The first humans to settle down in Sri Lanka are thought to be the Veddahs (Adivasi). Veddahs and Aborigines of Australia are two of the most primitive communities living in this planet at present. There is sufficient archaeological evidence that humans first evolved in the African continent and migrated to various parts of the world. When Sri Lanka was connected to India by the Adam’s Bridge from between Talaimannar and Rameswaran, these people are thought to have crossed over.
Another view is that in prehistoric times Africa, Madagascar, India, Sri Lanka and Australia were a single land mass referred to as Gondwanaland. There are similar groups of people found in India, Indonesia, Java, Sumatra, Malaysia, the Andaman Islands and Australia. The Aborigines of Australia for example have some physical features similar to the Veddahs of Sri Lanka. Veddahs are known to have been resident in Sri Lanka long before the arrival of Prince Vijaya from Northern India to Sri Lanka in the 5th Century.
Origins
According to the Mahavamsa, the Veddahs are said to be the descendants of Jeevahatta and Disala, the son and daughter of Prince Vijaya and Kuveni, the Yaksha Queen. There is no evidence to support this view, but Veddahs believe that they are descendants of Kuveni.
Most of the Veddahs eventually settled down in the Central and Eastern parts of the country. Some however, settled down along the coast from Batticaloa to Trincomalee and are referred to as the Coastal Veddahs. Archeologists have found human skeletal remains mainly in and around caves in Balangoda area. Carbon dating shows that these skeletal remains are from 12,000 to 38,000 years B.C. Belilena in Kitulgala, Pahiyangala Cave in Bulathsinghala and Batadomba Lena near Kuruvita are some of the well known sites. As these remains were first found around Balangoda, they were named to be that of the Balangoda Manavaya or Balangoda ‘man’. Some skeletal features of the Balangoda Manavaya and that of the Veddahs are also found to be similar, in terms of diet, lifestyle and implements used by the Gal Veddahs. As such, most Archeologists believe that Veddahs are the descendants of the Balangoda Manavaya recognised as Homo sapiens balangodensis.
Historical evidence
When Prince Vijaya landed in Sri Lanka around 452 B.C, there was a fairly developed civilisation. At that time, Sri Lanka had two main clans called Naga and Yaksha. They had migrated to Sri Lanka from India according to some Archeologists while others believe that these two clans were indigenous races of Sri Lanka, descendants of Ravana Era. Others believe that only Nagas came from India and Yaksha were the original indigenous people, descendants from King Ravana’s period.
Veddahs are very dark (blackish) in complexion, short in stature, males are around 5’ – 5’2”, females 4’8” – 4’10”, have a flat bridge of the nose and curly hair. They never bathe or comb their hair, are very shy and rarely smile. They have their own indigenous language but only a few uses it at present. They fear water and don’t drink from a vessel, but rather like animals. They have traditional cultural events with dance and song but without using any musical instruments.
There were two types of Veddahs, the Gal Veddahs (Stone Age) and Gam Veddahs. The former lived in caves, used the bow and arrow and traps to kill animals. They also carried a small axe mainly for protection from animal attacks, especially the bear and to collect honey. The common animals killed by them were monkeys, monitor lizards (Thalagoya), deer and wild boar. They caught fish by poisoning water sources using poisonous fruits and seeds, especially during the dry season when rivers dry up and pools of water collect in rivers. They had dogs that helped them to catch small animals such as the mouse deer, hare, monitor lizards etc. In addition to birds and meat, they ate yams, fruits, and bees’ honey.
Food habits
Gal Veddahs never cultivate the land and live only from the resources in the jungle and are known as hunter gatherers. They never associate with Sinhala or Tamil villagers, except when they require arrow heads. They visit the village blacksmith at night and leave honey and flesh. And in return the blacksmith makes the arrow heads and keeps them at the same spot. The Gal Veddahs come at night and collect them. Veddahs had been very good archers and could kill deer or sambhur using the bow and arrow. A king of Kandy had a regiment of Veddah archers in his army and they fought the Dutch along with Sinhalese soldiers.
However, very few Veddas can use the bow and arrow at present. Dr. R.L. Spittel who did extensive research on Veddas and helped them in many ways records in his book Vanished Trails, that in 1902 the last six families of Gal Veddahs under the leadership of Neela had lived in the ‘Pihlegoda’ Cave.
Gam Vaddas on the other hand, associated with villagers, cultivated land and live in villages. Most of them have intermarried Sinhalese or Tamils. At present there are only Gam Veddahs in Sri Lanka.
Different clans
There are several clans among the Veddahs such as Morana, Uruvarige, Unapana. For each group there is a leader and the forest is also demarcated for the use of each group, one group is forbidden to hunt in another group’s territory.
Veddahs marry very young; a male of 16-17 years commonly marries a girl of 12- 14 years when she attains puberty. The prospective bridegroom visits the girl’s family with deer or monkey flesh, yams and honey as presents to the girl’s parents.
Usually the parents of the prospective bridegroom accompany him. A necklace made of beads and a cloth is presented to the bride- to- be. The girl ties a string (Diya Lanuwa) around the waist of her future husband and the wedding ceremony is over. Both families have a meal together and the newly married couple leaves on their honeymoon to the forest.
Lifespan
The life of a Veddah is short. Most die following bear attacks and snake bites. The average life span is around 50 – 60 years. They bury their dead in shallow pits and cover them with earth and leaves. They fear the dead and thus do not come to the burial site for a long time. They do not have a religion as such, but worship the spirits of their dead (spirit worshippers).
The decline of Veddahs was mainly due to the clearing of large areas of forests for irrigation projects, illnesses caused by mixing with villagers, and the growing of Ganja which some of them are addicted to.
The introduction of guns to Veddahs made them discontinue the use of the bow and arrow and the art of archery gradually ceased. If you are interested in seeing Gam Veddahs visit Dambana, Hennanigala or Pallebedda. You will notice people with some features of Veddas described earlier.