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|common_name = Sri Lanka |image_flag = Flag of Sri Lanka.svg |image_coat = Coat of arms of Sri Lanka.svg |symbol_type = Emblem |national_motto = |national_anthem = File:Sri Lanka Matha.oggSri Lanka MathaMother Sri Lanka |image_map = Sri Lanka (orthographic projection).svg |capital = Sri Jayawardenapura-Kotte |latd=6 |latm=54 |latNS=N |longd=79 |longm=54 |longEW=E |largest_city = Colombo |official_languages = Sinhala, Tamil |ethnic_groups = ≈73.9% Sinhalese,≈12.6% Tamil,≈7.4% Moors,≈5.2% Indian Tamil,≈0.5% Others. |ethnic_groups_year = 2001 |demonym = Sri Lankan |government_type = Democratic Socialist Republic, Semi-presidential system |leader_title1 = President |leader_name1 = Mahinda Rajapaksa |leader_title2 = Prime Minister |leader_name2 = D. M. Jayaratne |leader_title3 = Speaker of the House |leader_name3 = Chamal Rajapaksa |leader_title4 = Chief Justice |leader_name4 = Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake |sovereignty_type = Independence |sovereignty_note = from the United Kingdom |established_event3 = Dominion (Self rule) |established_date3 = February 4, 1948 |established_event4 = Republic |established_date4 = May 22, 1972 |area_rank = 122nd |area_magnitude = 1 E10 |area_km2 = 65,610 |area_sq_mi = 25,332 |percent_water = 4.4 |population_estimate = 20,238,000 |population_estimate_rank = 56th |population_estimate_year = 2010 |population_census = 20,653,000 |population_census_year = Mid 2010 |population_density_km2 = 308.4 |population_density_sq_mi = 798.9 |population_density_rank = 35th |GDP_PPP = $106.5 billion |GDP_PPP_rank = 65th |GDP_PPP_year = 2010 |GDP_PPP_per_capita = $5,220 |GDP_PPP_per_capita_rank = |GDP_nominal = $49.68 billion |GDP_nominal_rank = 73rd |GDP_nominal_year = 2010 |GDP_nominal_per_capita = $2,435 |GDP_nominal_per_capita_rank = |Gini = 49 |Gini_rank = |Gini_year = 2007 |Gini_category = medium |HDI = 0.658 |HDI_rank = 91st |HDI_year = 2010 |HDI_category = medium |currency = Sri Lankan Rupee |currency_code = LKR |time_zone = Sri Lanka Standard Time Zone |utc_offset = +5:30 |time_zone_DST = not observed |date_format = dd/mm/yyyy (AD) |DST_note = |utc_offset_DST = |drives_on = left |cctld = .lk, .ලංකා, .இலங்கை |calling_code = 94 |footnotes = }}

Sri Lanka (officially, The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka) (, , or ; , ) is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. The South Asian Island nation was known as Ceylon (, , or ) until 1972. Sri Lanka is surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the Maldives.

As a result of its location in the path of major sea routes, Sri Lanka is a strategic naval link between West Asia and South East Asia. It was an important stop on the ancient Silk Road. Sri Lanka has also been a center of the Buddhist religion and culture from ancient times and is one of the few remaining abodes of Buddhism in South Asia along with Ladakh, Bhutan and the Chittagong hill tracts. The Sinhalese community forms the majority of the population; Tamils, who are concentrated in the north and east of the island, form the largest ethnic minority. Other communities include Moors, Burghers, Kaffirs, Malays and the aboriginal Vedda people.

Sri Lanka is a republic and a unitary state which is governed by a semi-presidential system with its official seat of government in Sri Jayawardenapura-Kotte, the capital. The country is famous for the production and export of tea, coffee, coconuts, rubber and cinnamon, the last of which is native to the country. The natural beauty of Sri Lanka has led to the title The Pearl of the Indian Ocean. The island is laden with lush tropical forests, white beaches and diverse landscapes with rich biodiversity. The country lays claim to a long and colorful history of over three thousand years, having one of the longest documented histories in the world. Sri Lanka's rich culture can be attributed to the many different communities on the island.

Sri Lanka is a founding member state of SAARC and a member United Nations, Commonwealth of Nations, G77 and Non-Aligned Movement. As of 2010, Sri Lanka was one of the fastest growing economies of the world. Its stock exchange was Asia's best performing stock market during 2009 and 2010.

Etymology

In ancient times, Sri Lanka was known by a variety of names: Known in India as Lanka or Singhala, ancient Greek geographers called it Taprobane () and Arabs referred to it as (the origin of the word "serendipity"). was the name given to Sri Lanka by the Portuguese when they arrived in 1505, which was transliterated into English as Ceylon. As a British crown colony, the island was known as Ceylon, and achieved independence under the name Dominion of Ceylon in 1948.

In Sinhala the country is known as ශ්‍රී ලංකා , , and the island itself as ලංකාව laṃkāva, . In Tamil they are both இலங்கை ilaṅkai, . The name derives from the Sanskrit श्री लंका śrī (venerable) and lankā (island), the name of the island in the ancient Indian epics Mahabharata and the Ramayana. In 1972, the official name of the country was changed to "Free, Sovereign and Independent Republic of Sri Lanka". In 1978 it was changed to the "Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka". The name Ceylon is still in use in the names of a number of organisations; in 2011, the Sri Lankan government announced a plan to rename all of those for which it is responsible.

History

Pre-historic Sri Lanka

The Prehistory of Sri Lanka dates back to about 125,000 years Before Present (BP) and possibly even as early as 500,000 BP. It covers the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and early Iron ages. Anthropologists believe that some burial rites and certain decorative artefacts discovered by the excavations in Sri Lanka exhibit similarities between the first inhabitants of the island and the early inhabitants of Southern India. Among the most important Paleolithic (Homo Erectus) human settlements discovered in Sri Lanka are, Pahiyangala (named after the Chinese monk Faxian, who visited the cave in the 5th century), which dates back to 37,000 BP, Batadombalena, which dates back to 28,500 BP and Belilena, 12,000 BP. One of the most important archaeological findings from these caves is the Balangoda Man, who first appeared in Sri Lanka about 34,000 BP.

One of the first written references to the island is found in the Indian epic Ramayana, which describes the kingdom of Lanka had been created by the divine sculptor named Vishwakarma, for Kubera, the lord of wealth and the god-king of the semi-divine Yakshas. Later, Kubera was overthrown by his demon stepbrother Ravana, the powerful Emperor who built a mythical flying machiene named Dandu Monara. The modern city of Wariyapola is described as Ravana's airport.

Historical records show that the earliest settlements were formed by the combination of four Hela tribes named Naga, Yaksha, Deva and Gandhabba. They all were related to the Maha Rishi Pulasthi’s family, described in Ramayana. These earliest-known inhabitants of Sri Lanka were probably the ancestors of the Vedda people people, an indigenous community living in present-day Sri Lanka, that numbers approximately 3,000. Irish historian James Emerson Tennent theorised Galle, a southern city in Sri Lanka, was the ancient seaport of Tarshish from which King Solomon is said to have drawn ivory, peacocks and other valuables. Early inhabitats of Sri Lanka spoke the Elu language, which was the early form of modern Sinhala language.

Ancient Sri Lanka

Ancient period of Sri Lanka begins in 543 BC, according to the Mahavamsa, a chronicle written in the Pali language, which provides vivid descriptions of the Sri Lankan history. It begins with the landing of Vijaya, a semi-legendary king who arrived in Sri Lanka with 700 followers. After consolidating the power, he established the Kingdom of Tambapanni. Starting from Vijaya, chronicles like Dipavamsa, Mahavamsa, Chulavamsa and Rajaveliya describes the reigns of approximately 189 native monarchs of Sri Lanka. (see List of Sri Lankan monarchs) Sri Lankan dynasty spanned over a period of 2359 years, from 543 BC to 1815 AD, until it came under British Ceylon.

The Kingdom of Sri Lanka moved to Anuradhapura in 380 BC, during the reign of King Pandukabhaya. From that day, Anuradhapura served as the Capital of the country for nearly 1400 years. The same king built the first Irrigation scheme in ancient Sri Lanka, the Abhaya tank. They excelled in various constructions since then. Sri Lankan society was revolutionized during the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa as Buddhism arrived from India. Around 3rd century BCE, Bhikkhu Mahinda, who is believed to have been the son of the great Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, arrived in Mihintale, Sri Lanka, with Buddhism. Mahinda's mission won over the monarch, who embraced the faith and propagated it throughout the Sinhalese population. The Buddhist kingdoms of Sri Lanka would maintain a large number of Buddhist schools and monasteries, and support the propagation of Buddhism into other countries in Southeast Asia. In 288 BC, Bhikkhuni Sangamitta brought the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi tree, which is considered to be a sapling from the historical Bodhi tree under which Gautama Buddha became enlightened. It is existing upto now, and considered as the oldest tree in the world, with a historical record.

Sri Lanka underwent the first foreign invasion during the reign of King Suratissa, who was defeated by Sena and Guttika from South India. First major invasion came in 205 BC by a Chola King named Elara. Dutugemunu (161-137 BC) – eldest son of King Kavan Tissa, the regional sub-king of Ruhuna defeated Elara in the Battle of Vijithapura and came into power. King Dutugemunu created the second stupa in Sri Lanka, Ruwanwelisaya. (first one was Thuparamaya).

During its existence, Kingdom of Sri Lanka was invaded at least 17 times by neighbouring South Asian dynastys such as Chola dynasty, Pandya dynasty, Chera dynasty and Pallava dynasty. There had been incursions by the kingdoms of Kalinga (modern Orissa) and from Malay Peninsula as well. Major invasion by 5 Dravidian kings named Pulahatta, Bahiya, Panaya Mara, Pilaya Mara and Dathiya was overcome by Valagambahu in 88 BC and from another 6 Dravidian kings in the 5th century AD, by Dhatusena. King Dhatusena built the massive reservoir Kala Wewa and Avukana Buddha statue.

