A History of Sri Lanka

• Introduction
• Chapter 1 Prehistoric Sri Lanka and its Earliest Inhabitants.
• Chapter 2 The Arrival of the Indo-Aryans: The Legend of Vijaya and the Dawn of the Sinhalese Kingdom.
• Chapter 3 The Anuradhapura Kingdom: The Cradle of Sinhalese Buddhist Civilization.
• Chapter 4 The Introduction of Buddhism and its Profound Impact on Culture and Society.
• Chapter 5 Ancient Engineering: The Great Irrigation Works and Architectural Marvels.
• Chapter 6 The Polonnaruwa Kingdom: A Medieval Renaissance and South Indian Influence.
• Chapter 7 The Drift to the Southwest: The Rise and Fall of Transitional Kingdoms.
• Chapter 8 The Crisis of the Sixteenth Century and the Arrival of the Portuguese.
• Chapter 9 The Portuguese in Ceylon: Coastal Domination and the Spice Trade.
• Chapter 10 The Kingdom of Kandy: A Bastion of Indigenous Resistance.
• Chapter 11 The Dutch East India Company and the Cinnamon Monopoly.
• Chapter 12 The British Arrival and the Fall of the Kandyan Kingdom in 1815.
• Chapter 13 The Colebrooke-Cameron Reforms: Unifying Administration and Laying the Foundations of a Crown Colony.
• Chapter 14 The Plantation Economy: The Rise of Coffee, Tea, and a New Economic Order.
• Chapter 15 Social Transformations under British Rule: The Emergence of a New Elite.
• Chapter 16 The Buddhist Revival and the Stirrings of Nationalism.
• Chapter 17 The Road to Independence: A Peaceful Transfer of Power.
• Chapter 18 The Dominion of Ceylon: The First Decade of Independence (1948-1958).
• Chapter 19 The Sinhala Only Act and the Deepening of Ethnic Divisions.
• Chapter 20 From Dominion to Republic: The 1972 Constitution and Socialist Reforms.
• Chapter 21 The Gaullist Constitution of 1978 and the Liberalization of the Economy.
• Chapter 22 Black July 1983: The Descent into Civil War.
• Chapter 23 A Nation Divided: Three Decades of Civil War.
• Chapter 24 The End of the War and the Challenges of Post-Conflict Reconciliation.
• Chapter 25 Sri Lanka in the 21st Century: Political Upheavals and Economic Crises.

Shaped like a teardrop falling from the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent, the island of Sri Lanka has been known by many names throughout its long and storied history. To ancient Greek geographers, it was Taprobanē. To Arab and Persian traders who plied the maritime routes of the Indian Ocean, it was Sarandīb, a name that gave the English language the word "serendipity," the faculty of making fortunate discoveries by accident. This in itself is a fitting description, for the island has long been a place of unexpected encounters and remarkable confluences. The Portuguese, the first of a series of European powers to arrive, called it Ceilão, which the British later anglicized to Ceylon. In 1972, twenty-four years after gaining independence, the nation formally adopted the name Sri Lanka, meaning "Resplendent Island," a title that captures both its stunning natural beauty and its rich, complex history.

This book seeks to chart the course of that history, from its misty, prehistoric origins to the political and economic crises of the twenty-first century. It is a story of ancient kingdoms and magnificent engineering feats, of profound religious devotion and vibrant cultural exchange. It is also a narrative marked by conquest, colonial domination, and the often-painful process of forging a modern national identity from a diverse and sometimes divided populace. Throughout these epochs, the island's destiny has been inextricably linked to its geography. Positioned at the crossroads of the Indian Ocean, it has been a vital hub for maritime trade since the days of the ancient Silk Road, connecting civilizations from Rome and Persia to China and the Spice Islands. This strategic location has been both a blessing and a curse, bringing wealth, new ideas, and different peoples to its shores, while also attracting the covetous eyes of foreign powers.

