Bangladesh was founded as a "democratic, secular, socialist state," but the new state represented the triumph of a Bangladeshi Muslim culture and language.
The administration degenerated into corruption, and Mujib attempted to create a one-party state. On 15 August he was assassinated, along with much of his family, by army officers. Since that time, Bangladesh has been both less socialistic and less secular. General Ziaur Rahman became martial law administrator in December and president in On 30 May , Zia was assassinated by army officers. His rule had been violent and repressive, but he had improved national economy.
After a short-lived civilian government, a bloodless coup placed Army chief of staff General Mohammed Ershad in office as martial law administrator; he later became president.
Civilian opposition increased, and the Awami League, the Bangladesh National Party BNP , and the religious fundamentalist party Jamaat-i-Islami united in a seven-year series of crippling strikes. In December , Ershad was forced to resign. A caretaker government held national elections early in Political factionalism intensified over the next five years, and on 23 June , the Awami League took control of Parliament. National Identity. Bangladeshi national identity is rooted in a Bengali culture that transcends international borders and includes the area of Bangladesh itself and West Bengal, India.
Symbolically, Bangladeshi identity is centered on the struggle for independence from Pakistan. During that struggle, the key elements of Bangladeshi identity coalesced around the importance of the Bengali mother tongue and the distinctiveness of a culture or way of life connected to the floodplains of the region.
Since that time, national identity has become increasingly linked to Islamic symbols as opposed to the Hindu Bengali, a fact that serves to reinforce the difference between Hindu West Bengal and Islamic Bangladesh. Being Bangladeshi in some sense means feeling connected to the natural land—water systems of the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and other rivers that drain into the Bay of Bengal. There is an envisioning of nature and the annual cycle as intensely beautiful, as deep green paddy turns A man eating a meal on his houseboat in Sunderbans National Park.
Fish and rice are a common part of the diet. Even urban families retain a sense of connectedness to this rural system. The great poets of the region, Rabindranath Tagore and Kazi Nurul Islam have enshrined the Bengali sense of the beauty and power of the region's nature.
Ethnic Relations. The most significant social divide is between Muslims and Hindus. In millions of Hindus moved west into West Bengal, while millions of Muslims moved east into the newly created East Pakistan. Violence occurred as the columns of people moved past each other. Today, in most sections of the country, Hindus and Muslims live peacefully in adjacent areas and are connected by their economic roles and structures.
Both groups view themselves as members of the same culture. From to there was sustained cultural conflict over the control of the southeastern Chittagong Hill Tracts.
That area is home to a number of tribal groups that resisted the movement of Bangladeshi Muslims into their territory. In , a peace accord granted those groups a degree of autonomy and self-governance. These tribal groups still do not identify themselves with the national culture. Bangladesh is still primarily a rural culture, and the gram or village is an important spatial and cultural concept even for residents of the major cities.
Most people identify with a natal or ancestral village in the countryside. Houses in villages are commonly rectangular, and are dried mud, bamboo, or red brick structures with thatch roofs. Many are built on top of earthen or wooden platforms to keep them above the flood line. Houses have little interior decoration, and wall space is reserved for storage. Furniture is minimal, often consisting only of low stools.
People sleep on thin bamboo mats. Houses have verandas in the front, and much of daily life takes place under their eaves rather than indoors. A separate smaller mud or bamboo structure serves as a kitchen rana ghor , but during the dry season many women construct hearths and cook in the household courtyard. Rural houses are simple and functional, but are not generally considered aesthetic showcases.
The village household is a patrilineal extended compound linked to a pond used for daily household needs, a nearby river that provides fish, trees that provide fruit mango and jackfruit especially , and rice fields. The village and the household not only embody important natural motifs but serve as the locus of ancestral family identity.
Urban dwellers try to make at least one trip per year to "their village. Architectural styles in the cities show numerous historical influences, including Moghul and Islamic motifs with curved arches, windows, and minarets, and square British colonial wood and concrete construction.