Sri Lanka was the first Asian country to have a female ruler. Queen Anula reigned from 47–42 BC. From the ancient period, Sri Lankan monarchs have attained some remarkable construction achievements like Sigiriya, the so-called "Fortress in the Sky". It was created by King Kashyapa. Sigiriya is a rock fortress surrounded by an extensive network of gardens, reservoirs, and other structures. The fifth century construction is also renowned for marvellous paintings (frescos) that it contains. It's also declared by the UNESCO as the 8th Wonder of the world. Among other constructions are large reservoirs, important for conserving water in a climate that alternates rainy seasons with dry times, and elaborate aqueducts, some with a slope as finely calibrated as one inch to the mile. Biso Kotuwa, a peculiar construction inside a dam, is a technologically superior creation based on precise mathematics, allowing water to flow outside the dam keeping the pressure to a minimum. Ancient Sri Lanka was also the first in the world to have established a dedicated hospital in Mihintale in the 4th century BCE. It was also the world's leading exporter of cinnamon, which was exported to Egypt as early as 1400 BCE. Sri Lanka also maintained close ties with European civilizations including Roman Empire. For example, King Bhatika Abhaya (BC 22 - 7 AD) had sent an embassy to Rome and got down coral for a net to be cast over the Ruwanwelisaya. There were close trade relations between Sri Lanka and China too. There are records of Sri Lankan ships in China in the 8th century. Chinese coins belonging to every emperor from 976 AD to 1265 AD have been found in Sri Lanka.

Medieval Sri Lanka

Medieval period of Sri Lanka begins with the fall of the Kingdom of Anuradhapura. In 993 AD, the invasion of Chola Emperor Rajaraja I forced the then Sri Lankan ruler Mahinda V to flee to the southern part of the country. Taking advantage of this situation, Rajendra I son of Rajaraja I, launched a large invasion in 1017 AD. Mahinda V was captured and taken to India, and the Cholas sacked the city of Anuradhapura. This also marked the end of the two great houses of dynasties of ancient Sri Lanka, Moriya and the Lambakanna. Following a seventeen year long campaign, Vijayabahu I successfully drove the Chola out of Sri Lanka in 1070, reuniting the country for the first time in over a century. Upon his request, ordained monks were sent from Burma to Sri Lanka to re-establish Buddhism which had almost disappeared from the country during the Chola reign. During its medieval period, Sri Lanka was divided to three sub-territories, namely Ruhunu, Pihiti and Maya.

Sri Lanka's irrigation system was extensively expanded during the reign of king Parākramabāhu the Great (1153–1186 AD). This period is considered as a time when Sri Lanka was at the height of its power. He built 1470 reservoirs - highest number by a single ruler in the Lankan history, repaired 165 dams, 3910 canals, 163 major reservoirs, and 2376 mini reservoirs. His famous construction is the Parakrama Samudra, the largest irrigation project of medieval Sri Lanka. Parākramabāhu's reign is memorable for two major campaigns—in the south of India as part of a Pandyan war of succession, and a punitive strike against the kings of Ramanna (Myanmar) for various perceived insults to Sri Lanka.

After his demise, Sri Lanka gradually decayed in power. In the early 13th century, Sri Lanka came under the invasion of Parakrama Pandyan II, a Pandyan king. But the real threat came from Kalinga Magha, a South Indian with uncertain origins, who invaded and captured the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa with an army of 24,000 from Kalinga, in 1215 AD. Unlike the previous invaders, he looted, ransacked and destroyed everything in the ancient Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa Kingdoms beyond recovery. His priorities in ruling were to extract as much as possible from the land and overturn as many of the traditions of Rajarata as possible. His reign saw the massive migration of native Sinhalese people to the south and west of Sri Lanka, and into the mountainous interior, in a bid to escape his power. Sri Lanka never really recovered from the impact of Kalinga Magha's invasion. King Vijayabâhu III, who led the resistance, brought the kingdom to Dambadeniya. The north, in the meanwhile, eventually evolved into the Jaffna kingdom. Jaffna kingdom never came under the rule of the kingdom of south except one occasion, in 1450, due to a conquest led by king Parâkramabâhu VI's adopted son, Prince Sapumal. He ruled the North from 1450 to 1467 AD. The next three centuries stating from 1215 were marked by kaleidoscopically shifting collection of kingdoms in south and central Sri Lanka, including Dambadeniya, Yapahuwa, Gampola, Raigama, Kotte, Sitawaka and finally, Kandy. However, this period is known for some groundbreaking Sinhala Literature feats like Sandesha Kaavya.

Early modern Sri Lanka

Early modern period of Sri Lanka begins with the arrival of Portuguese soldier and explorer Francisco de Almeida, the son of Francisco de Almeida in 1505. Sri Lanka had always been an important port and trading post in the ancient world, and was increasingly frequented by merchant ships from the Middle East, Persia, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and other parts of Southeast Asia. The Portuguese founded a fort at the port city of Colombo in 1517 and gradually extended their control over the coastal areas. In 1592 King Vimaladharmasuriya I moved the kingdom to the inland city of Kandy, a location more secure against attack from western invaders. Intermittent warfare continued through the 16th century. In 1619, due to the attacks of Portugese, independent existence of Jaffna kingdom, came to an end.

During the reign of the King Rajasinghe II, Dutch explorers arrived in the island. In 1638, the king signed a treaty with the Dutch East India Company to get rid of Portuguese who ruled most of the coastal area of the island by then. According to the treaty, Dutch should capture and handover the coastal areas to the Kandyan king and the king should grant the Dutch a monopoly over trade on the entire island. The Dutch–Portuguese War resulted in the victory of Dutch. In 1656, Colombo fell into the hands of Dutch, resulting in the entire coastal area governed by Portugese in the Dutch control. However, the treaty signed, was disrespected by both parties. Dutch remained in the areas they captured. An ethnic group named Burgher people integrated into the Sri Lankan society as a result of Dutch rule.

The Kingdom of Kandy was the last independent monarchy of Sri Lanka. In 1595, King Vimaladharmasurya brought the sacred Tooth Relic - the traditional symbol of royal and religious authority amongst the Sinhalese - to Kandy, and built the Temple of the Tooth. Even with intermittent warfare with Europeans, the kingdom was able to survive. A succession crisis emerged in Kandy, upon the King Vira Narendrasinha's death in 1739. He was married to a Telugu-speaking Nayakkar princess from South India and was childless by them. Eventually, with the support of bhikku Weliwita Sarankara, the crown passed to the brother of one of Narendrasinha's princess, overlooking the right of "Unambuwe Bandara", Narendrasinha's own son by a Sinhalese concubine.. The new king was crowned as Sri Vijaya Rajasinha later that year. Kings of Nayakkar dynasty, launched several attacks on Dutch controlled areas, which proved to be unsuccessful.

During the Napoleonic Wars Great Britain, fearing that French control of the Netherlands might deliver Sri Lanka to the French, occupied the coastal areas of the island (which they called Ceylon) with little difficulty in 1796. Two years later, in 1798, King Rajadhi Rajasinha, 3rd of the four Nayakkar kings of Sri Lanka died of a fever. Following the death, a nephew of Rajadhi Rajasinha, 18-year-old Konnasami came into power. The new king, Sri Vikrama Rajasinha faced a British invasion in 1803, but was able to retaliate successfully. By then, the entire coastal area was under the British East India Company, following the Treaty of Amiens. But on 14 February 1815, Kandy was occupied by British, in the second Kandyan War, finally ending Sri Lankan independence. Sri Vikrama Rajasinha, the last native monarch of Sri Lanka was exiled to India. Kandyan convention, formally ceded the entire country to the British Empire. Attempts of Sri Lankan noblemen to undermine the British power in 1818 during the Uva Rebellion were thwarted by Governor Robert Brownrigg. Another rebellion in 1848 was defeated by Governor Lord Torrington.

European colonists established a series of cinnamon, sugar, coffee, indigo cultivation followed by tea and rubber plantations and graphite mining. The British also brought a large number of indentured workers from Tamil Nadu to work in the plantation economy. The city of Colombo was developed as the administrative centre and commercial heart with its harbor, and the British established modern schools, colleges, roads and churches that brought Western-style education and culture to the native people. Increasing grievances over civil rights, reports of mistreatment and abuse of natives by colonial authorities gave rise to a struggle for independence in the 1930s, when the youth leagues opposed the "Ministers' Memorandum," which asked the colonial authority to increase the powers of the board of ministers without granting popular representation or civil freedoms. During World War II, the Ceylon served as an important Allied military base. A large segment of the British and American fleet were deployed on the island, as were tens of thousands of soldiers committed to the war against Japan in Southeast Asia. Many Ceylonese fought as part of British Commonwealth Forces, and some Ceylonese expatriates in the Far east joined to form a Lanka Regiment in the Indian National Army.

Modern Sri Lanka

Following the World War II, popular pressure for independence intensified. The office of Prime Minister of Ceylon was created in advance of independence on 14 October 1947, D. S. Senanayake being the first prime minister. On 4 February 1948 the country gained its independence as the Dominion of Ceylon. The island enjoyed good relations with the United Kingdom and had the British Royal Navy stationed at Trincomalee until 1956. With S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike elected as prime minister, Ceylon began moving towards links with the communist bloc. He introduced the controversial Sinhala Only Act, which was partially reveresd in 1958. Bandaranaike was assassinated in 1959.

On 21 July 1960 Sirimavo Bandaranaike took office as prime minister, and became the world's first female prime minister and the first female head of government in post-colonial Asia, however she faced an attempted military coup in 1962. During her second term as prime minister, her government instituted socialist economic polices and strengthened ties with the Soviet Union and later China, while promoting a policy of non-alignment. However in 1971, Ceylon experienced a Marxist insurrection, which was quickly suppressed with international support. In 1972, with the adoption of a new constitution, the country became a republic, repudating the previous Dominion status and changing its name to Sri Lanka. It remained a member of the Commonwealth of Nations.

There were continuous political rancor between majoity Sinhalese and the minority Tamil communities during the post-independece era. Vital steps to resolve the issue, like Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam Pact and Senanayake-Chelvanayakam Pact failed to materialize. Tensions between Tamil groups and the government mounted in the early 1970s with raise of the Tamil nationalism. Taking the introduction of Policy of standardization to the University entrance, as the catalyst, Tamil militancy grew steadily in the country's north during this period. Assassination of Jaffna Mayor Alfred Duraiyappah in 1975 marked an important turn of these events. Meanwhile, the government of J. R. Jayawardene in 1978 introduced a new constitution, together with Executive presidency and Free market economy. Sri Lanka became the first South Asian country to Liberalize its economy. From the 1983, tensions between ethnic groups blew into an on-and-off insurgency against the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (the LTTE, also known as the Tamil Tigers). In 1987, JVP launched its second insurrection in Southern Sri Lanka. Same year, the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord was signed and Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) was deployed in Northern Sri Lanka to find a lasting solution to the ethnic problem. Efforts did not become successful and in 1990, IPKF left the country. From 1985 to 2006, Sri Lankan government and insurgents held 4 rounds of peacetalks, but none of them helped to resolve the conflict. In 2009, Sri Lanka Armed Forces led by President Mahinda Rajapaksa defeated the LTTE, and brought the entire country under the control of Sri Lankan government. Following the LTTE's defeat, Tamil National Alliance, the largest political party in Sri Lanka dropped its demand for a separate state, in favour of a federal solution. Sri Lanka, emerging after a 26 year war, has become one of the fastest growing economies of the world.

