Food Practices among the Santals of Odisha: An Anthropological Enquiry

Abstract

Food is the one of the most vital necessities of life. It is also a prerequisite of nutrition which nourishes the body. The function of the food is to supply nutrients to meet the physiological needs. Food is also integral to our social existence and serves an important function in our daily life. In addition to satisfy social and physical needs, food also satisfies our emotional needs. Santal, one of the tribes with a wider distinction has its own food habits they constitute both domestic and wild food stuff though the latter is at receding trend. They eat both vegetarian as well as non vegetarian. In this paper it is intended to discuss their food habits which have cultural heaving on their choice. The food choice is also delimited by their economic condition and the environmental productivity, thus influencing the nutrition base. The present empirical study is an attempt to highlight the food habits among the Santal society. This study was conducted in the Santal village of Bantali Rakhasahi in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha.