The Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced beginning in about the mid-3rd century B.C. and a great civilization developed at such cities as Anuradhapura (kingdom from c. 200 B.C. to c. 1000 A.D.) and Polonnaruwa (c. 1070 to 1200).
In the 10-11th century, the Cholas, a south Indian dynasty seized power in the north and established a Tamil kingdom. Occupied by the Portuguese in the 16th century and by the Dutch in the 17th century, the island was ceded to the British in 1796 and became a crown colony in 1802. As Ceylon it became independent in 1948; its name was changed in 1972.
Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted in violence in the mid-1980s. Tens of thousands have died in that violence. Since late 2001 there has been a ceasefire and slow-going peace talks, and even war-torn parts of the island are now open for travel.
Since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island; as of mid-1999, approximately 66,000 were housed in 133 refugee camps in south India, another 40,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought refuge in the West (July 2002 est.)
The majority of Sri Lankans speak Sinhala, with Tamil a distant second. English is commonly used by government and tourism officials but almost everyone will know a few words. Don't expect everyone, everywhere to be able to speak it fluently. It's much more common in the beach and tourist areas. Most people in rural villages cannot speak any English, beyond a few simple words.
People
During the early 19th century, the population of Sri Lanka was small and concentrated in the southwestern part of the island and in the Jaffna Peninsula in the north. The first official census, conducted by the British in 1871, recorded a total population of 2.8 million. Between then and the 1980s, the population increased sixfold. Population growth until around 1900 was given impetus by considerable immigration from southern India, as the British brought in hundreds of thousands of Tamils to work the plantation economy. These immigrants accounted for an around 40 to 70% of the population increase during the nineteenth century. Another remarkable factor in the growth of population after 1900 was a decline in mortality rates. The time of fastest growth was the decade after freedom, when the annual rate of increase was 2.8%. The official total in the 1981 census was 14,846,750, and some projections suggested a total of 18 million by 1991 and between 20 and 21 million by 2001. Furthermore, if the 1980s trends continue, the population will double in forty years.The Sinhalese constitute the majority in the southern, western, central, and north-central parts of the nation. In the rural areas of the Wet Zone lowlands, they account for more than 95% of the population. The foremost concentration of the Sri Lankan Tamils lies in the Jaffna Peninsula and in the adjacent districts of the northern lowlands. Smaller agglomerations of this group are also found along the eastern littoral where their settlements are juxtaposed with those of the Muslims. The main Muslim concentrations occur in the eastern lowlands. In other areas, such as Colombo, Kandy, Puttalam, and Gampaha, Muslims form a small but valuable portion of the urban and suburban population. The Indian Tamils, the large majority of whom are plantation workers, live in large numbers in the higher areas of the Central Highlands.
Good food is found in abundance in Sri Lanka, with a wide choice of cuisine to choose from. The Portuguese, Dutch and British invaders as well as the Indian, Arab, Malay and Moor traders have all contributed to the variety of Sri Lankan cuisine.
However, rice is the staple meal, and this is generally consumed with a range of vegetable curries, fish, beef, chicken or egg and a mallum (finely shredded leaves which are slightly stir fried). Vegetarian curries are made from practically every available fruit or vegetable such as brinjals, beans, beetroot, carrot, banana flower, ash plantains, pumpkin etc.
Curries in Sri Lanka are much hotter than those in India. More chilli and spices are added to flavour the dish. However, adjustments are made to this in order to suit the foreign palate. Should you eat something too hot, never reach for water as it does not help. Instead eat a mouth full of plain boiled rice, pasta or noodles, or better still, some cool yoghurt or curd (buffalo yoghurt) or even cucumber.
Curries are usually made with chilli powder, fresh chillies, cinnamon, tumeric, curry powder, curry leaves, onions, garlic, ginger and coconut milk.
Excellent fresh fish is found in coastal towns with prawns, crab and lobsters too. Fish is prepared according to various recipes including fried fish which can be ordered with a plate of chips and salad. 'Ambul Thiyal' (sour fish curry) is a popular fish curry found mainly in the south of Sri Lanka. It really is a pickle made from tuna.
Other specialities unique to Sri Lanka are hoppers which are usually consumed either for breakfast or lunch. A regular hopper is similar to a bowl shaped pancake which is crisp at the other edges. There are several varieties of hoppers such as egg hoppers which are made of the usual hopper where an egg is poached into its centre. Milk hoppers and honey hoppers too are delicacies enjoyed by both locals and foreigners.