Civil War

The Sinhala Only Act was driving forces behind Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict. The Sinhala Only Act was, curiously enough, not in agreement with the constitution of 1947, which forbade language discrimination. The designations of Sinhala, the language of the majority community, as the sole official language was the first major step in a process, which eventually destroyed the post-independence "ethnic status-quo". The Sinhala Only Act blocked the Tamil quest for continued socioeconomic progress and led to Tamil mobilisation against the State. When peaceful protests were suppressed, extremist actions were legitimized.

Equally important, the act led to ethnic out bidding and it legitimated Sinhalese jingoism, which only radicalized an otherwise culturally and politically conservative Tamil Community. Although other factors—such as the government's internal colonisation policies—played a significant role in Sri Lanka's ethnic relations, the language issue was the most important item on the agenda for both Sinhalese and Tamils. Indeed, the Federal Party's crucial contribution to Tamil politics was its emphasis on the role of language as the determinant of nationhood. This determination to attain Tamil nationhood was exemplified by a Tamil parliamentarian who prophetically claimed that "if the Sinhalese will not agree to federation the Tamils will have a fully autonomous Tamil linguistic state by whatever means they can get it, by all the methods of history: rebellion, guerrilla war fare or anything you please.

From 1983 to 2009, there was an on-and-off civil war between the government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a separatist militant organisation who fought to create an independent state named Tamil Eelam in the North and East of the island. On 19 May 2009, however, the President of Sri Lanka officially claimed an end to the insurgency and the defeat of the LTTE, following the death of Velupillai Prabhakaran and much of the LTTE's other senior leadership.

There were credible allegations and evidence that actions of war crime were committed by both parties, the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (Tamil Tigers), during the Sri Lankan Civil War, particularly during the final months of the conflict in 2009. The war crimes included attacks on civilians and civilian buildings by both sides; executions of combatants and prisoners by both sides; enforced disappearances by the Sri Lankan military and paramilitary groups backed by them; acute shortages of food, medicine, and clean water for civilians trapped in the war zone; and child recruitment by the Tamil Tigers.

With the end of the war, the government of Sri Lanka called for redevelopment of the nation. The final stages of the war left some 294,000 people displaced. On May 24, 2009, the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, visited the Menik farm camp which was one of the IDP camps for Tamil civilians. He said "I have traveled around the world and visited similar places, but this is by far the most appalling scenes I have seen." Regarding the access to that camps that was denied to the NGOs and International aid agencies, Ban said "They should be given unimpeded access and freedom of movement within the camp. That is what I have asked the foreign minister and the president (for), and I was assured that the leaders of the Sri Lankan government will make sure (of this)." By August 2011, most of the displaced persons had been released or returned to their places of origin, and 7,440 remained in the camps.

Geography and climate

The island of Sri Lanka lies in the Indian Ocean, to the southwest of the Bay of Bengal. It lies between latitudes 5° and 10°N, and longitudes 79° and 82°E. Sri Lanka is separated from the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. According to Hindu mythology, a land bridge to the Indian mainland, known as Rama's Bridge, was constructed during the time of Rama by the vanara architect Nala. Often referred to as Adam's Bridge, it now amounts to only a chain of limestone shoals remaining above sea level. According to colonial British reports, this is a natural causeway which was formerly complete, but was breached by a violent storm in 1480.

The island consists mostly of flat-to-rolling coastal plains, with mountains rising only in the south-central part. Amongst these is the highest point Pidurutalagala, reaching above sea level. The climate of Sri Lanka can be described as tropical and warm. Its position between 5 and 10 north latitude endows the country with a warm climate moderated by ocean winds and considerable moisture. The mean temperature ranges from about in the Central Highlands, where frost may occur for several days in the winter, to a maximum of approximately in other low-altitude areas. The average yearly temperature ranges from to nearly . Day and night temperatures may vary by to . During the coldest days of January, many people wear coats and sweaters in the highlands and elsewhere.

May, the hottest period, precedes the summer monsoon rains. The rainfall pattern is influenced by monsoon winds from the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal: as the winds encounter the mountain slopes of the Central Highlands, they unload heavy rains on the slopes and the southwestern areas of the island.The "wet zone" and some of the windward slopes receive up to of rain each month, but the leeward slopes in the east and northeast receive little rain. Most of the east, southeast, and northern parts of the country comprise the "dry zone", which receives between and of rain annually. Much of the rain in these areas falls from October to January; during the rest of the year there is very little precipitation. The arid northwest and southeast coasts receive the least amount of rain at to per year. Periodic squalls occur and sometimes tropical cyclones bring overcast skies and rains to the southwest, northeast, and eastern parts of the island. Between December and March, monsoon winds come from the northeast, bringing moisture from the Bay of Bengal. Humidity is typically higher in the southwest and mountainous areas and depends on the seasonal patterns of rainfall, and places like Colombo experience daytime humidity above 79% all year round, rising to almost 90% during the monsoon season in June. Anuradhapura experiences a daytime low of 60% during the monsoon month of March, but a high of 79% during the November and December rains. In the highlands, Kandy's daytime humidity usually ranges between 75% and 83%.

Sri Lanka's coastline is 1,585 km long. It also claims to an Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) extending 200 nautical miles. This is 6.7 times the country’s land area. The coastline and adjacent waters support highly productive marine ecosystems such as fringing coral reefs, shallow beds of coastal and estuarine seagrasses. Sri Lanka inherits 45 estuaries and 40 lagoons too.

Flora and fauna

thumb|Sri Lankan Elephant is one of three recognized subspecies of the Asian Elephant, and native to Sri Lanka. The country is home to some 5000 elephants.

Lying within the Indomalaya ecozone, Sri Lanka is one of the 25 biodiversity hotspots in the world. Although the country is relatively small in size, it has the highest biodiversity per 10,000 square km in Asia. Remarkably high proportion of the species among its flora and fauna, 27% of the 3,210 flowering plants and 22% of the mammals (see List), are endemic. Sri Lanka has a wide range of topographic and climatic variation and this contributes to the special features of its biodiversity. Most of the fish are river or marsh dwelling. The trout, introduced by the British are found in the cool streams of the Horton plains.

Varieties of flowering acacias are well adapted to the arid conditions and flourish on the Jaffna Peninsula. Among the trees of the dry-land forests, are some valuable species such as satinwood, ebony, ironwood, mahogany and teak. In the wet zone, the dominant vegetation of the lowlands is a tropical evergreen forest, with tall trees, broad foliage, and a dense undergrowth of vines and creepers. Subtropical evergreen forests resembling those of temperate climates flourish in the higher altitudes. Forests at one time covered nearly the entire island, but by the late 20th century lands classified as forests and forest reserves covered around ⅓ of the land.

The Yala National Park in the southeast protects herds of elephant, deer, and peacocks, and the Wilpattu National Park, the largest national park in Sri Lanka, in the northwest preserves the habitats of many water birds, such as storks, pelicans, ibis, and spoonbills. The island has four biosphere reserves, Bundala, Hurulu Forest Reserve, the Kanneliya-Dediyagala-Nakiyadeniya, and Sinharaja. Out of these, Sinharaja forest reserve is home to 26 endemic birds and 20 rainforest species, including the elusive Red-faced Malkoha, Green-billed Coucal and Sri Lanka Blue Magpie. The untapped genetic potential of Sinharaja flora is enormous. Out of the 211 woody trees and lianas so far identified within the reserve, 139 (66%) are endemic. The Total vegetation density, including trees, shrubs, herbs and seedlings has been estimated to be around 240,000 individuals per hectare.

In addition, Sri Lanka is home to over 250 types of resident birds (see List). It contains several bird sanctuaries including Kumana. During the Mahaweli Program of the 1970s and 1980s in northern Sri Lanka, the government set aside four areas of land totalling as national parks. However the country's forest cover, which was around 49% in 1920, had been fallen to approximately 24% by 2009. The national flower of Sri Lanka is the Nymphaea stellata (Sinhalese Nil Mahanel), the national tree is the Ironwood (Sinhalese Na), and the national bird is the Sri Lanka Junglefowl, which is endemic to the country.

Politics

Sri Lanka is the oldest democracy in South Asia. The Donoughmore Constitution, created by the Donoughmore Commission in 1931 enabled general elections with adult universal suffrage (universal adult franchise) in the country. It was the first time, a non-caucasian country within the empires of Western Europe was given one man, one vote and the power to control domestic affairs. The first election under the universal adult franchise held in June 1931, for the Ceylon State Council. Sir D. B. Jayatilaka was elected as the Leader of the House. In 1944, the Soulbury Commission was appointed to draft a new constitution. During this time, struggle for Independence was fought on "constitutionalist" lines under the leadership of D. S. Senanayake. The draft constitution was enacted in the same year and Senanayake was appointed as the Prime Minister from the parliamentary election in 1947. The Soulbury constitution ushered in Dominion status and Independence to Sri Lanka in 1948.

Current politics in Sri Lanka is led by rival coalitions led by the centre-leftist, progressivist United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA), an offspring of Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), and the comparatively right-wing, pro-capitalist United National Party (UNP). Sri Lanka is essentially a multi-party democracy with many smaller Buddhist, socialist and Tamil nationalist political parties. As of July 2011, Sri Lanka had 67 registered political parties. Out of these, Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP), established in 1935 is the oldest political party in Sri Lanka. UNP, established by D. S. Senanayake in 1946, was considered to be the largest single political party in Sri Lanka until recently. It is the only political group which had a representation in all parliaments since the independence. SLFP was founded by S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, who was the Cabinet minister of Local Administration when he left the UNP in July 1951. SLFP recorded its first victory in 1956, defeating the ruling UNP in 1956 Parliamentary election.

