symposium. 34.
https://repository.belmont.edu/humanities_symposium/2015/2015/34
Rice Agriculture in Japan: Culture, Geography, and Nihonjinron
Wedgewood Conference Center, Room 4094
Rice occupies an important place in Japanese culture, history, society, and political economy. Rice is the staple of every Japanese meal, and Japanese farmers pride themselves on producing the highest quality rice in the world with distinctive traits unique to every available acre of soil. The Japanese word “gohan” literally means cooked rice, but rice is so important to Japanese cuisine that when one says “asagohan” or “yuuhan” (meaning breakfast or dinner), one is literally saying “the morning rice” or “the evening rice.” Japan’s rice market is highly competitive, but it is protected by tariffs, powerful profarming lobbyists, and assumptions that nowhere else in the world can grow rice as well. Dr. Thorndike will examine the history of rice cultivation, geography, and the current state of rice imports and exports in Japan. In addition, different qualities of rice will be discussed and tasted.
Comments
Convocation Credit: Culture & Arts