This is generally eaten with a coconut sambol, dhal curry and either fish, beef or chicken curry. Pittu, a mixture of flour and grated coconut steamed in a bamboo tube is also a much sought after meal. Lamprais, a popular Dutch dish is rice boiled in beef stock, then added to vegetables and meat and baked in a low oven after it is wrapped in a banana leaf. Baking the rice in a banana leaf gives a special flavour to the rice. Kottu rotti is a filling snack found at street side eating houses. This elasticated doughy pancake is chopped into shreads and stir fried with vegetables, onions, egg and beef or chicken.
Short eats such as chinese rolls (a pancake with a beef, fish, chicken or vegetable filling and fried), cutlets, patties, pastries, hot dogs, ham burgers etc. too are also freely available.
The best way to enjoy Sri Lankan food is eating with your fingers instead of using cutlery. This is the best method of enjoying the flavour combinations from the different curries.
Traditional desserts too are commonly found in Sri Lanka, such as kiri pani (buffalo milk curd and treacle), wattalappam (a Malay origin egg pudding with jaggary or hardened treacle), sweet meats such as kevum (made with flour and treacle) and kalu dodol (jaggery, cashew nuts and coconut milk).
Fruit too is found in abundance. Mangoes, pineapple, water melon, papaya, woodapple (a hard wooden shelled fruit used to make a drink, dessert or jam), bananas (popularly referred to as plantains), rambuttan (a mouth watering fruit similar to lychees, wallnut sized and covered with red or yellow haired skin), and mangosteen (a hard dark purple skin, with sweet sour white segments).
Sri Lanka is famous for its tea, and this is a non alcoholic drink. It is usually prepared with sugar and milk, but could also be consumed only with sugar and this is generally referred to as 'plain tea'. A piece of crushed ginger too can be added to plain tea to give it a special flavour. Instant coffee and a local version of ground coffee is also available. But a really good espresso can be found only in Colombo.
Cool drinks are either made out of fresh fruit and cordials or the bottled carbonated drinks such as Coca-Cola, Sprite, Pepsi etc. are also available. The most widely found Sri Lankan carbonated soft drink is the Elephant House brnd and ginger-beer is one of the most popular soft drinks in Sri Lanka. A refreshing safe natural drink is the water of a young coconut (kurumba) or the King Coconut or Thambili, an orange coloured drinking coconut. These are cut fresh and given to consumers, therefore the content is uncontaminated.
A variety of locally manufactured and imported beers are available. In addition Sri Lanka has two extremely popular local varieties of intoxicating beverages - toddy, which is derived from palm trees, and arrack, which is the fermented and refined toddy. Arrack is produced in different grades and qualities, and some of it could taste like fire-water!
Srilanka Music
Sri Lanka is an island of the Southern coast of India. Its population is mostly Sinhalese, as well as minorities of Tamils, Burghers and the last remnants of the Veddas, the forest-dwelling aborigines of Sri Lanka.
The two single biggest influences on Sri Lankan music are from Buddhism and Portuguese colonizers. Buddhism arrived in Sri Lanka after the Buddha's visit in 300 BC, while the Portuguese arrived in the 15th century, bringing with them cantiga ballads, ukuleles and guitars, along with African slaves, who further diversified the musical roots of the island. These slaves were called kaffrinha, and their dance music was called baila.
Baila originally consisted of vocals with a guitar and handclaps or otherwise improvised percussion. Baila remains at the roots of modern Sri Lankan music, but it now includes electric guitars, synthesizers and other modern developments. Baila stars of the 20th century include Paul Fernando, Desmond de Silva and Voli Bastian.
The earliest stars of Sri Lankan recorded music came from the theater, where the traditional, open-air dramatic culture (kolam or sokari or nadagam) remained the most popular form of entertainment until well into the 20th century. After a drama group called Elphinstone came to Colombo in 1870, Hindustani theatrical forms became dominant. Popular artists included C. Don Bastian, Jayaweera Bandara and John de Silva.
1903's "Nurthi" is the first recorded music to come out of Sri Lanka, and it was followed by the rise of several Sinhalese stars. Radio Ceylon, which was long a monopoly in Sri Lankan radio, was established in 1925.