The Tamil nationalist counterpart of Bandaranaike, G. G. Ponnambalam, founded the All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC) in 1944. Due to Ponnambalam's cooperation with D. S. Senanayake, a group led by S.J.V. Chelvanayakam broke away in 1949 and formed the Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) aka Federal Party. It was the main Tamil political party in Sri Lanka for next 3 decades. Tamil National Alliance, formed in October 2001 is the current successor of these Tamil political parties which had undergone much turbulences as Tamil militancy grew in early 1970s. Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, a Marxist-Leninist, Communist political party founded by Rohana Wijeweera in 1965, serves the 3rd force in the current political context of country.

Government

The Constitution of Sri Lanka establishes a democratic, socialist republic in Sri Lanka, which is also a unitary state. The government is a mixture of the presidential system and the parliamentary system. The President of Sri Lanka is the head of state, the commander in chief of the armed forces, as well as head of government, and is popularly elected for a six-year term. In the exercise of duties, the President is responsible to the Parliament of Sri Lanka, which is a unicameral 225-member legislature. The President appoints and heads a cabinet of ministers composed of elected members of parliament. The President's deputy is the Prime Minister, who leads the ruling party in parliament and shares many executive responsibilities, mainly in domestic affairs.

Members of parliament are elected by universal (adult) suffrage based on a modified proportional representation system by district to a six-year term. The primary modification is that, the party that receives the largest number of valid votes in each constituency gains a unique "bonus seat." The president may summon, suspend, or end a legislative session and dissolve Parliament any time after it has served for one year. The parliament reserves the power to make all laws. On 1 July 1960 the people of Sri Lanka appointed the first-ever female head of government in Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike. Her daughter Chandrika Kumaratunga served for a short period as the prime minister between August and December 1994 before being elected as the first female president of the country from 1994 to 2005 for 2 consecutive terms. The current president, who took office on 21 November 2005, and has been elected for two consecutive terms, is Mahinda Rajapaksa. The current prime minister, D. M. Jayaratne, took office on 21 April 2010.

Since 1948, Sri Lanka has been a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and the United Nations. It is also a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, the Colombo Plan, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation. Through the Cold War-era, Sri Lanka followed a foreign policy of non-alignment but has remained closer to the United States and Western Europe.

The military of Sri Lanka comprises the Sri Lankan Army, the Sri Lankan Navy and the Sri Lankan Air Force. These are administered by the Ministry of Defence. During 1971 and 1989 the army assisted the police in government response against the Marxist militants of the JVP and fought the LTTE from 1983 to 2009. Sri Lanka receives considerable military assistance from Pakistan and China.

Administrative divisions

;Provinces

Provinces () have existed in Sri Lanka since the 19th century. But they didn't have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils following several decades of increasing demand for a decentralisation of the Government of Sri Lanka. Between 1988 and 2006 the Northern and Eastern provinces were temporarily merged to form the North-East Province. Prior to 1987, all administration was handled by a district-based civil service which had been in place since colonial times.

Sri Lanka is divided into 9 provinces and 25 districts. Each province is administered by a directly elected provincial council:

;Districts

The provinces of Sri Lanka are divided into 25 districts (). Each district is administered under a District Secretariat. The districts are further subdivided into divisional secretariats, and these in turn to Grama Niladharis. The Districts are known in Sinhala as Disa and in Tamil as Maawaddam. Originally a Disa (usually rendered into English as Dissavony) was a duchy, notably Matale and Uva. The Government Agent, who is known as District Secretary, administers a district.

These were originally based on the feudal counties, the korales and ratas. They were formerly known as 'D.R.O. Divisions' after the 'Divisional Revenue Officer'. Later the D.R.O.s became 'Assistant Government Agents' and the Divisions were known as 'A.G.A. Divisions'. Currently, the Divisions are administered by a 'Divisional Secretary', and are known as a 'D.S. Divisions'. Rural D.S. Divisions are also administered by a 'Pradeshiya Sabha' and 'Pradesha Sabhai' (Sinhala and Tamil for 'Regional Council'), which is elected.

Foreign relations and military

Foreign relations

Sri Lanka traditionally follows a nonaligned foreign policy but has been seeking closer relations with the United States since December 1977. It participates in multilateral diplomacy, particularly at the United Nations, where it seeks to promote sovereignty, independence, and development in the developing world. Sri Lanka was a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). It also is a member of the Commonwealth, the SAARC, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Asian Development Bank, and the Colombo Plan. Sri Lanka continues its active participation in the NAM, while also stressing the importance it places on regionalism by playing a strong role in SAARC.

Military

The Sri Lanka Armed Forces, comprising the Sri Lanka Army, the Sri Lanka Navy and the Sri Lanka Air Force, comes under the purview of the Ministry of Defence (MoD). The total strength of the three services is around 230,000 active personnel. Sri Lanka does not use a military draft.

In support of the armed forces there are three paramilitary units functioning under purview of the Ministry of Defence, which are the Special Task Force, the Civil Security Force and the Sri Lanka Coast Guard

Since independence from Britain in 1948, the primary focus of the armed forces has been on internal security, due to three major insurgencies, including a 30 year long conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam which was proscribed as a terrorist organisation by 32 countries. Due to this conflict the armed forces had expanded to its current size and where in a continuous mobilized state for the last 30 years. Unique in modern military history, this was a low intensity conflict which progressed into a bloody conflict which included elements of conventional warfare as well as classic guerrilla and asymmetric warfare, with pitch battles taking place in land and at sea, later briefly moving to the air and unprecedented use of suicide attacks by a violent non-state actor. Although it drew in other regional countries into the conflict directly (India) or indirectly (Pakistan, China); the conflict itself did not result in any territorial or constitutional changes, however it resulted in the deaths of 80,000–100,000 Sri Lankan and foreigners.

In a rare occurrence in modern history the conflict that had 30 years of constant fighting, halted several times briefly by failed peace overtures, ended by a military outcome with a comprehensively defeat of the LTTE May 2009.

;Peace keeping Sri Lankan Armed Forces have engaged in UN peacekeeping operations since the early 1960s. Even though its armed forces were then engaged in an internal conflict, Sri Lanka, since 2002, contributed with forces as permanent contingents deployed in several UN peacekeeping missions in Haiti, Chad and Lebanon organised by the United Nations, notably the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti and continue to contribute their forces to the United Nations.

Economy

In the 19th and 20th centuries, Sri Lanka became a plantation economy, famous for its production and export of cinnamon, rubber and Ceylon tea, which remains a trademark national export. The development of modern ports under British rule raised the strategic importance of the island as a centre of trade. During World War II, the island hosted important military installations and Allied forces. However, the plantation economy aggravated poverty and economic inequality.

From 1948 to 1977 socialism strongly influenced the government's economic policies. Colonial plantations were dismantled, industries were nationalised and a welfare state established. While the standard of living and literacy improved significantly, the nation's economy suffered from inefficiency, slow growth and lack of foreign investment. From 1977 the UNP government began incorporating privatisation, deregulation and the promotion of private enterprise. While the production and export of tea, rubber, coffee, sugar and other agricultural commodities remains important, the nation has moved steadily towards an industrialised economy with the development of food processing, textiles, telecommunications and finance. By 1996 plantation crops made up only 20% of export, and further declined to 16.8% in 2005 (compared with 93% in 1970), while textiles and garments have reached 63%.

The GDP grew at an average annual rate of 5.5% during the early 1990s, until a drought and a deteriorating security situation lowered growth to 3.8% in 1996. The economy rebounded in 1997–2000, with average growth of 5.3%. The year of 2001 saw the first recession in the country's history, as a result of power shortages, budgetary problems, the global slowdown, and continuing civil strife. Signs of recovery appeared after the 2002 ceasefire which died away following the beginning of war. Since the separatist war ended in May 2009 the Sri Lankan stock market has shown marked gains to be among the 3 best performing markets in the world. The Colombo Stock Exchange reported the highest growth in the world for 2003, and today Sri Lanka has the highest per capita income in South Asia. About 14% of the population live on less than US$ 1.25 per day.

In April 2004, there was a sharp reversal in economic policy after the government headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe of the United National Party was defeated by a coalition made up of Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the leftist-nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna called the United People's Freedom Alliance. The new government stopped the privatisation of state enterprises and reforms of state utilities such as power and petroleum, and embarked on a subsidy program called the Rata Perata economic program. Its main theme to support the rural and suburban SMEs and protect the domestic economy from external influences, such as oil prices, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Sri Lanka, with an income per head of US$1,972, still lags behind some of its neighbours including Maldives but is ahead of its giant neighbour India. Its economy grew by an average of 5% during the 1990s during the 'War for Peace' era. According to the Sri Lankan central bank statistics, the economy was estimated to have grown by 7% last year, while inflation reached 20%. Parts of Sri Lanka, particularly the South and East coast, were devastated by the 2004 Asian Tsunami. The economy was briefly buoyed by an influx of foreign aid and tourists, but this was disrupted with the reemergence of the civil war resulting in increased lawlessness in the country and a sharp decline in tourism. But following the end of the 3 decade long separatist war in May 2009 tourism has seen a steep uptick. Also the end of war has ensured the rule of law in the whole of the island.

Recently, New York Times has placed Sri Lanka Number 1 in 31 places to go in 2010. After Dow Jones classified Sri Lanka as Emerging markets at 2010, Citigroup classified Sri Lanka as 3G (countries) at February 2011.

Demographics

Sri Lanka is the 53rd most populated nation in the world, with an annual population growth rate of 0.79%. Sri Lanka has a birth rate of 15.63 births per 1,000 people and a death rate of 6.49 deaths per 1,000 people. Population density is highest in western Sri Lanka, especially in and around the capital. There is a small population on the island of the Vedda people. They are believed to be the original indigenous group to inhabit the island. The Sinhalese people form the largest ethnic group in the nation, composing approximately 74% of the total population.

Tamils are concentrated in the North, East, Central and Western provinces of the country. Sri Lankan Tamils are the second major ethnic group on the island and have called it home for generations. Indian Tamils who were brought as indentured labourers from India by British colonists to work on estate plantations, nearly 50% of whom were repatriated following independence in 1948, are called "Indian Origin" Tamils. They are distinguished from the native Tamil population that has resided in Sri Lanka since ancient times.

According to 2001 census data Indian Tamils makeup 5.1% of the Sri Lankan population and, Sri Lankan Tamils 4.3% but this figure only accounted for Sri Lankan Tamils in government-controlled areas, not accounting for those in rebel-held territories. The World Factbook states that Sri Lankan Tamils make up 14% of the population. There is a significant population (8.0%) of Moors, who trace their lineage to Arab traders and immigrants from the Middle East. Their presence is concentrated in the cities and the central and eastern provinces. There are also small ethnic groups such as the Burghers (of mixed European descent) and Austronesian peoples from Southeast Asia.