The island itself is one of geographical contrasts. A roughly triangular massif of mountains known as the Central Highlands forms its south-central core, home to the country's highest peaks. These highlands are the source of the rivers that radiate outwards, watering the surrounding plains. This highland-lowland distinction has shaped settlement patterns and political dynamics for centuries. Encircling the highlands is a broad plain that covers the majority of the country's land area, fringed by a coastline of sandy beaches, lagoons, and rocky promontories. Geologically, the island is a southern extension of the Indian peninsula, sharing much of its ancient crystalline rock foundation. This proximity to India has been the single most dominant factor in its cultural and demographic history, facilitating migrations and the transmission of religious and social structures that define Sri Lanka to this day.

The narrative of Sri Lanka's past is a compelling mixture of legend and meticulously recorded events. The primary source for much of its early history is the Mahavamsa, or "Great Chronicle," a remarkable epic poem written in the Pali language by Buddhist monks beginning in the 5th century CE. It is one of the world's longest unbroken historical accounts, chronicling the island's history from the legendary arrival of its first Sinhalese king in the 6th century BCE. The Mahavamsa is not merely a dry list of kings and battles; it is a work of literature intended for the "serene joy of the pious," framing the island's history as a saga intertwined with its role as a guardian of Buddhism. While its historical claims, particularly in the earliest periods, blend myth with fact, its account of the reigns of kings, the establishment of monasteries, and the rise of Buddhism has often been corroborated by archaeological evidence.

This chronicle has been both a source of national pride and a subject of intense political debate. It tells the story of the Sinhalese people, who form the majority of the population, and their enduring connection to Theravada Buddhism. However, this central narrative has at times been used to support claims of ethnic and religious primacy, contributing to the tensions that have marked modern Sri Lankan history. The history of the island is, of course, far more complex than a single narrative can convey. It is the story of multiple peoples and faiths coexisting, cooperating, and sometimes clashing over the centuries.

The island's population is a rich mosaic of ethnicities and religions. The Sinhalese, predominantly Buddhist, constitute the largest group. The Tamils, who are mainly Hindu and concentrated in the northern and eastern parts of the island, represent the largest minority and have their own long and distinguished history on the island, with roots stretching back to southern India. The story of these two groups, their shared history and their periods of conflict, is a central theme of this book. Other significant communities include the Moors, descendants of Arab traders who have been a part of the island's commercial life for centuries; the Burghers, of mixed European descent; and the Malays. The introduction of Christianity by the Portuguese and its spread under subsequent European powers added another layer to this diverse religious landscape.

The story of Sri Lanka takes a dramatic turn in the early 16th century with the arrival of the Portuguese. Drawn by the lucrative spice trade, particularly in cinnamon, they were the first of three successive European powers to dominate the island's coastal regions. For over four centuries, the Portuguese, followed by the Dutch and then the British, would profoundly reshape the island's economy, society, and political structure. The colonial era introduced new laws, new crops like coffee and tea, and new social hierarchies. While the Portuguese and Dutch were largely confined to the maritime provinces, the British succeeded in conquering the entire island in 1815 with the fall of the resilient Kandyan Kingdom.

British rule unified the island under a single administration for the first time, laying the groundwork for a modern nation-state. The Colebrooke-Cameron Reforms of 1833 established a unitary political and judicial system and introduced English as the language of government. The British also fostered a plantation economy, clearing vast tracts of the central highlands for coffee, and later, tea cultivation. This economic transformation had far-reaching social consequences, including the importation of large numbers of indentured laborers from southern India to work on the estates, creating a new Tamil community distinct from the long-established Sri Lankan Tamils. A new English-educated Ceylonese elite emerged, which would eventually lead the movement for independence.

The path to independence, achieved in 1948, was largely peaceful, a transfer of power rather than a revolutionary struggle. The newly independent nation, then known as the Dominion of Ceylon, faced the immense challenge of building a unified identity from its diverse communities. The early decades were marked by debates over national language, the place of religion in the state, and economic policy. The "Sinhala Only Act" of 1956, which made Sinhalese the sole official language, was a pivotal moment that alienated many Tamil speakers and is seen by many as the seed of future conflict. The subsequent decades saw a shift from a dominion to a republic in 1972 and the adoption of socialist economic policies, followed by a move toward economic liberalization in the late 1970s.