In the early 1960s, Indian filmi became the most popular kind of music in Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan stars like Sunil Shantha and Surya Shankar Molligoda became popular in India as well as their homeland, and Radio Ceylon soon found itself with more Indian listeners than Sri Lankan ones. Shantha, Molligoda and other songwriters, most notably Mahagama Sekara, soon kicked off a revolution in Sri Lankan lyricism. This new school of songwriting were deeply poetic and expressed simple concepts, many with nationalist ideas; Ananda Samarakoon, a prominent songwriter of the period, later wrote Sri Lanka's national anthem.
By the time this revolution in lyricism began, musicians like Mohammed Gauss, Premasiri Kernadasa and W. D. Amaradeva began making a uniquely Sri Lankan variety of filmi music. This was followed, in the mid-1960s, by groups like Las Bambas, Humming Birds and Los Muchachos, who played calypso-style baila. This mixture of Trinidadian calypso with native baila was dominated by groups who took Mexican-derived names, owing, it is said, to a single Mexican group that played in a resort hotel. Later stars included The Moonstones, led by some of the biggest Sri Lankan superstars in history, Annesly Malewana and Clarence Wijewardane. The mid-1960s also saw the popular rise of pure Western-style pop musicians like Gabo & the Breakaways and Minon & the Jet Liners.
The native pop-filmi music dominated the market in Sri Lanka during the late 1960s and early 1970s, but by the end of the decade, Indian film and music again became the best-selling sector of the Sri Lankan music industry.
Since Sri Lanka endows a diversity of ethnic groups, language spoken in the country is various. The two major ones widely used are, however, Sinhala language spoken by the Sinhalese majority and Tamil language used by the Tamils. Although, Sinhala and Tamil are languages from different source, both share some common characteristics and obviously have influence on each other's linguistic evolution as well.
For Sinhala language whose origins have been very discussable is widely accepted that it is ultimately derived from Indo-Aryan speech which is in turn divided into two phases of evolution: an old Indo-Aryan speech (C.2000-800 B.C.) represented by Sanskrit language used in central India and a middle Indo-Aryan speech (C.800 B.C-400 A.D.) represented by Pali, the language of Buddhist scripture. With a science of comparative linguistics, Sinhala language shares a common parent language with Greek, Latin, German, English, French Persian, Russian, and Hindi in the distant past. In the evolving phases, they have been derived from each other and ultimately became distinct languages.
The Tamil language belongs to Dravidian family mostly spoken in the South Indian states. Tamil language played a key role in trades and business along the Indian coasts as well as Sri Lankan coasts as it was a main language used in commercial communication at that time. Even Arab traders from the Middle East had adopted the Tamil language as their speech when they had to contact with the Tamils in the region. Ironically, Sinhala language has 400 loan words from Tamil language, indicating the influence of both languages that has on one another.
Language is one of the most important elements representing the national identity. In Sri Lanka, national language issue seems very influential in both cultural and political sphere; it was the major bone of contention between the Sinhalese and the Tamils. During the 1950s when the nationalism movement was in force, the language question became dominant political issue. By then the Buddhist revivalism also emerged and enforced the adoption of Sinhala as the sole official national language. Eventually, in 1956, despite efforts to conduct the two-language policy, the ruling coalition of the Parliament introduced the Official Language Bill of 1956, making the Sinhala the sole official language. From then onwards, the Tamils who resided elsewhere other than in Jaffna were discriminate against; all public servants were required to have proficiency in the Sinhala language within three years, or they would be penalized and lose their jobs. They were also discriminated against in political, educational and professional opportunity. Language issue led thus to the religio-ethno-nationalism as well as the communal riots in the country.
Colombo (The Capital of Srilanka)
Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, is its largest city and main port. Colombo may not have the sheer historical and cultural atmosphere of Kandy or the scenic beauty of Hikkaduwa, but it certainly is a good place to start a Sri Lankan sojourn. Colombo has its own history and its own beautiful places and, it is, of course, the seat of government and the home of most businesses and so, in many ways is the commercial and political heart of Sri Lanka.
Colombo has a number of tourist sights and other places of interest, which span quite a few centuries and three sets of foreign rulers- the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British. Some of these, like the Fort area (which was actually a fort in colonial times, but now, except for a clock tower and some colonial-era buildings, has little to show for its origins), are not really monuments.
