Title -- Copyright -- Dedication -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Notes to Readers -- Table 1: Acronyms Used in this Book -- Map 1: Present-Day Ranges of Cannabis -- 1 Introduction to the Multipurpose Plant Cannabis -- In the Beginning: Circumstances of Early Human Contact with Cannabis -- A Brief Summary of the Long and Diverse History of Relationships between Cannabis and Humans -- What Shall We Call These Plants? -- Should We Praise or Condemn This Multipurpose Plant? -- What We Discuss in This Book -- 2 Natural Origins and Early Evolution of Cannabis -- Introduction -- Basic Life Cycle of Cannabis -- Ecological Requirements of Cannabis: Sunlight, Temperature, Water, and Soil -- Cannabis Origin and Evolution Studies -- Central Asia: Vavilov and the Origins of Cannabis -- Cannabis and Vitis -- Theories for South Asian Origin of Domesticated Cannabis -- Model for the Early Evolution of Cannabis -- Summary and Conclusions -- 3 Ethnobotanical Origins, Early Cultivation, and Evolution through Human Selection -- Introduction -- First Contacts: Origins of "Human-Cannabis" Relationships -- Transitions to Cultivation and Civilization -- Earliest Uses of Cannabis: Useful Traits for Ancient People -- Evolution of Cannabis through Human Selection -- Disruptive Selection -- Origin from Weedy Populations -- Natural Hybridization: Introgression versus Isolation -- Artificial Hybridization -- Atavism -- Isolation of Populations -- Population Size and Changes in Variability -- Evolutionary Effects of Dioecy -- Effects of Human Selection on Sexual Expression for Different Products -- Seeds -- Fibers -- Marijuana and Hashish -- Sexual Dimorphism and Selection -- Phenotypic Changes during Domestication -- Seeds -- Fibers -- Inflorescences -- Directional Evolutionary Changes -- Cannabinoid Profile -- Timing of Floral Maturation.

Evolution of Cannabinoid Phenotypes -- Geographical Distribution of Cannabinoid Phenotypes -- North America -- Western Europe -- Eastern Europe -- Central America and the Caribbean -- South America -- Middle East -- East Asia -- Indian Subcontinent -- Southeast Asia -- Equatorial Africa -- South and East Africa -- Summary and Conclusions -- 4 The Cultural Diffusion of Cannabis -- Introduction -- Methodology: The Multidisciplinary Approach -- Types of Archaeobotanical Evidence for Cannabis -- Seeds -- Fibers -- Pollen -- Fiber and Seed Impressions -- Other Carbonized and Chemical Remains -- Phytoliths -- Written Records of Cannabis's Presence and Use -- Nonhuman Agencies Affecting the Geographical Range of Cannabis -- Human Impact on the Dispersal and Expanding Geographical Range of Cannabis -- Early Relationships among Humans and Cannabis in Central Asia -- Fishing and Hemp -- Hemp, Humans, and Horses in Eurasia -- Scythians and Cannabis -- Archeological and Historical Evidence for the Spread of Cannabis -- Diffusion throughout East Asia -- Diffusion from Northeastern China into Korea and Japan -- Diffusion into South Asia -- Archaeobotanical Evidence from South Asia -- Diffusion into Southwest Asia and Egypt -- Diffusion into Europe and the Mediterranean -- Romania -- Bulgaria -- Hungary -- Poland -- Baltic Region -- Finland -- Austria, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia -- Germany -- Switzerland -- Northern France -- Iberian Peninsula -- Netherlands -- Sweden -- Norway -- Denmark -- British Isles -- Mediterranean Region -- Summary of Dispersal Phases within and Beyond Eurasia -- Phase 1: Primary Dispersal across Eurasia-ca. 10,000 to 2000 BP -- Phase 2: Spread into Africa and Southeast Asia-ca. 2000 to 500 BP -- Phase 3: Diffusion to the New World-1545 to 1800 -- Phase 4: Diffusion to the New World-1800to 1945.

