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Sri Lanka
Chapter 2. The Society and Its Environment
![[GIF]](51_files/lk02_00a.gif)
Woman bringing "ambula" (noon meal) to the field
SRI LANKA LIES practically in the center of the Indian Ocean and thus has
climatic and cultural links with three continents. Monsoon winds, driving
against Sri Lanka's peaks, support lush vegetation on the southern half of the
island, but the northern half is a dry zone. The winds affect human culture as
well, having brought wave after wave of immigrants and merchants following the
southerly trade routes. Outsiders found a wide range of ecological niches on the
coast, on the plains, or in the mountains, and they built a remarkably
variegated civilization. Merchants long have sought Sri Lanka as the source of
pearls, jewels, spices, and tea. Visitors for centuries have marvelled at the
beauty and great diversity of the island.
The South Asian landmass to the north has strongly influenced Sri Lankan
culture in the past and continues to do so. From an outlander's perspective,
some of the main aspects of Sri Lankan society--language, caste, family
structure--are regional variants of Indian civilization. From the perspective of
the islander, however, the Indian influence is but the largest part of a
continuing barrage of stimuli coming to Sri Lanka from all sides. The people of
the island have absorbed these influences and built their own civilization.
The Sinhalese
(see Glossary), a distinct ethnic group speaking the Sinhala
(see Glossary) language and practicing a variant of Theravada
Buddhism (see Glossary), comprise the majority--74 percent--of the
population, and their values dominate public life. There are, however,
substantial minority groups. The Tamils, speaking the Tamil language and
generally practicing Hinduism, comprise almost 18 percent of the population.
Muslims, many of whom speak Tamil as their main language, make up 7 percent of
the populace. Each of the main ethnic groups is subdivided into several major
categories, depending on variables of religion or geography. There also are
sizable Christian minorities among the Sinhalese and Tamil. People living in the
central highland region of the country generally adhere more closely to their
traditional ethnic customs than lowland dwellers.
Caste creates other social divisions. The Goyigama
(see Glossary) caste of the Sinhalese--traditionally associated with land
cultivation--is dominant in population and public influence, but in the lowlands
other castes based on commercial activities are influential. The Tamil Vellala
caste resembles the Goyigama in its dominance and traditional connection with
agriculture, but it is completely separate from the Sinhalese caste hierarchy.
Within their separate caste hierarchies, Sinhalese and Tamil communities are
fragmented through customs that separate higher from lower orders. These include
elaborate rules of etiquette and a nearly complete absence of intercaste
marriages. Differences in wealth arising from the modern economic system have
created, however, wide class cleavages that cut across boundaries of caste,
religion, and language. Because of all these divisions, Sri Lankan society is
complex, with numerous points of potential conflict.
The population of Sri Lanka has grown considerably since independence in
1948, and in the 1980s was increasing by approximately 200,000 people or 1.37
percent each year. Because of this population pressure, the government has faced
a major development problem as it has attempted to reconcile the divergent
interests of caste, class, and ethnic groups while trying to ensure adequate
food, education, health services, and career opportunities for the rapidly
expanding population. Politicians and officials have attempted to meet these
needs through a form of welfare socialism, providing a level of support services
that is comparatively high for a developing nation. Building on colonial
foundations, Sri Lanka has created a comprehensive education system, including
universities, that has produced one of the best-educated populations in Asia. A
free state-run health system provides basic care that has raised average life
expectancy to the highest level in South Asia. Ambitious housing and sanitation
plans, although incomplete, promised basic amenities to all citizens by the year
2000. In 1988 the government addressed the nutritional deficiencies of the poor
through a subsidized food stamp program and free nutrition programs for children
and mothers.
The crucial problem facing Sri Lanka's plural society is whether it can
evolve a form of socialism that will address the needs of all groups, or whether
frustrated aspirations will engender further conflict. In the field of
education, for example, excellent accomplishments in elementary schooling have
emerged alongside bitter competition for coveted places in the university
system; this competition has fueled ethnic hatred between the Sinhalese and
Tamil communities. In a land with limited resources, the benefits of social
welfare programs highlight the inadequacies of progress for some regional or
ethnic groups. In these circumstances, caste, ethnic, or religious differences
become boundaries between warring parties, and a person's language or place of
worship becomes a sign of political affiliation. The social organization of Sri
Lanka is thus an important component of the politics and economy in the
developing nation.
Data as of October 1988
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