Gabbasov Sergey - Hidden Hunter-Gatherers of Indian Ocean. With appendix стр 3.

The Mlabri traditionally used bamboo tubes for boiling and wooden skewer for roasting. Large pieces of meat were thrown directly into the fire. They ate and shared everything with all of members in a band (Ikeya & Nakai 2009; Pookajorn 1992).

The Mlabri’s traditional lifestyle continued until around 1975 (Trier 2008), but it has gradually changed since then. The main cause was deforestation (Rischel 1995) due to agricultural expansion, logging and road construction (Delang 2002).

The Mlabri are still practicing hunting and gathering today, but it is much more limited. Mlabri’s consumption of food directly hunted or gathered from the forest has decreased since 1970s and at present amounts to only 7% of average food weight. Under the influence of cash economy, they sometimes sell the the games to the Hmong because they can get more food from that amount of money. The money or bought food is sharing according to the traditional social principle of sharing (Nimonjiya 2015).

Nimonjiya informs that sedentarization also has an impact on the social life of the Mlabri. Young generations were born and raised in permanent settlements, the adults usually work so hard in the fields that they didn’t have time to go into the forest (Nimonjiya 2015). Mlabri traditional ecological knowledge is losing ground – in place of the oral history TV attracts all of them nowadays (Nimonjiya & Holzinger 2014), only during the rainy season when power supply stops occasionally do parents tell their children old stories (Nimonjiya 2014).

Estimated consumption of food in % by weight (Trier 2008):

Marriage rites as performed in most societies do not exist in Mlabri society. Since its population is very limited, the marriage of any couple is known without any public rite (Herda 2002). Remarriage can be done only after a divorce or the death of the former spouse. One can’t marry a person who is a relative. The rate of divorce and changing of spouses is rather high in this society. There are several normative rules that have to be abided:

– Sexual relations between close kin are prohibited. There is the incest taboo which controls the relations between siblings including co-siblings.

– Sexual relations between cousins, including both cross and parallel cousins, are also prohibited.

– Premarital sexual experimentation is not allowed in any case.

– Sexual relations can’t be done with anyone other than his spouse (Paiyaphrohm 1990).

Pookajorn (1988, 1985) gives the information about the mobility of Mlabri. Their residental moves per year are 24 times, average distance is 19 km (with total distance of 196 km). Logistical mobility is 1 day and primary biomass is 35,7 kg per square meter. Total area of mobility is 2826 square kilometers.

Music and dances were very important in the traditional life of the Mlabri. Music is a part of recreational and ritual activities of human society. For Mlabri music is a relaxation when they success in hunting or have a celebration, a festival, for spirit sacrifice or burial ceremony. The only one musical instrument they have is a “khaen”, and a type of songs accompanied by a khaen is named “molum Mlabri” (Paiyaphrohm 1990).

Khaen is a type of musical instrument (mouth organ), commonly found in Northeast Thailand. It is made of bamboo tubes, hollow wood and beewax. No Mlabri musicians make it, that may indicate that Mlabri obtain it from outsiders or they had already forgotten how to make it. Moreover, it is remarkable that Mlabri can’t play Hmong khaen even though they have been in contact with them for a long time. Besides Hmong believe that khaen is a high-class musical instrument, they aren’t allowed to play it without some ceremony except for themselves, so Mlabri have no occasion to play on it.

Mlabri songs are in both Mlabri language and in Lao (Harris 1986). It is possible that they copy from Lao songs, which are called “molum”, because they had lived in Laos before migrating to Thailand. The songs’ tempo is rather slow. They rarely have a rhyme between words or sentences. A singer will chant with the melody made by khaen. The singer continues singing impromptu songs, other persons will dance slowly. Their dancing is kneeing a little bit and raising hands with turning wrist like a circle. Someone will dance like animal’s walking and hopping. Sometimes they will clap to give a rhythm or use bamboo tubes for this purpose. They sing and dance till they are tired and then they finish (Paiyaphrohm 1990).

MONKEYS, SNAKES AND FOREST BEINGS

VEDDAHS

Cave dwelling of Wanniyala-aetto

Wanniyala-aetto (“wanniyalätto” – “forest beings”; “me-ätto” – “this being”) live in forests east of central mountains, between Mahiyangana and Maha Oya. This is the most “classical” Veddah, strongly associated with the indigenous people of Sri Lanka.

The physical measurements on the living Veddahs and the skeletal remains available help to fix the definitions of Veddahs anthropometrically, and not only with certain accuracy, but according to certain criteria the physical measurements can be used to establish the racial type and also to compare it with other types that are known. On such a basis the anthropologists have established a racial type called “Veddid” or “Veddoid” (Hill 1941).

Hominids were probably present in Sri Lanka by 130 000 BP, possibly 300 000 BP (Deraniyagala 1992). The word “Veddah” is derived from the Sanskrit word “Vyadha” → “Viaddha” → “Veddha” → “Veddah”, and means “a hunter” or “one who live by the chase”. Another synonym for Veddah is “sabara”, which has two meanings – “Veddah” (hunter) and “an area having sabara trees”. Sabaragamuwa province may have acquired this name because it is considered to be the original habitat of the Veddahs (Wijesekera 1964). Wijesekera (1964) supposed that the aboriginal inhabitants of Sri Lanka who came into contact or conflict with the numerous newcomers from India absorbed the Indian settlers, acquired their status and language and, with some admixture of Dravidian blood or without it, became the Kandyan Sinhalese. They may have occupied the caves before the early Christian era. When Buddhism became established and the caves were occupied by monks, these people left them. These were re-occupied much later but that time they had lost their traditions and language (Kennedy 1974).

The first record of indigenous people in Sri Lanka appears in two quasi-historical scriptures – the “Dipavamsa” (4

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Within the central Sri Lanka is situated “Mahayangana” (“Alutnuwara”) – the ancient assembling place of the “Yakkas” where, according to the “Mahawansa”, Lord Buddha appeared and struck terror into their hearts before propounding his doctrines. The “Mahavamsa” (Chapter 7) has recorded the story of the Yakkahs at Mahiyangana: “From Lanka filled with the Yakkahs, the Yakkahs must be driven forth… Mahiyangana was the customary meeting place of the Yakkahs, there was a great gathering of the Yakkahs dwelling in the Island” (Mahavamsa 1912). In about the time of Mahasena (277—304 A.D.) the Yakkahs appear to have been employed in building water tanks (Parker 1999). Most Wanniyala-aetto can’t read and write, they haven’t read the Sinhalese origin myth in the “Mahavamsa”, but the epics have been sung or told to them by literate Sinhalese. Parts of “Mahavamsa” subsequently been retold among the Wanniyala-aetto themselves until it has become an integrated part of their own history. The mythological history narrates that there were no humans in Sri Lanka, only evil spirits before the Sinhalese conqueror Vijaya arrived. Vijaya had a wife named “Kuveni”, a female spirit from Lanka, and they had a son and a daughter. Those children were the first Wanniyala-aetto. The siblings grew up and reproduced and the present Wanniyala-aetto are, according to the “Mahavamsa”, the result of that relationship. The Wanniyala-aetto who do not embrace the “Mahavamsa” story believe their ancestors have lived on Sri Lanka since time began, and do not trace their descent from any specific progenitor (Stegeborn 1993).