Ethnobotanical Research On Origin, Cultivation, Distribution And Utilization Of Hemp (Cannabis Sativa L.) In China

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) is a dioecious and annual herbaceous plant in family Cannabinaceae, with more than 30 local names in China such as flame hemp, string hemp, cold hemp, dew hemp and yellow hemp, etc. China is one of the native habitats of hemp and is the oldest country cultivating and utilizing hemp, with a history over 10,000 to 12,000 years. Hemp widely distributes in China, was mainly used for textiles, foods, paper and medicine from very early time, and became a very important crop of the ancient China. Based on a number of archaeological discoveries, ancient Chinese literatures and records, this paper summarized the knowledge about the origin, geographical distribution, cultivation and utilization of hemp in the ancient China, and concluded that China is the most conceivable origin center of hemp.