Language

Sinhalese and Tamil are the two official languages of Sri Lanka. English is fluently spoken by approximately 10% of the population, and is widely used for education, scientific and commercial purposes. Members of the Burgher community speak variant forms of Portuguese Creole and Dutch with varying proficiency, while members of the Malay community speak a form of creole Malay that is unique to the island.

Religions

Sri Lanka has a multi-ethnic and multi-religious population. Buddhism constitutes the religious faith of about 70% of the population of the island, most of whom follow the Theravada school of Buddhism.

Sri Lanka has the longest continuous history of Buddhism of any predominately Buddhist nation, with the Sangha having existed in a largely unbroken lineage since its introduction in the 2nd century BCE. During periods of decline, the Sri Lankan monastic lineage was revived through contact with Thailand and Burma. }} Religions which today exist in Sri Lanka, in addition to Buddhism and Hinduism include Islam as well as different churches of Christianity. Followers of Islam comprise nearly eight percent of the population,

Hinduism was primarily established in Sri Lanka by migrants and often invaders from southern India, Hindus constitute just over 7 percent of the population, mostly of the Shaivite school. European colonists introduced Christianity to the country in the 16th century, and the religion has been adopted by around six percent of the population.

Health

Birth in Sri Lanka Life expectancy was 69 for males and 76 for females in 2006. Government expenditure on health care was aprox. US$ 105 (PPP) in 2006. Sri Lanka has about 48.9 physicians per 100,000 people. The Médecins Sans Frontières are active in Sri Lanka.

Education

With a literacy rate of 92%, and 83% of the total population having had Secondary Education, Sri Lanka has one of the most literate populations amongst developing nations. An education system which dictates 9 years of Compulsory Schooling for every child is in place, with 99% of the children entering the first grade. by Dr. C. W. W. Kannangara, a former minister of education, has greatly contributed to this.

Dr. Kannangara led the establishment of the Madhya Maha Vidyalayas (Central Schools) in different parts of the country in order to provide education to Sri Lanka's rural population. In 1942 a special education committee proposed extensive reforms to establish an efficient and quality education system for the people. However in the 1980s changers to this system saw the separation the of administration of schools between the central government and the provincial government. Thus the elite National Schools are controlled directly by the Ministry of Education and the provincial schools by the provincial government.

Most schools in Sri Lanka provide education from grades 1 to 13 in the same institution. Students sit for the GCE Ordinary Level Examination (O/Levels) in grade 11 and the GCE Advanced Level Examination (A/levels) in grade 13, conducted by the Department of Examinations. These schools are modelled on British colleges. A majority of them are public, but a number of private schools do exist. While most reputed National and Private Schools centred around large cities are usually single-sex institutions, rural provincial schools tend to be coeducational.

In recent decades, a large number of international schools have been established across the nation. In these schools General Certificate of Secondary Education, International Baccalaureate and Cambridge International Examinations are popular education programs. Many of the schools offer subjects in Sinhala and Tamil languages with regionally leading schools offering subjects in English medium also.

Sri Lanka has around 16 public universities. They include the University of Colombo, the University of Peradeniya, the University of Kelaniya, the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, the University of Moratuwa, the University of Jaffna, the University of Ruhuna, the Eastern University of Sri Lanka, the Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka and the Wayamba University of Sri Lanka.

However the lack of space in these institutions and the unwillingness to establish private universities has led to a large number of students been denied entry into formal universities as well as high undergraduate unemployment. As a result, a number of public and private institutions have emerged, which provide specialised education in a variety of fields, such as computer science, business administration and law. These include the government owned Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology and the Institute of Technological Studies. The free education system ensures that primary to tertiary education is provided free of charge to its citizens.

Transport

Most Sri Lankan cities and towns are connected by the Sri Lanka Railways, the state-run national railway operator. The first railway line was inaugurated on 26 April 1867, linking Colombo with Kandy. The total length of Sri Lankan roads exceeds , with a vast majority of them being paved.

The government has launched several highway projects to bolster the economy and national transport system, including the Colombo-Katunayake Expressway, the Colombo-Kandy (Kadugannawa) Expressway, the Colombo-Padeniya Expressway and the Outer Circular Highway to ease Colombo's traffic congestion. There are also plans to build a major bridge connecting Jaffna to the Indian city of Chennai.

The Ceylon Transport Board is the state-run agency responsible for operating public bus services across the island. Sri Lanka also maintains of inland waterways. It has three deep-water ports at Colombo, Trincomalee and Galle. There is also a smaller, shallower harbour at Kankesanturai, north of Jaffna.

There are twelve paved airports and two unpaved airstrips in the country. SriLankan Airlines is the official national carrier, partly owned and operated by Emirates Airline. It was voted the best airline in South Asia by Skytrax. SriLankan Air Taxi is the smaller, domestic arm of the national carrier, while Expo Aviation and Lankair are private airline companies. The Bandaranaike International Airport, currently the country's only international airport, is located in Katunayaka, north of Colombo. A second international airport is under construction in Mattala, in the south of the island.

The Port of Colombo is the largest port in Sri Lanka, handling over 4.1 million TEUs annually. The new Port of Hambantota is currently under construction, and due to begin operations in November 2010.

Human rights

Human rights as ratified by the United Nations are guaranteed by the constitution of Sri Lanka. The human rights situation in Sri Lanka has come under criticism by human rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, as well as the United States Department of State and the European Union, have expressed concern about the state of human rights in Sri Lanka. Both the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and the government of Sri Lanka are accused of violating human rights.

In its 2007 report, however, Amnesty International stated that "escalating political killings, child recruitment, abductions and armed clashes created a climate of fear in the east, spreading to the north by the end of the year", whilst also outlining concerns with violence against women, the death penalty and "numerous reports of torture in police custody". However, the report also stated that the ceasefire between government and LTTE remained in place despite numerous violations.

However, the Sri Lankan minister for HR said "We regret one or two statements made here, that fly in the face of all concrete evidence, that the situation in Sri Lanka is deteriorating, when we have dealt more firmly with terrorism, with far-less damage to civilians, than in any comparative situation." Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said, the report presents a distorted view of the actual situation in Sri Lanka during the year 2007 and is a litany of unsubstantiated allegations, innuendo and vituperative exaggerations.

Culture and arts

The island is the home of two main traditional cultures: the Sinhalese (centred in the ancient cities of Kandy and Anuradhapura) and the Tamil (centred in the city of Jaffna). In more recent times a British colonial culture was added, and lately Sri Lanka, particularly in the urban areas, has experienced a dramatic makeover in the western mould.

Until recently, for example, most Sri Lankans, certainly those in the villages, have eaten traditional food, engaged in traditional crafts and expressed themselves through traditional arts. But economic growth and intense economic competition in developed countries has spilled over to most of Sri Lanka, producing changes that might variously be identified as progress, westernisation or a loss of identity and assimilation.

Traditional food

Sri Lankans have added western influences to the customary diet such as rice and curry, pittu (mixture of fresh rice meal, very lightly roasted and mixed with fresh grated coconut, then steamed in a bamboo mould). Kiribath (cooked in thick coconut cream for this unsweetened rice-pudding which is accompanied by a sharp chili relish called "lunumiris"), wattalapam (rich pudding of Malay origin made of coconut milk, jaggery, cashew nuts, eggs, and various spices including cinnamon cloves and nutmeg), kottu, and hoppers ("appa"), batter cooked rapidly in a hot curved pan, accompanied by eggs, milk or savouries.

Middle Eastern influences and practices are found in traditional Moor dishes. While Dutch and Portuguese influences are found with the island's Burgher community preserving their culture through traditional favourites such as Lamprais (rice cooked in stock and baked in a banana leaf), Breudher (Dutch Christmas cake) and Bolo Fiado (Portuguese-style layer cake).

Festivals

Every year on or about 13 April Sinhala and Tamil people celebrate Sinhalese and Tamil New Year Festival, and Muslims celebrate Ramadan. Esala Perahera (A-suh-luh peh-ruh-ha-ruh) is the grand festival of Esala held in Sri Lanka. It is very grand with elegant costumes. Happening in July or August in Kandy, it has become a unique symbol of Sri Lanka. It is a Buddhist festival consisting of dances and richly decorated elephants.

There are fire-dances, whip-dances, Kandian dances and various other cultural dances. The elephants are usually adorned with lavish garments. The festival ends with the traditional 'diya-kepeema'. The elephant is paraded around the city bearing the tooth of Buddha. However the new year for tamils have been established as being on 14 January from this year.

Cinema

Sri Lankan cinema in past years has featured subjects such as family relationships, love stories and the years of conflict between the military and Tamil Tiger rebels. Many films are in the Sinhalese language and the Sri Lankan cinematic style is similar to bollywood, kollywood of Indian cinema.

The first film to be produced and shown in Sri Lanka was Kadawunu Poronduwa (The Broken Promise) which was released in 1947. The first colour film of Sri Lanka was Ranmuthu Duwa.

Afterwards there were many Sinhalese movies produced in Sri Lanka and some of them, such as Nidhanaya, received several international film awards. The most influential filmmaker in the history of Sri Lankan cinema is Lester James Peiris who has directed many movies of excellent quality which led to global acclaim. His latest film, Wekande Walauwa ("Mansion by the Lake") became the first movie to be submitted from Sri Lanka for the Best Foreign Language film award at the Academy Awards.

In 2005 the director Vimukthi Jayasundara became the first Sri Lankan to win the prestigious Camera d’Or award for Best First Film, or any award for that matter, at the Cannes Film Festival for his Sinhalese language film Sulanga Enu Pinisa (The Forsaken Land). Controversial filmmaker Asoka Handagama's films are considered by many in the Sri Lankan film world to be the best films of honest response to the ethnic conflict raged in the country for many years.

Prasanna Vithanage is one of Sri Lanka's most notable filmmakers. His films have won many awards, both local and international. Recent releases like 'Sooriya Arana', 'Samanala thatu', and 'Hiripoda wessa' have attracted Sri Lankans to cinemas. Sri Lankan films are usually in the Sinhalese language. Tamil language movies are also filmed in Sri Lanka but they are part of Kollywood which is Indian Tamil cinema. It is also known as Sri Lankan Tamil cinema in Sri Lanka. However some Kollywood films are based in Sri Lanka as well.