The National Parliament building Shongshad Bhabon in Dhaka, designed by the American architect Louis Kahn, reflects a synthesis of western modernity and curved Islamic-influenced spaces.
The National Monument in Savar, a wide-based spire that becomes narrower as it rises, is the symbol of the country's liberation. Because of the population density, space is at a premium. People of the same sex interact closely, and touching is common. On public transportation strangers often are pressed together for long periods.
In public spaces, women are constrained in their movements and they rarely enter the public sphere unaccompanied. Men are much more free in their movement. The rules regarding the gender differential in the use of public space are less closely adhered to in urban areas than in rural areas.
Food in Daily Life. Rice and fish are the foundation of the diet; a day without a meal with rice is nearly inconceivable.
Fish, meats, poultry, and vegetables are cooked in spicy curry torkari sauces that incorporate cumin, coriander, cloves, cinnamon, garlic, and other spices. Muslims do not consume pork and Hindus do not consume beef. Increasingly common is the preparation of ruti, a whole wheat circular flatbread, in the morning, which is eaten with curries from the night before.
Also important to the diet is dal, a thin soup based on ground lentils, chickpeas, or other legumes that is poured over rice. A sweet homemade yogurt commonly finishes a meal. A typical meal consists of a large bowl of rice to which is added small portions of fish and vegetable curries. Breakfast is the meal that varies the most, being rice- or bread-based.
A favorite breakfast dish is panthabhat, leftover cold rice in water or milk mixed with gur date palm sugar. Food is eaten with the right hand by mixing the curry into the rice and then gathering portions with the fingertips. In city restaurants that cater to foreigners, people may use silverware. Three meals are consumed daily. Water is the most common beverage. Before the meal, the right hand is washed with water above the eating bowl. With the clean knuckles of the right hand the interior of the bowl is rubbed, the water is discarded, and the bowl is filled with food.
After the meal, one washes the right hand again, holding it over the emptied bowl. Snacks include fruits such as banana, mango, and jackfruit, as well as puffed rice and small fried food items. For many men, especially in urbanized regions and bazaars, no day is complete without a cup of sweet tea with milk at a small tea stall, sometimes accompanied by confections. Food Customs at Ceremonial Occasions. At weddings and on important holidays, food plays an important role. At holiday or formal functions, guests are encouraged to eat to their capacity.
At weddings, a common food is biryani, a rice dish with lamb or beef and a blend of spices, particularly saffron. On special occasions, the rice used is one of the finer, thinner-grained types. If biryani is not eaten, a complete multicourse meal is served: foods are brought out sequentially and added to one's rice bowl after the previous course is finished.
A complete dinner may include chicken, fish, vegetable, goat, or beef curries and dal. The final bit of rice is finished with yogurt doi.
On other important occasions, such as the Eid holidays, a goat or cow is slaughtered on the premises and curries are prepared from the fresh meat. Some of the meat is given to relatives and to the poor.
Basic Economy. The only significant natural resource is natural gas. Approximately 75 percent of the workforce is involved in agriculture, and 15 percent and 10 percent are employed in the service and industrial sectors, respectively.
Bangladesh has been characterized as a nation of small, subsistence-based farmers, and nearly all people in rural areas are involved in the production or processing of agricultural goods. The majority of the rural population engages in agricultural production, primarily of rice, jute, pulses, wheat, and some vegetables.
Virtually all agricultural output is consumed within the country, and grain must be imported. The large population places heavy demands on the food-producing sectors of the economy.
The majority of the labor involved in food production is human- and animal-based. Relatively little agricultural export takes place. A Bangladeshi man hanging fish to dry in the sun in Sunderbans. Bangladesh topography is predominantly a low-lying floodplain. In the countryside, typically about ten villages are linked in a market system that centers on a bazaar occurring at least once per week.