These are areas one should visit to get a feel of Colombo. Others are the monuments, buildings and gardens – sights that are a part of the city. These include:
Wolvendaal Church, Colombo’s oldest Dutch church, still in use. Its floor tiles are made from tombstones from the Dutch church in the Fort, and were brought here in 1813.
The Sapumal Foundation, with a permanent exhibition of Sri Lankan art over the past 8 decades.
The Dutch Period Museum (formerly a town hall, a hospital, an orphanage, a police station, a post office, and a residence, but now an interesting reminder of colonial times).
The National Museum has an interesting and large collection of antique porcelain, manuscripts, royal regalia, antique furniture, masks and other pieces.
The Viharamahadevi Park (which is next to the National Museum, the National Art Gallery and the Natural History Museum), Colombo’s largest park. Well known for its flowering trees, water channels and fountains, the park is overlooked at one end by the pristine white-domed Town Hall.
Kelaniya Raja Maha Vihara, an important Buddhist temple. This temple is believed to be at the spot where the Buddha preached 2000 years ago. It has an excellent carving of a reclining Buddha, and is the site for an annual perahera (religious procession) in January.
Dehiwala Zoo, which has a good collection of animals and is at a distance of 10 km from Fort. It has an impressive aquarium and aviary, and is invariably a hit with younger members of families.
Getting Around
Colombo has a reasonably good network of public transport, in the form of buses and trains that link the city to the suburbs. Train fares are slightly lower than bus fares, but getting a bus is infinitely easier than trying to catch a train, so it works out about the same.
Other than buses and trains, taxis and three-wheelers also can be hired, though obviously these are more expensive; meters are often not used, and its best to do the negotiating and settle on a mutually acceptable price before you start the trip.
Dining & Entertainment
The city has a fairly wide range of places to eat, encompassing all eating options from roadside stalls to sleek upmarket specialty restaurants. Most of the large five star hotels in Colombo have good value-for-money buffets and coffee shops, besides specialty restaurants that offer cuisine from classic French to Indian and Lankan.
A number of stand-alone restaurants dot Colombo, serving good western food (including German and Italian), Chinese food, and of course, the popular curry-and-rice Sri Lankan food. If you are really on a shoestring budget and willing to rough it (which means being ready to sit out in the open on a wooden bench – an experience which also has a charm all its own!), then you can go to Galle Face Green, where any number of food stalls sell cheap and palatable food.
Colombo’s night life centres around the discos, casinos and nightclubs in hotels and other establishments. Some of the larger hotels have regular cultural shows featuring traditional artistes, and sometimes there are events such as concerts by well-known groups or other entertainers. The option of theatre (Sinhala language) or movies (Sinhala, English or Indian) is always there.
Shopping
Colombo has a wide range of handicrafts and other items on sale. One of the best, but also pretty expensive, places, to buy handicrafts (such as batik, lacquerware, handloom cloth, painted wooden masks, etc) is the government-run 'Laksala’ emporium. Apart from this, there are the Handloom Emporium, the Sri Lanka Handloom Emporium and the Sri Lanka Gem & Jewellery Exchange. Items of everyday use –including some excellent spices, teas and fruit flavoured teas, spices, ceramics and clothing are available at Liberty Plaza, Colombo’s main shopping district. Colombo is a free trade zone, so a lot of imported goods flow in from the outside world.
City Getaways
If you’re based in Colombo, going to some of the other well-known destinations, like Kandy, Anuradhapura, Ratnapura or Hikkaduwa takes time – definitely a minimum of two days to travel, see the sights and come back, unless you’re satisfied with just touch – and – go tourism. Some places, however, are close enough to warrant a convenient and enjoyable day’s trip; these include:
Negombo: The beach resort of Negombo is 36 km north of Colombo, and is not just a pleasant seaside town, but historically interesting too. The Dutch established a major colony here, and traces of their occupation still remain – in the form of an old fort, a Dutch cemetery, buildings and canals. The colonists also converted many of the locals to Christianity, so much so that even today Negombo is referred to as 'Little Rome’. Buses, trains and taxis run between Negombo to Colombo and to the airport which is quite close.
Kalutara: Kalutara was, once upon a time, an important spice trading centre, for the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British. Today, it’s basically known for its beaches, its fruit (especially the mangosteens), and the basketware produced in the town. It is 43 km from Colombo, and accessible by bus or taxi.