Music

The earliest music came from the theatre at a time when the traditional open-air drama (referred to in Sinhala as Kolam, Sokari and Nadagam). In 1903 the first music album, Nurthi, was released through Radio Ceylon. Also Vernon Corea introduced Sri Lankan music in the English Service of Radio Ceylon.

In the early 1960s, Indian music in films greatly influenced Sri Lankan music and later Sri Lankan stars like Sunil Shantha found greater popularity among Indian people. By 1963, Radio Ceylon had more Indian listeners than Sri Lankan ones. The notable songwriters Mahagama Sekara and Ananda Samarakoon made a Sri Lankan music revolution. At the peak of this revolution, musicians such as W. D. Amaradeva, H.R. Jothipala, Milton Mallawarachchi, M.S. Fernando, Annesley Malewana and Clarence Wijewardene did great work.

A very popular type of music is the so-called Baila, a kind of dance music that originated from Portuguese music introduced to the island in colonial times.

Sri Lanka has a significant underground metal and hard rock community which is growing in popularity among upper middle class teenagers and young adults. Some internationally known Sri Lankan metal bands include Stigmata, Chitral Somapala, Whirlwind, Fallen Grace, Funeral In Heaven, Paranoid Earthling.

Media

The national radio station radio, Radio Ceylon is the oldest-running radio station in Asia. It was established in 1923 by Edward Harper just three years after broadcasting was launched in Europe. It remains one of the most popular stations in Asia, with its programming reaching neighbouring Asian nations. The station is managed by the Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation and broadcasts services in Sinhalese, Tamil, English and Hindi.

Since the 1980s, a large number of private radio stations have also being introduced, and they have gained commercial popularity and success. Broadcast television was introduced to the country in 1979 when the Independent Television Network was launched. Initially all Television stations were state controlled, but private television networks began broadcasts in 1992.

Global television networks from India, Southeast Asia, Europe and the United States are also widely popular, and cable and satellite television is gaining in popularity with Sri Lanka's middle-class. Popular publications include the English language Daily Mirror and The Sunday Observer and The Sunday Times, Divayina, Lankadeepa and Lakbima in Sinhalese and the Tamil publications Dinakaran and Uthayan.

Sri Lankan Literature

Sports

While the national sport in Sri Lanka is volleyball, by far the most popular sport in the country is cricket. Sri Lankan cricket team reached the finals of the 2007 Cricket World Cup, where they lost to Australia at the Kensington Oval, in Bridgetown, Barbados. After qualifying to play in the finals of the 2011 Cricket World Cup, Sri Lanka was beaten by India. The legendary Sri Lankan off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan also ended his incredible career at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai which hosted the 2011 World Cup finals. The national cricket team of Sri Lanka has won the Asia Cup in 1986, 1997, 2004 and 2008.

Sri Lanka has a large number of sports stadiums, including the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, the Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu Stadium, the R. Premadasa Stadium and the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium in Dambulla as well as the Galle International Stadium. The country co-hosted the 1996 Cricket World Cup with India and Pakistan, 2011 Cricket World Cup with India and Bangladesh and has hosted the Asia Cup tournament on numerous occasions. Aquatic sports such as boating, surfing, swimming and scuba diving on the coast, the beaches and backwaters attract a large number of Sri Lankans and foreign tourists. There are two styles of martial arts native to Sri Lanka, Cheena di and Angampora.

See also

Outline of Sri Lanka

References

Further reading

;Bibliography

External links

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Birth in Sri Lanka documents issues and practices related to childbirth in Sri Lanka, which are influenced by the sociocultural composition, political history and violence within the country.

Background

Physical environment

Sri Lanka is a small island nation in the Indian Ocean, off the southeast coast of India. Geographically, it is about the same size as the state of West Virginia. The island is characterized by a tropical monsoon climate that is divided into the northeast monsoon (December to March) and southwest monsoon (June to October). The terrain is mostly low, flat to rolling fertile plains. Highlands with deep valleys exist in the central-southern interior of the country.

History

The Sinhalese, who likely migrated from Northern India, are first people known to inhabit Sri Lanka. It is commonly believed that they arrived in the 5th century B.C. Near 300 B.C., there is evidence that Tamil people began to migrate from Southern India to the island now known as Sri Lanka. The Portuguese discovered the island largely by accident in 1505 C.E. and established their first trading settlement in 1517 C.E. The Portuguese briefly controlled the coastal areas of the island, followed by the Dutch in the 17th century. With these colonizers came the introduction of Roman Catholic missionaries who sought to convert Sinhalese and Tamil people to Catholicism. By March 1815, the island was formally united under British rule Throughout the 19th century, the British brought Tamil workers from Southern India to staff the growing number of rubber and tea plantations. The people of the island gained independence from the British in 1948 and formed the nation of Ceylon. The official name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972, when Buddhism was named the primary religion of the country.

Throughout the late 20th century and into the 21st century, Sri Lanka remained a country wrought with turmoil and war. Increasing Sinhalese nationalism led to disenfranchisement of the Tamil minority. Beginning in 1983 and lasting nearly three decades, brutally violent armed conflicts took place between the pro-independent militant Tamil group, named Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), and the Sinhalese dominant Sri Lankan government force. These years were characterized by civil unrest, violence, guerrilla attacks, acts of terrorism and conventional warfare. During the conflict, Northern and Eastern provinces served as primary battlefields. It is estimated that more than 60,000 people were killed in the conflict. A ceasefire was signed in 2002, but mostly ignored and officially rejected by the Sri Lankan government in 2008. The Sri Lankan government declared victory over the LTTE in May 2009 with the death of rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.

Religion

Religion is a vibrant part of Sri Lankan culture. The predominant religions are Buddhism, Hindu, Muslim and Christianity. Buddhism was introduced sometime between 250-210 B.C., and became the official religion of Sri Lanka in 1972. The 1978 constitution grants primacy to Buddhism, while also ensuring freedom of religion for all citizens. Throughout Sri Lanka’s long history, Buddhism has remained an active part of the culture. Nearly 70% of the population is Buddhist. Due to the extensive conflict and war in the northern and eastern provinces, data regarding religious affiliation is variable. The national census states that 8% of the population identified as Muslim, 7% as Hindu, 6% as Christian, and the remaining 10% were unspecified. The majority of Sri Lankan Muslims practice Sunni Islam. Sizable minorities of both Sinhalese and Tamils identify as Christians, most of whom are Roman Catholic.

Political system

Sri Lanka is governed within the framework of a presidential representative democratic republic. In this multi-party system the president is the head of state, head of government and the commander of the armed forces. The long standing conflict between the majority Sinhalese and the Tamil minority is apparent within the political structure. Both the president and prime minister are members of the socialist Sri Lanka Freedom Party. The party was founded in 1951, and generally represents the interests of the nationalist Sinhala parties. The primary opposition party is the conservative United National Party. In 1959, Sri Lanka was led by Sirimavo Bandaranaike, the world's first female chief executive. Mahinda Rajapaksa became president in 2005 and was re-elected in January, 2010, two years before the end of his term.

Economic system

Sri Lanka’s gross domestic product (GDP) per capita is $4,900 USD with an annual growth rate estimated at 8%. The average annual income is $964 USD and about 6% of the population lives below $1 USD per day. In 2001, the country faced bankruptcy when national debt overtook GDP. Crisis was averted when the government gathered international loans after a ceasefire was signed with the LTTE.

In 2009, a third of Sri Lankans worked in agriculture, a fourth in industry and the remainder primarily worked in services jobs. Four percent of males are unemployed. Women are becoming increasingly active in the job market and female unemployment has dropped from 22% in 1993, to 8% in 2009. The primary economic sectors include tourism, textiles, clothing manufacture, agricultural products and exportation of tea, apparel, gemstones and rubber.

Social structure and organization

In Sri Lanka, there has not been a comprehensive national population census completed since 1981. The 2001 national census did not include vital information from conflict areas of the northern and eastern parts of the country. Due to the ongoing violence in Sri Lanka, most demographic data available is estimated based on 1981 or 2001 data, and variation exists among data sources. The CIA World Factbook lists Sri Lanka’s current population as 20,653,913 persons. Considering the island is only 65,610 square kilometers (25,332 square miles), it is a very densely populated nation. Over 85% of the population live in non-urban environments. The largest city is Colombo, with a population of 1,819,777. Sri Lanka is occupied by several ethnic groups. The Sinhalese are the predominant ethnic group (74%), followed by Sri Lankan Tamils (13%), Indian Tamils (5%) and Moors (Muslim) (7%). Sinhala is the national language and is the predominant language spoken by 74% of the population. Most Tamils and Moors speak Tamil, part of the South Indian linguistic group. Due to the extensive conflict between Sri Lankan government and Tamil separatists that took place in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, several hundred thousand Tamil citizens fled their homes in conflict zones and were placed in government run camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs), or sought refuge in other countries. The total number of displaced persons is unknown, though in 1994 it was estimated over 500,000 people were displaced internally and more than 200,000 people fled internationally.

Since 2009, considerable effort has been made to relocate the hundreds of thousand IDPs from government camps. When forced to flee conflict zones, most IDPs left behind their homes, assets, and tools necessary for their livelihoods. The Sri Lankan government reported that rations were provided for families selected for resettlement from IDP camps. These rations included agricultural tool kits, dry rations, an initial payment of Rs. 5,000 (est. $44 USD), a shelter grant of Rs. 25,000 (est. $219 USD), roofing sheets, provision of rice seed, fertilizer and transportation. Even in resettled communities, many people continue to face insecurity and poverty. As of February 2011, nearly 17,500 people continue to live at Menik Farm, Sri Lanka’s largest camp for IDPs. Recent reports claim that the government hopes to resettle all conflict-displaced people by the end of 2011. Rebuilding infrastructure in northern and eastern provinces affected by war is an ongoing task.

Education

Sri Lanka’s education system is state funded, and offered free of charge at all levels, including the university level. Schooling is compulsory for children from 5 to 13 years of age. The national literacy rate is 91%. The reported literacy rate of the urban population is 93%, 92% of the rural population and 75% of the estate population. The literacy rate among women is 89%. Nearly 70% of the population is educated beyond the 9th grade.