On bazaar days, villagers bring in agricultural produce or crafts such as water pots to sell to town and city agents. Farmers then visit kiosks to purchase spices, kerosene, soap, vegetables or fish, and salt. Land Tenure and Property. With a population density of more than two thousand per square mile, land tenure and property rights are critical aspects of survival.
The average farm owner has less than three acres of land divided into a number of small plots scattered in different directions from the household. Property is sold only in cases of family emergency, since agricultural land is the primary means of survival.
Ordinarily, among Muslims land is inherited equally by a household head's sons, despite Islamic laws that specify shares for daughters and wives. Among Hindu farmers inheritance practices are similar. When agricultural land is partitioned, each plot is divided among a man's sons, ensuring that each one has a geographically dispersed holding. The only sections of rural areas that are not privately owned are rivers and paths. Commercial Activities. In rural areas Hindus perform much of the traditional craft production of items for everyday life; caste groups include weavers, potters, iron and gold smiths, and carpenters.
Some of these groups have been greatly reduced in number, particularly weavers, who have been replaced by ready-made clothing produced primarily in Dhaka.
Agriculture accounts for 25 percent of GDP. The major crops are rice, jute, wheat, tea, sugarcane, and vegetables.
Major Industries. In recent years industrial growth has occurred primarily in the garment and textile industries. Jute processing and jute product fabrication remain major industries. Overall, industry accounted for about 28 percent of gross domestic product GDP in Primary export markets are for jute used in carpet backing, burlap, and rope , fish, garments, and textiles. Agriculture accounted for about 25 percent of the GDP in Transporting straw on the Ganges River Delta.
The majority of Bangladeshi, about 75 percent, are agricultural workers. Division of Labor. The division of labor is based on age and education. Young children are economically productive in rural areas, hauling water, watching animals, and helping with postharvest processing. The primary agricultural tasks, however, are performed by men. Education allows an individual to seek employment outside the agricultural sector, although the opportunities for educated young men in rural areas are extremely limited.
A service or industry job often goes to the individual who can offer the highest bribe to company officials. Classes and Castes. The Muslim class system is similar to a caste structure.
The ashraf is a small upperclass of old-money descendants of early Muslim officials and merchants whose roots are in Afghanistan, Turkey, and Iran. Some ashraf families trace their lineage to the Prophet Mohammed. The rest of the population is conceived of as the indigenous majority atraf. This distinction mirrors the Hindu separation between the Brahman and those in lower castes.
While both Muslim and Hindu categories are recognized by educated people, the vast majority of citizens envision class in a more localized, rural context. In rural areas, class is linked to the amount of land owned, occupation, and education.
A landowner with more than five acres is at the top of the socioeconomic scale, and small subsistence farmers are in the middle. At the bottom of the scale are the landless rural households that account for about 30 percent of the rural population. Landowning status reflects socioeconomic class position in rural areas, although occupation and education also play a role.
The most highly educated people hold positions requiring literacy and mathematical skills, such as in banks and government offices, and are generally accorded a higher status than are farmers. Small businessmen may earn as much as those who have jobs requiring an education but have a lower social status. Hindu castes also play a role in the rural economy. Hindu groups are involved in the hereditary occupations that fill the economic niches that support a farming-based economy.
Small numbers of higher caste groups have remained in the country, and some of those people are large landowners, businessmen, and service providers. In urban areas the great majority of people are laborers. There is a middle class of small businessmen and midlevel office workers, and above this is an emerging entrepreneurial group and upper-level service workers. Symbols of Social Stratification. One of the most obvious symbols of class status is dress. The traditional garment for men is the lungi, a cloth tube skirt that hangs to the ankles; for women, the sari is the norm.
The lungi is worn by most men, except those who consider themselves to have high socioeconomic status, among whom pants and shirt are worn. Also indicative of high standing are loose white cotton pajama pants and a long white shirt. White dress among men symbolizes an occupation that does not require physical labor. A man with high standing will not be seen physically carrying anything; that task is left to an assistant or laborer. Saris also serve as class markers, with elaborate and finely worked cloth symbolizing high status.