The Henerathgoda Botanic Gardens, 30 km from Colombo, are on the road to Kandy and are historically significant in that this was the place where rubber trees were first cultivated in Asia (in fact, some of those trees still stand). An interesting visit for the nature-friendly. If your interest in nature extends to elephants too, you can extend your trip to Kegalle, 77 km from Colombo, near which is the Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage, a delightful place to see the pachyderms at close quarters.
Virtually touching Colombo is the beach resort of Mount Lavinia. It does not have very good beaches, but is all right for an outing as it’s almost a part of Colombo itself.
Kandy
Kandy, the last royal capital of Sri Lanka is a major tourist destination. ( 115km. from Colombo at 465 meters above sea level). Famous for the Temple of the Tooth and many other temples the city could be called the cultural capital of the island.
Kandy Perahera, the pageant of the temple of tooth where Buddha's tooth is kept is held either in July or August each year to parade the golden caskets is a must see itenary if one is visiting Sri Lanka during these months. The final night procession is the most spectacular event of the country. More than 50 elephants parade the city accompanied by the drummers, dancers and chieftains.
The city established in the 15th century was the last royal capital where 2500 years of royal rule ended. This bustling market town is rich in cultural diversity has plenty of iteneries to offer to the tourists from songs dances and handy crafts to ancient temples and adventure activities. Kandy is a good transit point to the cultural triangle to the north or hill country to the south. The city is also a good source of souvenirs or to experience many cultural performances at it's various hotels in the city.
Hindu Shrines
Adjacent to the Temple of the tooth are three of the four major Hindu shrines taking part in the Kandy Perahera. Shrines are dedicated to Gods Vishnu and Natha and Goddess Patthini. The forth shrine is further towards the town. Visitors to these shrines could witness the Hindu religion customs though most of the worshipers today are Buddhists. Hindu shrines taking part in the Buddhist pageant is a good example of the Sinhala and Tamil co-existence that lasted for centuries. Four of the last Sri Lankan kings were of south Indian origin.
The Temple of Tooth
The main attraction of the city and also the most sacred Buddhist establishment in Sri Lanka is where one of Buddha's tooth is being kept. Built in the 16th century but improvements and additions have been done to this structure until the fall of the Kandy kingdom. A golden canopy was added recently. Daily rituals are being carried out at various offering times to the shrine. A dress code applies for entering the temple. The magnificence has been enhanced by the octagonal pavilion.
The Old Royal Palace compound
Old place buildings are just beside the temple of the tooth. Among them are the old royal palace, quarters of the royal concubines; queen's chambers the council chambers and the armoury. Some of these are now being used as museums depicting the exhibits of the Kandyan era. The council chambers built in 1784 is a unique example of wooden architecture of the Kandyan period. The Kandyan Convention was signed here ceding the country to the British in 1815.
Lankatilaka Temple
Lankatilake temple is a magnificent building built on rock at a scenic location which also has fine paintings.
Gadaladeniya Temple
This 14 century temple is situated about 15Km from the town. The structure of the temple is influenced by the South Indian architecture and built on a rock. The stupa is on a high stone platform.
The Royal Botanical Gardens
Once a pleasure gardens of a Kandyan Queen this 40ha land is a beautiful park with numerous tropical foliage and the best in the island. The Commander of the allied forces in Southeast Asia Earl Mountbatten had the headquarters in the garden during the Second World War.
Embekke Temples
The main attraction is the intricate wooden carvings of this 14th century shrine dedicated to God Kataragama. There is also a Buddhist temple on location. Almost the entire structures of some wooden buildings are decorated with dancers, musicians, wrestlers, legendary beasts and birds. Nearby are the ruins of an ancient rest house with similar pillars carved in stone.
Arts and Crafts
Kandy is synonymous with arts and crafts of Sri Lanka than anywhere else in the country. It is probably because the Kandy is where all elite who patronised these crafts survived during 300 years of war with the Europeans. Kandy is probably the best place to buy most of the handicrafts produced in Sri Lanka because there are number of shops catering to the tourists. Tourists could watch local crafts coming into life at the At the Kandyan Art Association.
At Kundasale, about 4km from Kandy, a village has been established recently to settle local craftsmen and their families. Visitors could watch craftmen at work and purchase their products on site.