These political and economic shifts occurred against a backdrop of deepening ethnic tensions. Grievances over language, education, and employment opportunities fueled the rise of Tamil nationalism and, eventually, a militant movement demanding a separate state. The anti-Tamil pogrom of July 1983, known as "Black July," marked the beginning of a brutal civil war that would last for nearly three decades. This conflict between the Sri Lankan state and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) tore the nation apart, causing immense suffering and loss of life. The war's end in 2009 brought a cessation of hostilities but left deep wounds and formidable challenges of reconciliation, accountability, and forging a lasting peace.

This book will navigate these complex and often contentious periods of Sri Lanka's history. It aims to present a balanced account, acknowledging the island's glorious achievements in antiquity, the transformative impact of the colonial powers, and the turbulent journey of the modern nation-state. From the serene dagobas of Anuradhapura to the tea-covered hills of Nuwara Eliya, from the legendary fortress of Sigiriya to the battle-scarred landscapes of the north, the story of Sri Lanka is a testament to the resilience of its people. It is a narrative that encompasses the creative spirit of its ancient engineers, the devotion of its religious adherents, the commercial acumen of its traders, and the struggles of its modern citizens to define their place in the world. As we delve into the chapters that follow, we will uncover the many layers of this resplendent and multifaceted island.

Before the chronicles were written, before the arrival of princes from India, and before the island was known as Lanka or Taprobanē, its story was being etched in stone and soil by its earliest human inhabitants. The prehistory of Sri Lanka, stretching back hundreds of thousands of years, is a tale of survival and adaptation in a shifting landscape, a period understood not through epic poems but through the patient work of archaeologists excavating caves, riverbeds, and ancient dunes. This chapter of the island's history begins not with kings, but with stone tools, fossilized bones, and the faint, lingering traces of people who called the island home long before it had a name.

The island’s connection to the great landmass of the Indian subcontinent has been a recurring theme throughout its existence, both geological and human. Over the last million years, fluctuating sea levels, driven by the planet's ice ages, caused the shallow Palk Strait to alternately submerge and emerge. This created a land bridge, a corridor for fauna and, eventually, humans to move between the subcontinent and the island. The last time this land connection is believed to have existed was around 7,000 years ago. This intermittent link is fundamental to understanding the origins of the island’s flora, fauna, and its first people, who were part of a broader story of human expansion across South Asia.

Evidence suggests that hominins, our early human ancestors, may have been present on the island for a very long time. Stone tools found in coastal deposits, particularly within the Iranamadu Formation of the north, point to a human presence dating back as far as 300,000, and perhaps even 500,000 years. These early inhabitants, likely belonging to the species Homo erectus, would have lived a very different existence from later arrivals, contending with a landscape populated by now-extinct megafauna. The tools they left behind, simple implements of quartz and chert, represent the island’s Palaeolithic, or Old Stone Age, a period of immense duration about which we still know very little.

The story becomes much clearer with the arrival of anatomically modern humans, Homo sapiens. The island holds some of the earliest and most significant evidence for modern human settlement in all of South Asia. Skeletal remains found in a series of now-famous cave sites have been reliably dated to tens of thousands of years ago. These cave deposits, shielded from the elements, have preserved a remarkable record of the island's Mesolithic, or Middle Stone Age, inhabitants. Excavations at these sites have unearthed not just bones, but the tools, food remnants, and ornaments that provide a detailed portrait of their lives, revealing a sophisticated adaptation to the island's diverse environments, particularly its dense tropical rainforests.

At the forefront of these discoveries is a figure who has been dubbed "Balangoda Man" (Homo sapiens balangodensis). This is not an individual, but rather a name given to the anatomically modern human populations whose remains have been found at multiple sites dating back to the late Quaternary period. The earliest skeletal remains of Balangoda Man are dated to around 30,000 years Before Present (BP), while cultural evidence from their sites pushes their presence back to at least 38,000 BP. Physically, Balangoda Man was robust, with thick skull bones, prominent brow ridges, a depressed nose, and heavy jaws. They were also taller than the average modern Sri Lankan, with males estimated to stand at around 174 cm (5 ft 8.5 in) and females at 166 cm (5 ft 5.5 in).

