小麥起源於西亞，大約距今5000 年左右進入中國。此前，中國南方和北方已經分別形成了以種稻飯稻和種粟飯粟的農耕飲食文化。在這種背景之下，經過漫長的旅程，小麥逐漸適應了中國的風土人情，成為外來作物最成功的一個。從大歷史的觀點出發，本文在追蹤古代中國麥作歷史的同時，著重於小麥擴張對於中國本土原產糧食作物和食物習慣的衝擊。文章認為，小麥自出現在中國西北新疆等地之後，在中國擴張經歷了一個由西向東，由北而南的擴張過程，直到唐宋以後才基本上完成了在中國的定位。小麥擴張擠對了本土原有的一些糧食作物，也改變中國人的食物習慣。成為僅次於水稻的第二大糧食作物。但由於自然和歷史的原因，小麥擴張也遇到了很大的障礙，尤其是在南方。

Originated in West Asia, wheat was introduced into China about 5000 years ago. Before that, rice culture and millet culture had already formed respectively in the southern and northern parts of China. After a
long process, wheat got adapted to Chinese local conditions and customs
of China to some extent after a long process, and became one of the most
successfully naturalized crops from foreign land. From the view of
macro-history, this paper traces the history of wheat in ancient China,
focusing on the impact of wheat on the native food crops and food habits,
suggesting that wheat was promoted from the west of China to the east
and than the south, by the time of Tang & Song dynasties. Wheat
eliminated or replaced some local grain crops, changed food habits of the
Chinese, and became the second largest staple grain crop. But on its
spreading wheat also encountered many obstacles to overcome road
because of natural and historical factors, especially in the south of China