ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION In this chapter we address a topic crucial to the field of family planning, yet rarely identified as a subject for research: cultural perceptions of fertility. Data from two ethnographic contexts are presented: South Kanara District, Karnataka State, India, and Low Country, Southwest Sri Lanka.1 A case study which sparked our curiosity in the cultural perception of fertility is introduced, followed by a general discussion of the anthropological literature on fertility and conception in India. Most of this literature has addressed conception in relation to systems of descent. Moving beyond textual sources, we will present field data on folk notions of fertility collected in both South India and Sri Lanka. In the Sri Lankan context, attention is additionally paid to how health ideology affects family planning behavior and how “safe period” is utilized as a popular mode of fertility control.2 Turning to family planning programs in Sri Lanka, we suggest that the provision of fertility cycle education for those 25-35 years of age could result in a more effective usage of “safe period” with condoms as a means of birth control. While most members of this age group have expressed a marked desire for birth postponement and spacing, they presently underutilize modern family planning methods (CPS 1983).