Poverty is marked by the cheap, rough green or indigo cotton cloth saris of poor women. Gold jewelry indicates a high social standing among women. A concrete-faced house and a ceramic tile roof provide evidence of wealth. An automobile is well beyond the means of most people, and a motorcycle is a sign of status. Color televisions, telephones, and electricity are other symbols associated with wealth.
The People's Republic of Bangladesh is a parliamentary democracy that includes a president, a prime minister, and a unicameral parliament Jayitya Shongshod. Three hundred members of parliament are elected to the seat legislature in local elections held every five years. Thirty seats are reserved for women members of parliament. The prime minister, who is appointed by the president, must have the support of a majority of parliament members.
The president is elected by the parliament every five years to that largely ceremonial post. The country is divided into four divisions, twenty districts, subdistricts, union parishads, and villages. In local politics, the most important political level is the union in rural areas; in urban regions, it is the municipality pourashava.
Members are elected locally, and campaigning is extremely competitive. Leadership and Political Officials. There are more than 50 political parties. Party adherence extends from the national level down to the village, where factions with links to the national parties vie for local control and help solve local disputes. Leaders at the local level are socioeconomically well-off individuals who gain respect within the party structure, are charismatic, and have strong kinship ties.
Local leaders draw and maintain supporters, particularly at election time, by offering tangible, relatively small rewards. The Awami League is a secular-oriented, formerly socialist-leaning party. It is not stringently anti-India, is fairly liberal with regard to ethnic and religious groups, and supports a free-market economy. Social Problems and Control. Legal procedures are based on the English common-law system, and supreme court justices and lower-level judges are appointed by the president.
District courts at the district capitals are the closest formal venues for legal proceedings arising from local disputes. There are police forces only in the cities and towns. When there is a severe conflict or crime in rural areas, it may take days for the police to arrive. In rural areas, a great deal of social control takes place informally. When a criminal is caught, justice may be apportioned locally. In the case of minor theft, a thief may be beaten by a crowd.
Police may be paid to ensure that they do not investigate. Nonviolent disputes over property or rights may be decided through village councils panchayat headed by the most respected heads of the strongest kinship groups.
When mediation or negotiation fails, the police may be called in and formal legal proceedings may begin. People do not conceive of the informal procedures as taking the law into their own hands. Military Activity. The military has played an active role in the development of the political structure and climate of the country since its inception and has been a source of structure during crises. It has been involved in two coups since The only real conflict the army has encountered was sporadic fighting with the Shakti Bahini in the Chittagong Hill Tracts from the mids until , after which an accord between the government and those tribal groups was produced.
Road workers undertake construction work in Decca. Laborers make up the vast majority of workers in urban areas. Those organizations support project areas such as population control, agricultural and economic development, urban poverty, environmental conservation, and women's economic development. The Grameen Bank created the popular microcredit practice, which has given the poor, especially poor women, access to credit.
This model is based on creating small circles of people who know and can influence each other to pay back loans. When one member has repaid a loan, another member of the group becomes eligible to receive credit. Division of Labor by Gender. Women traditionally are in charge of household affairs and are not encouraged to move outside the immediate neighborhood unaccompanied. Thus, most women's economic and social lives revolve around the home, children, and family.
Islamic practice reserves prayer inside the mosque for males only; women practice religion within the home. Bangladesh has had two female prime ministers since , both elected with widespread popular support, but women are not generally publicly active in politics.
Men are expected to be the heads of their households and to work outside the home. Men often do the majority of the shopping, since that requires interaction in crowded markets. Men spend a lot of time socializing with other men outside the home. The Relative Status of Women and Men. The society is patriarchal in nearly every area of life, although some women have achieved significant positions of political power at the national level.
For ordinary women, movement is confined, education is stressed less than it is for men, and authority is reserved for a woman's father, older brother, and husband.