Health Information

Considering the low annual income and many years of internal conflict, Sri Lanka’s health indicators are stronger than those of many other developing countries. According the Kaiser Family Foundation’s Global Health Database, 90% of Sri Lankans have access to water and 91% have access to sanitation. An estimated 2,800 people are living with HIV/AIDS, and 20,000 are living with tuberculosis. The life expectancy at birth is 74 years of age. Health services are provided to Sri Lankan citizens free of charge and over 93% of the population has access to basic health care. The national prevalence of anemia among school children is about 12%. Many Sri Lankan students are undernourished (BMI-for age below the 5th percentile for age and sex). Children in the in the northern and eastern provinces have a much higher proportion of health problems when compared to children living in other provinces.

Sri Lanka has an extensive network of health care institutions. The health system consists of both the state and private sector. State health services include preventative, curative and rehabilitative health services. Health services are organized and delivered through the Department of Health Services and the Provincial Health Sector. The Sri Lankan health system incorporates Western, Ayurvedic and Homeopathic medicine. The Ministry of Health oversees national health services. Eight Provincial Directors of Health Services are responsible for the management and implementation of health services within each province. These services include provincial, base, district and rural hospitals, maternity homes and outpatient facilities. Each province is divided into geographical areas, with a defined population, who are served by a Medical Officers of Health (MOH). Within each MOH area, a team of field level health workers, including Public Health Nurses (PHN), Public Health Inspector (PHI) and Public Health Midwives (PHM), work with a Medical Officer to deliver health care services at a community level. The PHM are responsible for delivering antenatal, natal and postnatal services in hospitals, community health centers and in patient’s homes. Several different types of health care facilities exist and patients may choose where they receive services.

Sri Lanka’s achievements in maternal health and family planning are perceived as a success. In the 1930s, Sri Lanka’s maternal mortality ratio (MMR) was 2,000 deaths per 100,000 live births. Recognizing this as a national problem, the government implemented programs to improve infrastructure, education, sanitation and health systems in poor and under-served areas. Simultaneously, there was an improvement in maternal health services and extensive training of, and improved community access to, Public Health Nurse-Midwives. Maternal care now encompasses antenatal care, intrapartum and postnatal care. These strategies enabled Sri Lanka to reduce the MMR by half every 6–12 years between 1930 and 1995. In 2002, the MMR was 43 per 100,000 live births. The estimated total fertility rate is 2.2 births per woman and population growth rate is 0.93%. The infant mortality rate was 11.2 per 1000 live births in 2003. The contraceptive prevalence rate was 70%; the infant mortality rate was 10.2 for female infants and 12.9 for male infants per 1,000 live births.

In 1927, the midwifery services in the Colombo municipality were re-organized to include training of all midwives working in the municipality. Since then, PHM training has continued expand and follow a standardized course. By 1958, about 58% of the births were attended by a skilled birth attendant, of which 25% were deliveries in the home by a PHM. Since the 1950s the number of institutional (maternity home or hospital) deliveries has continued to increase, and in 2001, 92% of all deliveries took place in institutions.

Effect of conflict on maternal health

Many years of ethnic conflict have led to separation between the various ethnic and religious groups who inhabit Sri Lanka. Women in living in the conflict zones of northern and eastern Sri Lanka experience worse maternal outcomes compared to national averages. Research conducted in the areas found significantly higher levels of poverty in conflict zones. On a national level, the proportion of the population living in poverty was 22.7%, but in the district of Amapara, nearly 65% of the population was living in poverty in 2002.

Young people living in conflict areas have higher rates of school drop-out, marry earlier and become pregnant earlier than young people in other parts of the country. Women in these areas face especially poor health outcomes These women are also subject to higher rates of domestic violence and many women report that their husbands force them to have sexual intercourse. Women in these areas have reduced access to contraception, and this may increase pregnancies in conflict zones. The total rate of fertility in conflict zones is 2.6 live births per woman while the national average is 2.2 live births per woman.

Lack of basic health infrastructure combined with shortages of health professionals has severely limited reproductive health services in the northern and eastern provinces. They have extremely limited access to emergency obstetric care, increased rates of maternal morbidity and mortality, and higher rates of low birth weight babies. While the national rates of home birth are very low, one out of five women in conflict areas birth at home. In some districts, such as Batticaloa, as many as 41% of women give birth at home. Primary reasons for home births are: destruction of health centers, danger of travel, lack of transportation and poverty. The national PHM program virtually eliminated traditional birth attendants in Sri Lanka, but when women are forced to birth at home they may have the assistance of a traditional medicine woman, known as Marauthuvivhvhi. These birth attendants use home remedies, such as powders, herbs, oils and an herbal drink called perunkayam to support the woman through birth. These factors increase the risk involved with childbirth and highlight the needs of women living in the northern and eastern provinces of Sri Lanka.

Marriage

Unlike other Asian countries, Sri Lankan women have had equal access to education for many years and men and women enjoy similar rates of literacy. In other countries women’s increased access to education and increased presence in the workforce has delayed the age of marriage, but these factors are less influential in Sri Lanka. Typically, Sri Lankans marry later than people in other Asian countries. In 1961, the average age of marriage was 22 years old, and today the average age of marriage is 25 years old in Sri Lanka. Muslim women marry earlier than Sinhalese and Tamil women. School attendance is believed to delay the age of marriage because women in school are not considered adults and are not ready for marriage. Birth order also influences age of marriage. Women with unmarried older sisters tend to marry later because of the tradition that women should marry in their birth order. Women who have arranged marriages typically marry later than those who choose their own husbands.

Infertility

Infertility is a deeply distressing issue among Sri Lankan couples. In the Sinhalese culture, birth is the sign of a successful marriage and rituals are performed if a woman does not conceive during the early years of marriage. Often the couple and family members will make vows at a religious shrine and seek blessings from monks to help with conception. When a woman has a difficult time becoming pregnant, some people believe it is caused by misdeeds that took place in a previous lifetime. Performing virtuous deeds in the present life can help neutralize these deeds. Examples of beneficial acts include giving money to monks, beggars or children in need, lighting lamps or bathing the foot of a sacred Bo-tree with water or milk.

A cultural issue arises when considering sperm donation among Buddhists. While donation of blood or body products are considered virtuous giving of one’s self, semen is a very different matter. In Aruvedic medicine, semen is “considered the highest of substances” and “loss of such a powerful substance is widely held to have a number of consequences such as anxiety, mental impairment, and impotence. Some physicians expressed concerns about the risk of potential mix-ups of sperm in in-vitro fertilization, fearing “children with such origins might experience a deep and troubling sense of strangeness towards a father who is not biologically related whilst expressing a desire to establish the genitor's real identity.”. Because sperm donation involves ejaculation, which has origins in “physical pleasure for which there can be no justification in Buddhism,” acquiring donor sperm is often a difficult task. Monetary incentives cannot be used because the purchase of human tissue, including gametes, is illegal ).

Pregnancy

Ideas regarding pregnancy

Even though the government has actively encouraged family planning, Sri Lankans still regard pregnancy as a blessing and birth is a symbol of a successful marriage. Pregnancy outside of marriage is very rare in Sri Lanka. Culturally it is important that a woman remains a virgin until marriage. Single mothers do not receive government-based aid. Children born to unwed mothers are often labeled as illegitimate and considered outcasts in society.

Preparation for birth

When husbands learn their wife is pregnant, they make a vow to perform the Ratrayakuma ritual. This ritual, which involves hanging a pot containing coins, a betel leaf and flowers from the rafters, is done to appease the evil spirit Rata Yaka, who is believed to prevent successful child bearing and delivery. During a first pregnancy, couples often visit temples of special significance in the Buddhist faith. Examples of such temples are Temple of the Tooth in Kandy or the Sacred Bodhi tree at Anuradhapura. At the temple they pray for the pregnancy and ask for an uncomplicated birth and healthy life. They make vows to ensure their wishes are granted. If their wishes are granted, they return to the temple or shrine to make offerings of praise to the Gods who protected their newborn child and mother during pregnancy and birth.

During pregnancy, family members take care to please the pregnant mother and protect her, and her unborn child, by relieving her of household duties. The pregnant woman’s mother, grandmother or mother-in-law supervises meals. While pregnant, women may experience Doladuka, or suffering of two hearts. This experience includes unusual desires to eat particularly sour fruits or indulge in specific acts. These wishes must be fulfilled to protect the fetus from physical or mental defects. Pregnant women avoid eating twinned foods as they are thought to lead to the birth of twins. Relatives and friends visit often to give gifts of fruits and boiled rice with curry wrapped in a banana leaf. Traditionally, baby showers are considered bad luck and gifts are not given until after the birth of the child. When preparing clothing for the new baby, care is taken to never complete the garment before the birth of the baby, as this assumes the birth is a certainty.

In the last three months of pregnancy, it is typical for women move their parents’ home and stay a few weeks after the delivery to recover and receive care. This practice is especially common among first time mothers. During this time, Buddhist monks are invited to the home to chant blessings and expel evil spirits who might harm the woman and fetus.

Prenatal care

The PHM provides prenatal care to women at home visits and in health clinics. These visits include blood pressure screening, measurement of weight and education related to nutritional needs during pregnancy. A PHM registers all pregnant women, and most are registered in the first trimester of pregnancy. Nearly every pregnant woman (98.5%) receives antenatal care. According to Demographic and Health Survey 2000, 95% of women visited a clinic at least once during pregnancy and 84% had a midwife visit her home. Most women receive six or more home visits by the PHM during pregnancy. Only a very small percent of pregnant women receive fewer than three visits by a PHM. Women typically receive one visit during the first trimester, then two to three visits additional during each of the second and third trimesters.

Extrinsic factors

Currently little information exists regarding extrinsic factors that may affect pregnancy, such as air, water, food and drink. This is an area for additional research.

Birth

Location and type of delivery

Skilled birth attendants attend more than 97% of births In Sri Lanka. Nearly all births (99%) take place in a hospital or maternity home and are assisted by a physician or PHM. All first pregnancies and high-risk pregnancies are referred to a health facility staffed by an obstetrician. Most women give birth vaginally, but the incidence of cesarean section, or C-section, is rising. In 1986, the rate of C-section was 9% and by 1999, the rate rose to 14.4% of births in government hospitals. Currently, 66% of births are spontaneous vaginal deliveries, 4% are operative vaginal deliveries and 30% are by C-section. It is hypothesized that the increase in C-sections is due to a variety of factors, including increased us of epidural anesthesia and fetal monitoring.

Use of technology

Little information is known about actual practices in Sri Lanka, but the Sri Lankan College of Obstetric Gynecology (SLCOG) publishes national guidelines for management of certain conditions of pregnancy.

