Sinhalese | Research & Encyclopedia Articles

The Sinhalese are a predominant ethnic group in the multicultural society of Sri Lanka, an island that is located in the Indian Ocean off the southeast coast of India. The Sinhalese constitute approximately 74 percent of Sri Lanka's 19.4 million people, followed by the Tamils, who make up approximately 18 percent of the population. Taken from a historical perspective, the ethnic structure of Sri Lanka has been largely influenced by colonialists and migrants. The term "Sinhalese" is also used to refer to Sinhala, the dominant Indo-Aryan language of Sri Lanka.

According to an old legend, the Sinhalese are descended from a lion. The literal meaning of the word sinha in Hindi is lion. In historical terms, the Sinhalese claim to have descended from the Aryan peoples of northern India. Under King Vijaya, the Sinhalese conquered the aboriginal people known as Vedda as early as 550 BCE. The Tamils arrived from southern India around the first century CE.

Approximately 93 percent of the entire Sinhalese population are Buddhists. Theravada Buddhism is the predominant sect. Sinhalese Buddhists fall into two categories: low-country Sinhalese and Kandyan Sinhalese. Low-country Sinhalese, constituting 60 percent of all Sinhalese, are modern in outlook and liberal in their approach. In contrast, the Kandyans are known for conservatism and are firmly committed to upholding their historical traditions and cultural values. By and large, all Buddhist Sinhalese are intent on preserving their distinct Buddhist identity.

Historically, the Sinhalese connections with India are traceable to Buddhism, which arrived in Sri Lanka in the third century BCE via India during the great Maurya empire (c. 324–c. 200 BCE) of King Asoka (273–232 BCE). With the demise of the Maurya empire, Buddhism virtually disappeared from India, but it grew much stronger in Sri Lanka.

The influence of Buddhism on the social and cultural life of Sinhalese people is evident in their observance of such rituals as bodhi puja. It is believed that the special devotions that are undertaken in bodhi puja will cure patients suffering from incurable diseases as well as grant the devotees peace and happiness. The faithful also perform baliya (a kind of traditional dance) in the hope of receiving blessings from Buddha and alleviation of misfortunes and economic sufferings.

Sinhalese literature also shows the primacy of Buddhism as a cultural influence. Buddhist chronicles originally written in Pali were later translated into Sinhala; stanzas from these chronicles are often recited by Sinhalese. Early prose works are filled with Buddhist tales.

At the apex of the Sinhalese social order is the goigama, a class of cultivators who consider themselves superior in status to other Sinhalese. Unlike in India, however, the caste system in the Sinhalese community is not institutionalized, and there is not any predominant priestly caste. Janavamsa (1848), a famous poem in Sinhala, describes numerous caste divisions among the Sinhalese people.

Low-country Sinhalese have higher incomes and a higher literacy rate than Kandyan Sinhalese, 90 percent of whom live in rural areas. The 1996–1997 literacy rate among rural people was approximately 87 percent, whereas the literacy rate among urban dwellers was approximately 92 percent. Low-country Sinhalese hold more high-status government jobs than do Kandyan Sinhalese.

There are more low-country Sinhalese than Kandyan Sinhalese in maritime areas, and fishing is one of the main occupations of low-country Sinhalese, who engage in it not at the subsistence level (except perhaps in certain villages in the deep south), but as a lucrative money-earning venture. In the deep south, many low-country Sinhalese are employed in the salt production industry. Coconut-based industries have been key to the financial success of low-country Sinhalese as a whole. The distilling of arrack (an alcoholic beverage distilled from a fermented mash of malted rice) has also led to sizeable capital accumulation and the rise of a Sinhalese bourgeoisie.

The Kandyans, who dwell inland, are largely farmers. Status among Kandyans is determined by the possession of land. During colonial times, the British held large tracts of land as plantations, leading to a shortage of land for the Kandyan peasantry. Those families that did possess large tracts of land followed the lead of the British and cultivated plantation crops.

Sinhalese life today is marred by ethnic conflict with Sri Lankan Tamils, which flared into violence in 1983. Over sixty thousand people have lost their lives in the conflict so far. Its roots lie in the discriminatory policies of the Sri Lankan government against Sri Lankan Tamils in terms of employment, language (Sinhala was made the nation's official language in the 1970s), and appointment to high administrative positions in government. As a consequence, the demand for a separate state by the Liberation Tigers of Eelam (LTTE) has gained momentum within the Tamil community. The situation took the ugliest turn in 1987, when it became virtually impossible for the government to control widespread internal violence. There have been a number of peace initiatives, including one undertaken by the Norwegians in 2000 that was still ongoing in 2002. The lives of both the Sinhalese majority and the Tamil minority will be vastly improved when a lasting peace is attained.

B. M. Jain

Kapferer, B. (1988) Legends of People, Myths, and State: Violence, Intolerance, and Political Culture in Sri Lanka and Australia. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.

Manor, J., ed. (1984) Sri Lanka in Change and Crisis. London: Croom Helm.

Spencer, J. (1990) Sri Lanka: History and Roots of Conflict. London: Routledge.

Tambiah, S. J. (1992) Buddhism Betrayed: Religion, Politics, and Violence in Sri Lanka. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Wijesinha, Rajiva. (1986) Current Crisis in Sri Lanka. New Delhi: Navrang.

Wilson, A. Jeyratnam. (1979) Politics in Sri Lanka 1947–1979. London: Macmillan.

This complete Sinhalese contains 923 words. This article contains 1,301 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page).