The lifestyle of Balangoda Man has been painstakingly pieced together from the evidence left in their cave dwellings. They were highly effective hunter-gatherers, adept at exploiting the resources of the rainforest. Their settlements were found across the island, from the wet lowlands and arid plains to the cold, high plateaus like Horton Plains. The small size of their camps suggests they lived in small, mobile groups, likely composed of a few nuclear families, a social structure similar to that of later hunter-gatherer groups in South and Southeast Asia. Faunal remains show they hunted a wide variety of animals, with a particular focus on small, fast-moving prey like monkeys and giant squirrels, as well as deer, wild boar, and porcupines.

A key to their success was a sophisticated toolkit. The most characteristic implements of the Balangoda culture are geometric microliths – small, meticulously crafted stone tools made from quartz. Dating back as early as 48,000 years at sites like Fa-Hien Lena, these represent the earliest evidence of such advanced technology in South Asia. These tiny blades and points were not used as standalone tools but were likely hafted onto wooden or bone shafts to create composite tools like arrows or spears. This technology was perfectly suited for hunting the arboreal creatures of the rainforest. Remarkably, this microlithic technology remained stable and largely unchanged for tens of thousands of years, a testament to its effectiveness and the stability of their adaptation.

The technological repertoire of Balangoda Man was not limited to stone. Excavations have yielded finely worked bone tools, including projectile points and daggers carved from sambar antler. Some of the most compelling finds are bone arrowheads, dated to around 48,000 years ago, which represent the oldest evidence for bow-and-arrow technology found outside of Africa. This innovation would have been a game-changer, allowing for more effective and safer hunting of challenging rainforest prey. The presence of these advanced projectile technologies places prehistoric Sri Lanka at the center of discussions about the technological sophistication of early Homo sapiens.

The caves that sheltered these prehistoric people have become legendary in the world of South Asian archaeology. Fa-Hien Lena, named after the famous 5th-century Chinese monk who was once believed to have resided there, is one such site. Located in the wet zone of Kalutara District, its deep deposits have yielded a near-continuous record of human occupation from about 48,000 years ago. It was here that some of the earliest microliths and bone arrowheads were unearthed, revolutionizing our understanding of early human technological capabilities in a tropical rainforest setting. The cave has provided the earliest known fossils of Homo sapiens in all of South Asia, cementing the island's importance in the story of human migration.

Another crucial site is Batadomba-lena, a large cave near Kuruwita. Here, excavations since the 1930s have uncovered multiple human skeletons, including adults and children, along with a rich collection of tools and food remains. The human remains from Batadomba-lena, some dated to as far back as 28,000 BP, are among the oldest modern human fossils found anywhere in the world. The evidence from this cave confirmed that Balangoda Man lived a life deeply intertwined with the rainforest ecosystem, subsisting on a broad range of plant and animal resources.

In the hills near Kitulgala lies Beli-lena, another large cave that has provided a wealth of information. Excavations here in the late 1970s and early 1980s unearthed human remains, stone and bone tools, and evidence of fire use dating back as far as 32,000 years. Ten individual skeletons were discovered, further adding to our understanding of the physical characteristics of Balangoda Man. Like the other major sites, Beli-lena contained geometric microliths and the bones of consumed animals, demonstrating a consistent cultural and subsistence pattern across different groups and over vast timescales.

The worldview of these early inhabitants was not purely utilitarian; they had a rich symbolic life. Evidence for this comes in the form of personal adornments found in the caves. Beads made from marine shells and shark vertebrae have been found at Fa-Hien Lena, in layers dating back 38,000 years. These are among the earliest examples of symbolic behavior found outside of Africa. The presence of these coastal items in caves located far inland—over 80 kilometers away—also indicates that these groups were either highly mobile or were part of extensive exchange networks that connected the coast to the interior. Red ochre, a mineral pigment often associated with ritual and art, was also found, sometimes coating skeletal remains, suggesting complex burial practices.

