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A group of people from the ethnic Veddas community showing the hunting dance , in Dambana , Mahiyangana , Sri Lanka . August 10 , 2008 . Sri Lankas ethnic Veddas or ÒWanniya laetoÓ , the forest dwellers preserve a direct line of descent from the islands original Neolithic community dating from at least 16 , 000 BC and probably far earlier according to current scientific opinion . Even today , the Wanniya laeto community retains much of its own distinctive prehistoric cultural memory , and time tested knowledge of their forest habitat that has enabled their ancestor revering culture to meet the diverse challenges to their collective identity and survival . With the impending extinction of Wanniya laeto culture , however , Sri Lanka and the world stand to lose a rich body of indigenous lore and living ecological wisdom . In Dambana of Mahiyangana , a very small group from the community , act as a troop and show visitors how they used to live in the past . ? |
