Gender and Arrack Drinking among Muslim, Hindu, Santal, and Oraon Communities in North-Western Villages of Bangladesh

Abstract

Arrack, indigenously fermented from palm and date juice, is locally known as tari and commonly consumed by socio-culturally lower economic groups of all communities in northwestern villages of Bangladesh. This study examines and compares gender dimensions of arrack drinking pattern in association with respective community religiosity, and socio-cultural and gender statuses among the Muslims, Hindu, Santal, and Oraon drinkers in the Mongaltara, Akkelpur, Sherpur, and Ekrapara villages of Rasulpur Union of Bangladesh. A total of 391 respondents (Muslim, n = 109, Hindu, n = 103, Santal, n = 89, and Oraon, n = 90) with males and females selected by simple random sampling were intensively interviewed singly by semi-structured questionnaire. The results reveal that there are differences in arrack drinking patterns not only in gender norms, but also among the overall communities. It is argued that a respective community's religiosity, gender norms, and drinker's personality and attitude, and socio-cultural pressure and stress directly influence arrack drinking patterns.

Arrack Drinking Patterns among Muslim, Hindu, Santal, and Oraon Communities in the Rasulpur Union of Bangladesh: A Cross-Cultural Perspective

“…However, these communities, with their different fundamental belief systems, maintain different attitudes toward alcohol or arrack drinking or other drugs. Bangladeshi Muslims have abstinent attitudes toward any intoxication influenced by Arabian culture, the Hindus have ambivalent attitudes toward drinking like Indian Hindu culture, and both the Santal and the Oraon have permissive or even overly permissive attitudes toward drinking or use other drugs (Uddin, 2008a(Uddin, , 2008b.…”

“…That is the social drinkers always prefer soft arrack, the moderate drinkers prefer medium arrack, and the chronic drinkers consume more hard arrack drinks in their drinking, depending on their personal choice and cultural (religious) attitude toward drinking, psycho-social problems, and status of drinking habit (Karim, 2007;Uddin, 2008a). In this respect, our findings show that the Oraon (67.78%) and the Santal (59.55%) drinkers consumed more hard arrack drinks due to their severe socio-economic and psychological problems and their culturally positive attitudes toward arrack drinking compared to the Muslim (58.72%) and Hindu (19.42%) drinkers.…”

“…The Hindu drinkers (59.22%) consumed more medium (semi-soft) drinks compared to the other community's drinkers (14.61% for Santal, 11.93% for Muslim, and 7.78% for Oraon, respectively). Some relevant studies Uddin, 2008a) indicated that most of the arrack drinkers in the Oraon and Santal community were the chronic and (also moderate) drinkers who always preferred hard arrack and the least of them used either semi-soft or soft drinks. According to the research findings, the Santal and Oraon arrack drinkers who were in more severe psycho-social stresses due to their socio-economic problems and involved in arrack drinking for 5 years or more, drank more hard arrack rather than medium or soft arrack drinks than the other communities' drinkers, such as Muslim and Hindu.…”

“…Although any alcohol drinking pattern is not socially or legally permitted in the mainstream culture of Bangladesh, recent studies (Banu, 2003;Begum, 2003;Karim, 2007;Khan, 2004;Uddin, 2008a;Uddin, Karim, Uddin, & Hossain, 2006) reveal that alcohol and arrack drinking is increasing day by day among various age, occupational, ethnic, and social groups in both rural and urban areas of this country. Arrack is one of the forms of alcoholic beverages or liquor.…”

“…The chronic drinking pattern of the husbands associated with these factors affected family violence in the study village. In another study by Uddin (2008a), 391 samples selected by simple random sampling from Muslim, Hindu, Santal, and Oraon community aged 20 to 40, explored that gender norms of the Muslim and Hindu encouraged males and prohibited females in arrack drinking, while the Santal and Oraon communities' gender norms encouraged both male and female in that behavior in Rasulpur Union of Bangladesh. The study also explored that the male drinkers, more than the female drinkers, were involved in moderate and chronic drinking and consumed more hard arrack drinks and more frequently drank arrack that significantly varied between men and women among the four religious communities.…”