Phase 5: Expansion after World War II-1945 to 1990 -- Phase 6: Artificial Environments and the Proliferation of Industrial Hemp-1990 to the Present -- Summary and Conclusions: Cannabis's Dispersal from an Evolutionary Point of View -- 5 History of Cannabis Use for Fiber -- Introduction -- Textile Basics -- Historical and Archeological Evidence for Cannabis Fiber Use in China -- Hemp Fiber Use in Clothing, Lacquerware, Weapons, and Ships in Ancient China -- Traditional Korea -- Contemporary South Korea and North Korea -- Ancient Japan and Hemp -- Ancient Evidence from South Asia, Southwest Asia, and Egypt -- Ancient Mediterranean Region -- Ancient Europe North of the Mediterranean -- Spread of Hemp Fiber Use to the New World -- Some Aspects of the Modern History of Hemp -- Cannabis and Paper -- Advent and Early History of Papermaking in China -- Hemp Paper in Ancient Korea and Japan -- Dispersal to North Africa and Europe -- Hemp Paper Production in North America -- Summary and Conclusions -- 6 Food, Feed, and Oil Uses of Hemp -- Introduction -- Human Food and Animal Feed Uses of Hemp Seeds -- Early Hemp Seed Use in China: Neolithic Period through the Han Dynasty -- Hemp Seed Oil in Ancient China -- Ancient Evidence for Traditional Production and Use beyond China -- Korea -- Japan -- South and Southwest Asia -- Central and Eastern Europe -- Mediterranean and Western European Regions -- Present-Day Hemp Seed Production and Use -- Summary and Conclusions -- 7 Historical Aspects of Psychoactive Cannabis Use for Ritual and Recreation -- Introduction -- Discovery of the Euphoriant Properties of Cannabis in Eurasia -- Central Asia -- China -- Taoism and Tales of Ma Gu -- India and Nepal -- Was Soma Cannabis? -- South Asian Psychoactive Cannabis Products -- Hindu Acceptance of Ritual Bhang Use -- Shiva Worship and Cannabis.

Other Occasions on which Bhang Was Used -- Worship of the Bhang Plant -- Mongols and Cannabis -- Southwest Asia, the Mediterranean, Africa, and Europe -- The Advent of Cannabis Smoking: Tobacco Meets Hashish -- Summary and Conclusions -- 8 Ethnobotanical History and Contemporary Context of Medicinal Cannabis -- Introduction -- Early East Asian Medicinal Cannabis Use -- South and Southeast Asian Medical Traditions -- Egyptian Medicinal Cannabis Use -- Cannabis in Early Middle Eastern and Later Islamic Medicine -- African and South American Medicinal Cannabis Use -- European Medicinal Cannabis Use -- Present-Day Western Medicinal Applications of Cannabis -- Summary and Conclusions -- 9 Nonpsychoactive Ritual Uses of Cannabis -- Introduction -- Hempen Rituals of Major Religions: Shamanic Influences Survive Repression -- Archeological Remains from Ritual Contexts: Central Asia, China, and Europe -- The Hmong: Spirit Travel in Healing, Life Cycle, and Funerary Rituals -- China: Shamanism, Taoism, and Confucianism -- Korea: Shamanic Funerary Rites, Confucian Mourning, and Ancestor Worship -- Japan: Shamanist, Shinto, and Buddhist Hemp Traditions -- Europe and the Middle East: Judeo-Christian Hemp Rituals -- Hangings: Hemp Cordage and Hempen Executions -- Conclusions -- 10 Recent History of Cannabis Breeding -- Introduction -- European Hemp Breeding -- North American Hemp Breeding -- Introduction of NLD Cannabis to North America -- Breeding History of NLD Varieties -- Introduction of BLD Cannabis -- Recent Trends in Cannabis Breeding -- Summary and Conclusions -- 11 Classical and Molecular Taxonomy of Cannabis -- Introduction -- One, Two, or Three Species? -- History of Cannabis Taxonomy -- Recent Advances in Cannabis Taxonomy -- Genetic and Historical Model for the Evolution of Cannabis Biotypes -- Recent Geographical Distributions of Cannabis Biotypes.

Europe and the Former Soviet Union -- China -- Central Asia, Afghanistan, and Turkestan -- India and Nepal -- Southeast Asia -- Africa and the Middle East -- New World -- Summary and Conclusions -- 12 Hypotheses Concerning the Early Evolution of Cannabis -- Introduction -- Prehistoric Climate Change and Plant Distribution -- The Pleistocene -- The Holocene -- Early Human Dispersals -- Plant Speciation and Colonization -- Pleistocene Refugia -- Postglacial Population Expansion -- Speciation Rate -- Early Evolution of Cannabaceae: The Hemp and Hop Family -- Breeding Systems and Reproductive Strategies as Clues to Geographical Origin -- Angiospermy -- Annuality -- Anemophily -- Dioecy -- Sex Determination -- Reconstruction of a Cannabaceae Ancestor -- Summary and Conclusions -- 13 Cannabis and Homo sapiens -- Introduction -- The Long-Term Relationship -- Summary of Cannabis's Evolution -- Cannabis's Influence on the Evolution of Human Culture -- A Case for the Social Benefits of Cannabis's Psychoactivity -- Human Influence on Cannabis's Evolution -- Environmental Impact of the Human-Cannabis Relationship -- Coevolution of Cannabis and Humans: Fresh Concepts -- Present Position of the Human-Cannabis Relationship -- Remaining Questions and Future Directions -- Timeline -- References -- Index.