5:15 PM - 7:15 PM
[O05-P01] Geology and culture of active plate margin and stable continent
★Invited Papers
Keywords:geoculture, convergent plate margin, continent-continent collisional zone, stable continent, Watsuji's theory of climate
To consider cultural phenomena related to geology in Japan and the world, the following three geological environments are categorised. 1) convergent plate margin, 2) continent-continent collisional zone and 3) stable continent. Convergent plate margin is a zone where oceanic plates subduct beneath continental plates, such as the Japanese islands, with steep mountains along the coast. Continent-continent collisional zone is an area where two continents collided with each other, as in the Alps and Himalayas, forming steep mountainous landforms. The collision of continents results in mountainous areas that are naturally located inland and away from the sea, where oceanic sediments between two continents rose into the mountains and formed sedimentary rocks, which are also accompanied by metamorphic and igneous rocks resulting from the collision. Stable continent is a region characterised by the occurrence of pre-Cambrian basement rocks and horizontal sedimentary strata above them. The geology of a particular region is defined by its horizontal rock sequences, so that the geodiversity is poor, as only the same levels of horizontal strata are exposed in certain geological regions.
Steep mountains rise along the coast of the convergent plate margin. Rivers therefore become swift and minerals originating from the land are easily supplied to the coastal sea. The abundance of minerals enriches the coastal ecosystem, and a food culture centred on seaweed, clam and fish. The salt used by people is also supplied by coastal salt fields. In contrast, in the continent-continent collisional zone, mountainous areas are located inland and far from the sea. Seafood cannot be used as a source of protein, and agriculture is not feasible in the cold high mountains. This led to the development of a pastoral culture using dairy cows and yaks. In the Alps, different types of cheese are made in different valleys, and Tibetan yak butter is a valuable source of nutrition. Salt is sought from rock salt from the mountains. Yodelling, a unique vocalisation method, is said to have developed as a way of communicating between people across the deep valleys of the Alps. On the other hand, on the stable continent, the same level of horizontal stratification is exposed, so the stone materials used in the region are uniformly the same. This results in a uniform colouring of towns, for example in Heidelberg, Germany, where red sandstones of the Lower Triassic adorn the town.
By the way, a Japanese philosopher, Watsuji Tetsuro, in his book “Climate: an anthropological study”, classified the world's climates into three categories. These are the ‘monsoon’ of East and South Asia, the ‘desert’ of Arabia and the ‘meadow’ of Europe. According to Watsuji, in the ‘monsoon’ climates, which include the Japanese archipelago, the violence of nature, such as heavy rains, storms, floods and droughts, is so remarkable that it cannot be countered by human power. As a result, a receptive and tolerant spiritual culture was created. In the ‘desert’ climate of Arabia, nature offers no help and is merely an expression of death. In the European ‘meadow’ such climate as heavy rain, storms and floods are rare and rivers flow slowly. The generally unchanging and docile nature is easy to understand and find laws. This led to the development of natural sciences.
Although geology does not appear in this Watsuji's theory of climate, let us take another look at it from a geological perspective. Namely, in the convergent plate margin such as the Japanese archipelago, the complex geological structure is far from docile nature and is consistent with the ‘monsoon’ climate. The continent-continent collisional zone is steep, mountainous and cold, and crops do not grow. In the harsh nature, pastoralism was the livelihood of the people with the help of animals. The harsh and rugged mountainous terrain, where no life can be found, is close to the climate of the ‘desert’. On the other hand, on the European stable continent, the sedimentary sequence of strata is simple, so that the stratigraphy developed to arrange the history of the earth. This is close to the climate of the ‘meadow’.
In this view, the three categories of geological environment are closely related to the formation of cultures in each category. While research into the cultures of the convergent plate margin in Japan has been actively pursued, research into the geocultures of the continent-continent collisional zone and the stable continent is still in its infancy. Further comparative studies will enable a deeper consideration of the influence of the geological environment on culture formation.
Steep mountains rise along the coast of the convergent plate margin. Rivers therefore become swift and minerals originating from the land are easily supplied to the coastal sea. The abundance of minerals enriches the coastal ecosystem, and a food culture centred on seaweed, clam and fish. The salt used by people is also supplied by coastal salt fields. In contrast, in the continent-continent collisional zone, mountainous areas are located inland and far from the sea. Seafood cannot be used as a source of protein, and agriculture is not feasible in the cold high mountains. This led to the development of a pastoral culture using dairy cows and yaks. In the Alps, different types of cheese are made in different valleys, and Tibetan yak butter is a valuable source of nutrition. Salt is sought from rock salt from the mountains. Yodelling, a unique vocalisation method, is said to have developed as a way of communicating between people across the deep valleys of the Alps. On the other hand, on the stable continent, the same level of horizontal stratification is exposed, so the stone materials used in the region are uniformly the same. This results in a uniform colouring of towns, for example in Heidelberg, Germany, where red sandstones of the Lower Triassic adorn the town.
By the way, a Japanese philosopher, Watsuji Tetsuro, in his book “Climate: an anthropological study”, classified the world's climates into three categories. These are the ‘monsoon’ of East and South Asia, the ‘desert’ of Arabia and the ‘meadow’ of Europe. According to Watsuji, in the ‘monsoon’ climates, which include the Japanese archipelago, the violence of nature, such as heavy rains, storms, floods and droughts, is so remarkable that it cannot be countered by human power. As a result, a receptive and tolerant spiritual culture was created. In the ‘desert’ climate of Arabia, nature offers no help and is merely an expression of death. In the European ‘meadow’ such climate as heavy rain, storms and floods are rare and rivers flow slowly. The generally unchanging and docile nature is easy to understand and find laws. This led to the development of natural sciences.
Although geology does not appear in this Watsuji's theory of climate, let us take another look at it from a geological perspective. Namely, in the convergent plate margin such as the Japanese archipelago, the complex geological structure is far from docile nature and is consistent with the ‘monsoon’ climate. The continent-continent collisional zone is steep, mountainous and cold, and crops do not grow. In the harsh nature, pastoralism was the livelihood of the people with the help of animals. The harsh and rugged mountainous terrain, where no life can be found, is close to the climate of the ‘desert’. On the other hand, on the European stable continent, the sedimentary sequence of strata is simple, so that the stratigraphy developed to arrange the history of the earth. This is close to the climate of the ‘meadow’.
In this view, the three categories of geological environment are closely related to the formation of cultures in each category. While research into the cultures of the convergent plate margin in Japan has been actively pursued, research into the geocultures of the continent-continent collisional zone and the stable continent is still in its infancy. Further comparative studies will enable a deeper consideration of the influence of the geological environment on culture formation.