Marriage is almost always an arranged affair and takes place when the parents, particularly the father, decide that a child should be married. Men marry typically around age twenty-five or older, and women marry between ages fifteen and twenty; thus the husband is usually at least ten years older than the wife.
Muslims allow polygynous marriage, but its occurrence is rare and is dependent on a man's ability to support multiple households. A parent who decides that a child is ready to marry may contact agencies, go-betweens, relatives, and friends to find an appropriate mate.
Of immediate concern are the status and characteristics of the potential in-law's family. Generally an equal match is sought in terms of family economic status, educational background, and piousness. A father may allow his child to choose among five or six potential mates, providing the child with the relevant data on each candidate. It is customary for the child to rule out clearly unacceptable candidates, leaving a slate of candidates from which the father can choose.
An arrangement between two families may be sealed with an agreement on a dowry and the types of gifts to be made to the groom. Among The Sitara star mosque in Dacca. Religion plays a fundamental role in society, and almost every village has a mosque. Divorce is a source of social stigma. A Muslim man may initiate a divorce by stating "I divorce you" three times, but very strong family pressure ordinarily ensures that divorces do not occur. A divorce can be most difficult for the woman, who must return to her parent's household.
Domestic Unit. The most common unit is the patrilineally-related extended family living in a household called a barhi. A barhi is composed of a husband and wife, their unmarried children, and their adult sons with their wives and children. Grandparents also may be present, as well as patrilineally-related brothers, cousins, nieces, and nephews. The oldest man is the authority figure, although the oldest woman may exert considerable authority within the household.
A barhi in rural areas is composed of three or four houses which face each other to form a square courtyard in which common tasks are done. Food supplies often are shared, and young couples must contribute their earnings to the household head. Cooking, however, often is done within the constituent nuclear family units. Islamic inheritance rules specify that a daughter should receive one-half the share of a son. However, this practice is rarely followed, and upon a household head's death, property is divided equally among his sons.
Daughters may receive produce and gifts from their brothers when they visit as "compensation" for their lack of an inheritance. A widow may receive a share of her husband's property, but this is rare. Sons, however, are custom-bound to care for their mothers, who retain significant power over the rest of the household. Kin Groups. The patrilineal descent principle is important, and the lineage is very often localized within a geographic neighborhood in which it constitutes a majority. Lineage members can be called on in times of financial crisis, particularly when support is needed to settle local disputes.
Lineages do not meet regularly or control group resources. Infant Care. Most women give birth in their natal households, to which they return when childbirth is near. A husband is sent a message when the child is born. Five or seven days after the birth the husband and his close male relatives visit the newborn, and a feast and ritual haircutting take place.
The newborn is given an amulet that is tied around the waist, its eye sockets may be blackened with soot or makeup, and a small soot mark is applied to the infant's forehead and the sole of the foot for protection against spirits. Newborns and infants are seldom left unattended.
Most infants are in constant contact with their mothers, other women, or the daughters in the household. Since almost all women breastfeed, infant and mother sleep within close reach. Infants' needs are attended to constantly; a crying baby is given attention immediately. Child Rearing and Education. Children are raised within the extended family and learn early that individual desires are secondary to the needs of the family group. Following orders is expected on the basis of age; an adult or older child's commands must be obeyed as a sign of respect.
Child care falls primarily to household women and their daughters. Boys have more latitude for movement outside the household. Between ages five and ten, boys undergo a circumcision musulmani , usually during the cool months. There is no comparable ritual for girls, and the menarche is not publicly marked. Most children begin school at age five or six, and attendance tends to drop off as children become more productive within the household female and agricultural economy male.
About 75 percent of children attend primary school. The higher a family's socioeconomic status, the more likely it is for both boys and girls to finish their primary educations. Relatively few families can afford to send their children to college about 17 percent , and even fewer children attend a university. Those who enter a university usually come from relatively well-off families.
