Part III: Cultural adaptations to endemic malaria in Sardinia

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Abstract
Endemic malaria was a primary ecological variable which historically affected traditional Sardinian culture. While the biogenetic impact of malaria has been examined in detail, this paper examines the hypothesis that key features of traditional Sardinian culture had adaptive value against the ecological threat of malaria because they limited exposure of certain social segments to the malaria vector, Anopheles labranchiae. The concept of cultural adaptation is first developed. Cultural adaptations analyzed include: settlement pattern; pastoral transhumance; social organization of production; restricted mobility for pregnant women; and the folk medical beliefs of Intemperie and Colpo d'Aria. These cultural traits are predicated on a folk etiological theory of malaria in which the disease was caused by “bad air,” but they function to reduce exposure to mosquitoes and thereby limit malaria rates for certain social groups. It is argued that this mode of analysis can aid in understanding the interaction between diseases and the persistence of particular cultural patterns.

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