van Andel, T. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2024

Maroon rice genomic diversity reflects 350 years of colonial history

Maroons in Suriname and French Guiana descend from enslaved Africans who escaped the plantations during colonial times. Maroon farmers still cultivate a large rice diversity, their oldest staple crop. Maroon oral history and written records by colonial authorities provide contrasting perspectives on the origins of Maroon rice. Here, we integrated genomic ancestry analyses of 136 newly sequenced Maroon rice varieties with ethnobotanical and archival research to reconstruct the historical contexts associated with the introduction of rice varieties to the Guianas. We found that a large subset traces to West Africa, linked to the transatlantic slave trade (c.1530-1825). Maroons obtained other varieties from indentured laborers from Java (1890 onwards), USA rice breeders (1932 onwards), and Hmong refugees from the Vietnam War (1991). Furthermore, we found rice types never documented before, indicating Maroon farmers selected from crosses. Overall, our results demonstrate that the Maroon farming system prioritizes maintenance of a high stock diversity, which we posit reflects the expertise they inherited from their (African) ancestors. Ignored by agricultural modernization initiatives, Maroon farmers today are important custodians of a unique cultural heritage. Moreover, the genomic findings underline many Maroon stories about their past. This study hence demonstrates the power of cross-disciplinary crop research to reconstruct aspects of the human past for which historical records may be biased or incomplete. We anticipate that a similar study approach can be applied to other heirloom crops of (Indigenous) communities that may have preserved their history on their farms to reconstruct, acknowledge and honor the past.

genomics↗

bioRxiv2019

Hidden Rice Diversity in the Guianas

Traditional crop varieties are an important source of genetic diversity for crop adaptation and modern breeding. Landraces of Asian (Oryza sativa) and African (Oryza glaberrima) rice have been well studied on the continents where they were domesticated. However, their history of cultivation in northern South America is poorly understood. Here we reveal the rice diversity that is maintained by Maroons, descendants of enslaved Africans who fled to the interior forests of the Guianas ca. 300 years ago. We interviewed subsistence farmers who practice shifting cultivation along the Maroni and Lawa rivers that form the natural border between French Guiana and Suriname, and used ethnobotanical and morphological methods to identify around 50 varieties, of which 15 were previously undocumented. The genetic origin of these varieties was explored using the Angiosperms-353 universal probe set. Despite the large distances between sites and relative inaccessibility of the area, phenotypic and genetic diversity did not display any geographic structure, which is consistent with knowledge of seed exchange among members of the same ethnolinguistic group. Although improved US cultivars were introduced in Maroon villages in the 1940s, these have not displaced the traditional landraces, which are cherished for their taste and nutritious qualities and for their importance in Maroon spiritual life. The unique agricultural and ritual practices of Maroons confirm their role as custodians of rice diversity, a role that is currently under threat from external pressures and encroaching globalization. We expect that the rice diversity uncovered in this study represents only a fraction of the total diversity in the Guianas and may constitute a large untapped resource that holds promise for future rice improvement. Further efforts to inventory and preserve these landraces will help to protect a precious cultural heritage and local food security.

plant biology↗