Burial practices of the Mesolithic people of Sri Lanka show a degree of ritual. At sites like Bellanbandi Palassa, an open-air site, bodies were buried in a flexed or crouched position, often in pairs. Some skeletons showed evidence of being covered in red ochre before interment. The discovery of nine skeletons buried near dung-hill mounds at this site points to specific, though not yet fully understood, mortuary traditions. The placement of the dead in specific postures, such as lying on their side, is a practice seen in other prehistoric cultures globally and indicates a deliberate and meaningful approach to burial.

The world these people inhabited was populated by a menagerie of animals, including some impressive megafauna. Fossil evidence, mainly from the gem pits of the Ratnapura area, has revealed a so-called "Ratnapura Fauna" from the Pleistocene epoch. This included two species of elephant, a hippopotamus (Hexaprotodon), a rhinoceros, and even a lion, which is now extinct on the island. The extinction of these larger animals is thought to be linked to the climatic changes at the end of the Pleistocene. The hunter-gatherers of the Balangoda culture would have co-existed with some of these animals, though their diet seems to have been more focused on smaller, more readily available game.

For thousands of years, the hunter-gatherer lifestyle proved to be a remarkably stable and successful adaptation to the island's environments. However, the period leading into the first millennium BCE saw significant changes. While the transition from the Mesolithic to the Iron Age in Sri Lanka is not yet perfectly understood, there are signs of emerging new technologies and ways of life. Evidence of early agriculture has been found on the Horton Plains, suggesting the cultivation of oats and barley may have begun as early as 8,000 BCE. Pottery begins to appear at sites like Dorawaka-kanda cave around 4,300 BCE.

These early signs of food production mark the beginning of a slow shift away from pure hunting and gathering. Finds of domesticated rice appear in the archaeological record around 13,000 BC, initially as a dry land crop, before being adapted to wetlands around 8,000 BC. By the late Holocene, settled agriculture became more widespread, particularly the cultivation of rice, various millets, and pulses of Indian origin. This agricultural package, which also included crops like cotton, laid the foundation for the sedentary village life that would characterize the subsequent Iron Age.

As the prehistoric period drew to a close around 1000 BCE, Sri Lanka entered what is known as the protohistoric Iron Age. This era is defined by the appearance of iron technology, distinctive black and red ware pottery, and megalithic burial sites. These cultural markers show a strong affinity with those found in Southern India from the same period, suggesting a new wave of cultural interaction, and likely migration, across the Palk Strait. Large settlements began to form, most notably at Anuradhapura, which grew from a small village into a town-sized settlement of about 50 hectares within a few centuries after 900 BCE.

This period is also characterized by distinctive burial practices. Megalithic tombs, constructed with large stone slabs, have been found throughout the country. The Ibbankatuwa tomb site near Dambulla, dating to between 700 and 450 BCE, is one of the most significant. It contains clusters of cist burials, where cremated remains were interred in clay urns inside stone chambers. The artifacts found within these tombs—including imported carnelian and gold beads—point to a society with established long-distance trade links and a degree of social stratification. Other burial types from this era include urn burials, stone circles, and dolmen-like structures, reflecting a diversity of mortuary customs across the island.

A central question in Sri Lankan history is the relationship between the island's first inhabitants, the Balangoda Man, and the Indigenous Vedda people who have maintained a hunter-gatherer lifestyle into modern times. Anthropometric studies have long noted a physical resemblance between the robust skeletal features of Balangoda Man and those of the Vedda. There appears to be a strong biological continuum stretching back at least 16,000 years. Genetic studies have further supported this link, showing a close relationship between the Vedda and the majority Sinhalese and Tamil populations, suggesting that the bloodline of the island's earliest modern human inhabitants flows through its present-day people. The Vedda are therefore widely considered to be the direct descendants of these prehistoric hunter-gatherers, a living link to the island's most ancient past.

Thus, the long prehistoric era laid the fundamental demographic and cultural groundwork for the island's future. The Homo sapiens who first mastered the rainforests, who developed sophisticated toolkits, and who established networks of exchange, were the island's original pioneers. Their descendants, the Vedda, carried their ancient heritage into the historical period. As new peoples and new ideas began to arrive from the Indian mainland during the Iron Age, they did not settle an empty land. They encountered an island already possessed of a long and complex human story, a story that had begun tens of thousands of years earlier in the quiet depths of its forest caves.