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Economic Role of Women in Sri Lanka: A Historical Perspective

The economy is a social science and, as such, should 
take into account the practices of all components of the society, of men as 
well as women. Therefore, it can be identified that a significant relationship 
between women and the economy in history should be investigated broadly. Considering 
the economic history of ancient Sri Lanka, women’s labour commitment depended 
on both the social necessities and the nature of the agro-economic system. It 
can be argued that women in ancient times have made a considerable contribution 
not only to household needs but also to agricultural activities. However, their 
economic role has not been taken into account in relation to the country’s 
economy due to patriarchal ideology and the history of the country which was 
built under the dominance of males in South Asian societies. The major 
objective of this study is to examine how women contribute to the country’s 
economy and investigate how women’s labour role can be recognized in the 
society in Sri Lanka. According to the periodization of Sri Lankan history, the 
ancient and medieval periods are covered through the study due to time 
limitation. The study was based on primary and secondary data gathered from 
literature surveys directly related to the issues addressed in this study. The 
issues of women’s economic situation have been discussed by feminist historians 
within the feminist theoretical approach, and they have developed a broader 
discussion regarding the economic involvement of women in the context of 
patriarchal society in South Asian countries. Accordingly, as a theoretical 
perspective in this paper feminist theoretical approach is used within the 
context of feminist historiography. The study revealed the factors regarding 
women’s economic role with special attention to the various fields that women’s 
involvement as workers in the selected period. According to the literary and 
archaeological sources, it can be emphasized that women have functioned in 
various fields, including activities related to the agricultural economy, 
internal trade affairs, animal husbandry, various other industries, and 
teaching. Women’s labour role and direct involvement in the economic sector 
increased with socio-economic changes that took place in the country from time 
to time. Furthermore, it can be recognized that women’s role in economic 
standing directly affected women to increase their social development.