Veddas

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Vedda man and child ( Sri Lanka , 2002)
Vedda girls in Dambana ( Sri Lanka , 2006)
Native Villagers Residence: Residence in an indigenous village in Sri Lanka (postcard around 1910)

The Vedda ( s ) or Weddas  - proper name Wanniyala-Aetto , Sinhala වැද්දා Väddā , Tamil வேடுவர் Vēṭuvar , incorrectly Bedda  - are an indigenous people in South Asia in Sri Lanka . They are considered to be the original inhabitants of the island (compare the Indian name Adivasi : "first settlers"). For the year 2002, their number was assumed to be between 2000 and 2500, making them a tiny minority of the entire country's population (around 22 million) and their culture is threatened with extinction.

Word origin

The word Vedda could come from the Sanskrit vyādha ("hunter") or veddhṛ ("he who pierces"). Nevertheless, many scientists suspect that it comes from the Dravidian or Tamil word vēdu ("to hunt") and was possibly adopted as a loan word by the Sanskrit speakers.

Settlement areas

By clearing the jungle and converting it into arable land, the Veddas were deprived of their hunting ground as hunters and gatherers at an early stage . In the 20th century, ambitious settlement projects drove them further and further from their traditional habitats. Some of them were resettled in villages, where they mixed with the local Sinhalese and Tamils .

At present, the Veddas mainly settle in Heningala (near Girandurukotte), in Maduru Oya National Park and in the jungle near Mahiyangana . Only a few Veddas still live entirely according to their original customs.

Original way of life

The indigenous people of Sri Lanka were originally hunters and gatherers , they lived in simple mud and wooden huts and lived mainly from hunting and collecting honey. They were armed with bows and arrows. They kept dogs as hunting assistants; these were the most valuable possessions of a Vedda. They also always carried a hatchet as a means of defense and a useful tool over their shoulder - it was essential for survival in the jungle. This also applies to those Veddas who live in villages today and actually no longer need the hatchet.

A Vedda area, the Paguwa , had the diameter of a day's march and was marked with arrows stuck in the ground. The settlements, mostly no larger than seven houses, were only ever inhabited by one family. Property was inherited in the paternal line, while the relationship was defined through the line of the mother. The Veddas lived in strict monogamy.

The originally living Veddas also began to practice horticulture. In the Chena , an area fenced in with felled trees, the women grew corn , pumpkins and beans , and recently also rice .

Relationship with modern civilization

The royal clan is highly respected among the Sinhalese and Tamils, and some legends still surround them today. The king previously held such a high position in Sri Lanka that his authority corresponded to that of the president. If he had any concern, he only had to send a messenger to the next village and was soon picked up in a limousine to meet the President. The Veddas were well aware of the modern civilization of the rest of the country, but they did not particularly value it. In the meantime the relationship has deteriorated more and more: The Veddas have trouble asserting themselves in today's Sri Lanka and asserting their own interests.

The Veddas that no longer live in the jungle have also received some of their old rituals and customs .

To this day, the natives have kept their cult of the dead and in times of need they still perform their dances to invoke the dead. They believe in various spirits (deceased relatives as well as nature spirits ) that they ask for luck and success in hunting. Their originally animistic local religion has mixed with Buddhist or Hindu beliefs over time .

Nothing has changed about the wedding ceremony either. A man willing to marry has to ask for her hand from the bride's father. For this purpose he brings him gifts such as honey, betel leaves , coconuts, rice and meat. Marriage is only possible within a clan that has to agree to this wedding. The wedding ritual itself is simple: if the bride agrees, she ties a ribbon made of the leaf fibers of Sansevieria zeylanica ( called niyande ) around the groom's waist to seal the covenant . The same fibers have also been used for bow tendons (diya lanuva) . This wedding knot remains, but is renewed from time to time. As a dowry, the bride brings useful things into the marriage, such as hunting dogs, pots, or an ax.

The Veddas are threatened with the same fate as most traditional ethnic groups : Due to assimilation , the independent culture and language of the Veddas will disappear in the foreseeable future. Only a few communities still try to actively preserve the old traditions.

literature

  • Rolf Bökemeier (text), Lars Björn (pictures): The deadly hushed up are still alive. In: Geo . Volume 12, No. 3, March 1987, pp. 118-132.
  • Viktor Ottmann: The end of the Weddas. In: Reclam's universe. Volume 37, No. 2, 1921, pp. 505/506 (with 2 illustrations).

Web links

Commons : Veddas  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. a b c Entry: Wanniya-laeto. In: Nativeplanet.org. Shoreline WA, USA, as of 2004, accessed on May 8, 2019 (English); Non-governmental organization for the preservation of indigenous cultures; Quote: "Estimated Population: 2000 (2002, Wiveca Stegeborn) [...] Level of Assimilation: Mostly assimilated, a few communities try to maintain traditions".
  2. a b c Ethnologue entry: Veddah: A language of Sri Lanka. Retrieved May 8, 2019; Quote: “Ethnic population: 2,500 (2002). Location: Baddulla, Kandy, Matale, Nuwara Eliya, and Polonnaruwa districts in eastern mountains; Moneragala district. "
  3. ^ Wilhelm Geiger: An Etymological Glossary of the Sinhalese Language. Colombo 1941, reprint: New Delhi 1997, p. 161 (English).
  4. James Brow, Michael Woost: Vedda. In: Encyclopedia.com. 1996, accessed on May 8, 2019 .
  5. Richard Boyle: Knox's Words: A Study of the Words of Sri Lankan Origin Or Association First Used in English Literature by Robert Knox and Recorded in the Oxford English Dictionary . Visidunu Publication, 2004, ISBN 978-955-9170-67-9 ( google.no ).
  6. admin@orthosie.com: வேடன் | அகராதி. In: Tamil Dictionary. University of Madras Lexicon, accessed May 8, 2019 .
  7. Compare to the music of the Vedda Max Wertheimer : Music of the Wedda. In: Edited volumes of the international music society. Volume 11. Leipzig 1910, pp. 300-309.
  8. ^ Assif Hussein: The lion and the sword: An Ethnological Study of Sri Lanka. Volume 1. Colombo 2001, ISBN 978-955-97262-0-3 , pp. 39 and 42.