Psychosocial and Biological Characteristics of the Veddas in Anuradhapura District: The Interplay between Tradition and Modernization

Abstract

The Vedda community in Sri Lanka, historically recognized as the island's indigenous inhabitants, is currently undergoing a critical phase of sociocultural and biological transition. This research focuses specifically on the Vedda populations residing in the Anuradhapura district, a subgroup often distinct from the more geographically isolated Bintenne Veddas. The study investigates the complex interplay between their traditional psychosocial structures—such as the matrilineal clan system (Wariga), animistic rituals, and kinship bonds—and the pressures of modernization, including agricultural resettlement, educational assimilation, and intermarriage. Biologically, the research examines genetic assimilation and health transitions resulting from lifestyle shifts from hunter-gatherer subsistence to sedentary agriculture. Using a mixed-method approach involving ethnographic observations and secondary biological data analysis, the study reveals that while the biological distinctiveness of the Anuradhapura Veddas is diminishing due to admixture with the North Central Sinhalese peasantry, traces of their unique psychosocial identity persist in syncretic religious practices and social stratification. The findings suggest that modernization has led to a "dual identity" crisis, where traditional biological and psychological traits are being rapidly reconfigured.