Land Use History of Cloud Zone and the Fate of God-mountains in Rice-terrace Areas of Yunnan

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  • Momose Kuniyasu
    Graduate School of Asian and African Area Studies, Kyoto University

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Other Title
  • 雲南の棚田地帯を涵養する雲霧帯の土地利用の変遷と竜山の消長
  • ウンナン ノ タナダ チタイ オ カンヨウスル ウンムタイ ノ トチ リヨウ ノ ヘンセン ト リュウザン ノ ショウチョウ

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Abstract

<p>Hani people in the Ailao Mountains, Yunnan, Southwest China, cultivate rice in terraced fields on step slopes below the cloud line (1800 m alt.). Traditionally, the cloud-zone slopes were used in various ways, including alder forests as fuel and wood sources and primary mossy forests as sacred areas (god-mountains) and watershed areas. In the Dayuejin (great advance) period (1960s), trees of cloud zone were consumed as fuel for iron production. The alder forests and god-mountains disappeared, but canopy trees of the watershed forests were protected by villagers. In the 1980s, the government distributed sloped areas to villagers for them to re-forest and manage. Such lands are called ziliushan (self-managed forests). In ziliushan, Hani people preferred to plant familiar tree species that were components of the former alder forests, instead of the shanmu (Cunninghamia lanceolata) nursery trees distributed by the government. At the same time, villagers replanted the god-mountains and reinforced the protection of watershed forests. Here, I discuss the villagers’ incentives for vegetation management and the roles of newly replanted god-mountains. </p>

Journal

  • Asian and African Area Studies

    Asian and African Area Studies 3 (0), 87-102, 2003-11-30

    Graduate School of Asian and African Area Studies, Kyoto University

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