සිංහල ආහාර සංස්කෘතිය හා බැඳුණු අස්පර්ශනීය ජනශ්‍රැතිකාංගයක් වන තේරවිලි සම්ප්‍රදාය පිළිබඳ මානව විද්‍යාත්මක අධ්‍යයනයක් An Anthropological Exploration of Thēravili (puzzles): An Intangible Folkloric Tradition Embedded in Sinhala Food Culture

Abstract

Among many intangible cultural heritage components of Sri Lanka’s rich and varied cultural elements are oral traditions. Among folk songs, folk poems, an̆ḍahæra and chants which fall under the oral tradition, the puzzle/ riddles (thēravili) tradition is unique. These puzzles can be described as a question-and-answer method used by ancient people to display their knowledge for entertainment. Among various puzzles in Sinhala folklore, puzzles created about various types of food are found. The research question is what puzzles have been created about food in the Sri Lankan puzzle tradition, and the objective of this study is to study how Sinhala folklore has been built through puzzles about food. This study has been conducted using the content analysis methodology which comes under the descriptive research category. The study takes an anthropological approach, collecting and analyzing data using qualitative research techniques. The study is based entirely on secondary sources. It also uses literature as a method of data collection and data from people who have studied folklore under library survey methodology. According to the information in the study, it is clear that there are many puzzles created about various food. These include food-related customs and beliefs, etc. The colors, shapes, hues, qualities, etc. which are necessary to identify food are presented through these puzzles. Accordingly, it appears that the food culture embedded in folklore provides a lot of important information about various food through the tradition of puzzles. This makes it clear that the importance of food, their nutritional value, how to prepare them, and the customs associated with each food are transmitted to society.