While school attendance drops off overall as the grades increase, females stop attending school earlier than do males. Higher Education. Great value is placed on higher education, and those who have university degrees and professional qualifications are accorded high status. In rural areas the opportunities for individuals with such experience are limited; thus, most educated people are concentrated in urban areas.
Bangladesh has a number of excellent universities in its largest urban areas that offer both undergraduate through post-graduate degrees. Competition for university admission is intense especially at Dhaka University and admission is dependent on scores received on high school examinations held annually, as in the British system A young girl makes matchboxes in the slums of Khulna.
There is a marked split between rich and poor in most of the country. University life in Bangladesh can be difficult. A four-year degree may actually require five to eight years to complete due to frequent university closings.
The student bodies and faculties of universities are heavily politicized along national political party lines. Protests, strikes, and sporadic political party-based violence are common, as student groups play out national political agendas on their campuses and vie for members. Virtually every university student finds it easier to survive the system by becoming a member of the student wing of a political party. While the universities are the scenes of political struggle, they are also centers of intellectual and cultural creativity.
Students may obtain excellent training in all fields, including the arts, law, medicine, and engineering. Universities are also somewhat like islands where some of the ordinary rules of social interaction are relaxed. For example, male— female interaction on campuses is more open and less monitored than in society as a whole. Dance and theater presentations are common, as are academic debates. Personal interaction is initiated with the greeting Assalam Waleykum "peace be with you" , to which the required response is, Waleykum Assalam "and with you".
Among Hindus, the correct greeting is Nomoshkar, as the hands are brought together under the chin. Men may shake hands if they are of equal status but do not grasp hands firmly.
Respect is expressed after a handshake by placing the right hand over the heart. Men and women do not shake hands with each other. In same-sex conversation, touching is common and individuals may stand or sit very close. The closer individuals are in terms of status, the closer their spatial interaction is. Leave-taking is sealed with the phrase Khoda Hafez. Differences in age and status are marked through language conventions. Individuals with higher status are not addressed by personal name; instead, a title or kinship term is used.
Visitors are always asked to sit, and if no chairs are available, a low stool or a bamboo mat is provided. It is considered improper for a visitor to sit on the floor or ground. It is incumbent on the host to offer guests something to eat. In crowded public places that provide services, such as train stations, the post office, or bazaars, queuing is not practiced and receiving service is dependent on pushing and maintaining one's place within the throng. Open staring is not considered impolite.
Religious Beliefs. The symbols and sounds of Islam, such as the call to prayer, punctuate daily life. Bangladeshis conceptualize themselves and others fundamentally through their religious heritage.
For example, the nationality of foreigners is considered secondary to their religious identity. Islam is a part of everyday life in all parts of the country, and nearly every village has at least a small mosque and an imam cleric. Prayer is supposed to be performed five times daily, but only the committed uphold that standard. Friday afternoon prayer is often the only time that mosques become crowded. Throughout the country there is a belief in spirits that inhabit natural spaces such as trees, hollows, and riverbanks.
These beliefs are derided by Islamic religious authorities. Bangladeshi Hindus pay particular attention to the female goddess Durga, and rituals devoted to her are among the most widely celebrated.
Religious Practitioners. The imam is associated with a mosque and is an important person in both rural and urban society, leading a group of followers. The imam's power is based on his knowledge of the Koran and memorization of phrases in Arabic. Relatively few imams understand Arabic in the spoken or written form. An imam's power is based on his ability to persuade groups of men to act in conjunction with Islamic rules.
As for Bengali and Bangla, they both have the same two definitions. But again — never mind which word you use. It is also commonly accepted in English as the name for the language, but is not used in Bangla itself to refer to the language. It can also be used in English. The Bengali region is actually divided up into two parts.
Half of it is the country of Bangladesh and the other half is the Indian state of West Bengal. Something from West Bengal may be referred to as Indian or Bengali, while from Bangladesh it can be referred to as Bangladeshi or Bengali. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
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