Uncomplicated labor

SLCOG defines normal labor as “spontaneous onset, low-risk at the start and remaining low risk throughout the process”. Normal labor results in a birth between 37 and 42 weeks gestation and the fetus is delivered from a vertex presentation. Once a woman is determined to be in uncomplicated labor, confirmed by vaginal examination and painful contractions, she is transferred to the labor suite of the hospital or maternity home. While routine enemas are not recommended, SLCOG does emphasize that “efforts must be make to minimize fecal soiling…to overcome the practical difficulties associated with cleaning and maintaining sterility”. Low risk women are allowed to consume clear fluids during early labor, but must consult an anesthesiologist first. SLCOG recommends that maternal preference be honored when considering mobility and posture during labor. The organization recommends standing and lateral recumbent positioning to minimize reductions in uterine blood supply and reductions in cardiac output. Intermittent fetal heart auscultation and observation of vaginal discharge is used to assess the fetal condition. A partogram is recommended to facilitate monitoring during labor. During the second stage of labor, women are encouraged to assume the most comfortable position. In the second stage of labor fetal heart rate should be assessed every 15 minutes and the fetal heart rate should be assessed after each contraction while bearing down. Active management of labor with oxytocin is recommended in the third stage of labor. Medio-lateral episiotomies are recommended to expedite delivery or prevent perineal injury. Once the neonate is delivered, the umbilical cord is clamped and cut, controlled cord traction should be applied. It is recommended that the placenta, membranes and umbilical cord are examined for abnormalities after delivery. After delivery, women should be monitored for complication for two hours in the labor suite.

Premature rupture of membranes

Management of preterm rupture of membranes involves either expectant or active management. The classification depends on maturity of the fetus, neonatal facilities available at the place of birth, presence of infection and fetal distress. Expectant management involves general observation of vital signs and fetal observations, including kick count, presentation, daily electronic fetal monitoring and weekly ultrasound. Active management beyond 32 weeks gestational age involves administration of corticosteroids, antibiotics and awaiting active labor. If active labor does not begin within 24 hours, delivery is advised.

Pain management in labor

Generally, Sri Lankan women prefer to give birth without pharmacologic pain management. SLCOG recommends that birthing women be provided with adequate analgesia and the selection of pain relief is determined by institutional protocols, drug availability and patient preference. Pethidine is the most common drug used for pain management during labor, especially in maternity units where clinicians with advanced medical training and monitoring facilities may not be present. During C-sections, 80% of women receive spinal anesthesia, 15% epidural and 5% general anesthesia. Non-pharmacologic pain management includes breathing techniques, hot and cold therapy, massage, relaxation techniques, acupuncture, herbalism and hypnosis. Women often recite pirith to control breathing during labor. This is a chant performed by monks during pregnancy to ensure safe delivery.

Extrinsic factors

Currently little information exists regarding extrinsic factors that affect birth, such as air, water, food and drink. This is an area for additional research.

Birth traditions

The specific date and time of birth are carefully recorded to determine a child’s horoscope. The time of birth determines the zodiac sign, and also specific character traits of the child. The horoscope is significant throughout the lifecycle. It is read by an astrologer at birth, puberty, prior to an examination or new job, when determining if a potential spouse is a good match, or for any other important decision.

Postpartum

The postpartum time is not clearly defined; however the puerperium period is defined as the first six weeks in the postpartum period. Most women who deliver vaginally spend one night in a health institution, while about 5% return home the day of delivery. Women who deliver by C-section typically spend seven nights in the health institution before returning home.

Sri Lanka does not have a system to record maternal morbidity, but research suggests maternal morbidity is an area of concern among Sri Lankan mothers. Sri Lankan mothers generally feel that it is natural to experience ill health after childbirth. About 90% of women who deliver vaginally and 75% women who deliver by C-section report illness in the puerperium period. Examples of these illnesses include excessive bleeding, fever, constipation, breast engorgement, painful urination, backache and abdominal pain. Buddhist mothers have the highest incidence of illness while Muslim mothers had the fewest number of poor health outcomes after birth.

Newborn Rites of Passage

Newborn rites of passage vary among ethnic group. Sinhalese, Tamil and Muslim families publicly announce the birth of a child as a gesture of accepting the newborn as a member of the family. This may be a casual or grand celebration and often involves food, dancing and singing.

Sinhalese

The exact time of birth is reported to an astrologer who uses the child’s horoscope to determine the best letters for the child’s name. Nam tebima is the Sinhalese naming ceremony. The baby’s first outing is typically to a Buddhist temple on a full moon day to receive blessings for a prosperous life. Idul kata gema is the ceremony to celebrate a baby’s first solid food. The ceremony, which takes place either in the family home or in a temple, involves placing dishes of rice boiled with milk, traditional sweets, a banana, a book and a piece of jewelry. The family observes as the baby is allowed to crawl onto the mat and select an item. If the child chooses the food, he or she will have a healthy appetite for life, if the child chooses the book he or she will have a future in academia, and if the child chooses the jewelry he or she has a promise of fortune and success.

Tamil

The name-giving ceremony, Namakarana samskar, typically takes place 11–41 days after birth. During this ceremony the baby’s father whispers the new name in the infant’s right ear. It is typical to celebrate a baby’s first consumption of solid food when a child receives his or her first taste of rice. The ceremony typically occurs in a kovil, or Hindu temple. The meal of boiled rice usually occurs between six and eight months of age. Other childhood rituals include the Chudakarana samskara, or head-shaving ceremony, which represents purity and removes all remnants of birth pollution. This event marks the end of infancy and the beginning of childhood. Karnavedhna Samskara is the name of the ear piercing ceremony that typically takes place either in a temple or at home on the first birthday.

Muslim

Muslim boys are circumcised between the ages of seven days and ten years. Musalmani karna, meaning to make a Muslim, is the ceremony that takes place with male circumcision. Some communities circumcise males as neonates, while others believe the child should be old enough to understand the significance of the even. Traditionally, a community member performed circumcisions in the boy’s home, though some families now have the procedure done in a medical center. The celebration includes new clothes for the boy and a special meal prepared for family and friends.

Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding is a culturally accepted and encouraged practice in Sri Lanka. The rate of breastfeeding initiation is nearly 100%. In Sri Lanka, public health officials recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of a child’s life. PHM and medical officers of health provide pre-and post-natal counseling and education to support women in breastfeeding practices. In 2000, 54% of women breastfed exclusively for the first four months of life. Little data exists to determine rate of exclusive breastfeeding at six months of age, but it is believed that very few mothers breastfeed exclusively until their newborn reaches six months of age. A study that integrated low cost staff training with job supervision of PHM showed a significant increase in exclusive breastfeeding among mothers in Beruwala, Sri Lanka. The authors believe that six months exclusive breastfeeding is a realistic goal in Sri Lanka and suggest a need to increase training and support for PHM in maternal health care settings.

Circumcision

No information exists on the current rates of male or female circumcision in Sri Lanka. Generally, these are not common procedures among Buddhist and Hindu populations. Male circumcision is practiced among Muslims and is traditionally an occasion for celebration.

Contraception

Contraception is widely used in Sri Lanka, though generally considered a women’s issue. The country has a vasectomy rate of 3.7% and many people believe vasectomy inhibits men from performing hard labor. In 1979, to increase the use of vasectomy in family planning, the Sri Lankan government began offering monetary incentives to men who agreed to undergo the procedure. Financial payment was the often primary reason for obtaining a vasectomy. Many Sri Lankan couples discuss the need for contraception to limit family size and space pregnancies. More than two thirds of the married population use some form of contraception. Generally, husbands support the use of female contraception. In 1993, nearly one fourth of married women were sterilized, however the prevalence of female sterilization fell to 17% of ever-married women by 2007. Women feel it is important to use a method of contraception approved by their husbands. This information guides the need to educate both men and women about contraceptive options, use and side effects.

Additional information

From 1977 to 1978, an outbreak of acute polyneuropathy affected more than 20 young women. This illness that was restricted to girls attaining menarche and to women after childbirth. The cause of neuropathy could be traced to tri-cresyl phosphate found as a contaminant in gingili oil.

References

Further reading

Pathmanathan, Indra Investing in maternal health: learning from Malaysia and Sri Lanka Google Books

Goodburn, Elizabeth Reducing maternal mortality in the developing world: sector-wide approaches may be the key BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.

*

Category:Childbirth Category:Health in Sri Lanka Category:Children

name	Sir Arthur C. Clarke, CBE
pseudonym	Charles Willis,E.G. O'Brien
birth date	December 16, 1917
birth place	Minehead, Somerset, England, United Kingdom
death date	March 19, 2008
death place	Colombo, Sri Lanka
occupation	Author, inventor
alma mater	King's College London
nationality	British
citizenship	United Kingdom and Sri Lanka
spouse	Marilyn Mayfield (1953-1964)
genre	Hard science fictionPopular science
subject	Science
notableworks	Childhood's End2001: A Space OdysseyRendezvous with RamaThe Fountains of Paradise
influences	H. G. Wells, Jules Verne, Lord Dunsany, Olaf Stapledon
influenced	Stephen Baxter
website	http://www.clarkefoundation.org/ }}

Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, CBE, FRAS (16 December 1917 – 19 March 2008) was a British science fiction author, inventor, and futurist, famous for his short stories and novels, among them 2001: A Space Odyssey, and as a host and commentator in the British television series Mysterious World. For many years, Robert A. Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke were known as the "Big Three" of science fiction.

Clarke served in the Royal Air Force as a radar instructor and technician from 1941–1946. He proposed a satellite communication system in 1945 which won him the Franklin Institute Stuart Ballantine Gold Medal in 1963. He was the chairman of the British Interplanetary Society from 1947–1950 and again in 1953.

Clarke emigrated to Sri Lanka in 1956 largely to pursue his interest in scuba diving; that year, he discovered the underwater ruins of the ancient Koneswaram temple in Trincomalee. He lived in Sri Lanka until his death. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998, and was awarded Sri Lanka's highest civil honour, Sri Lankabhimanya, in 2005.

Biography

Clarke was born in Minehead, Somerset, England. As a boy, he enjoyed stargazing and reading old American science fiction pulp magazines. After secondary school and studying at Huish Grammar School, Taunton, he was unable to afford a university education and got a job as an auditor in the pensions section of the Board of Education.

During the Second World War he served in the Royal Air Force as a radar specialist and was involved in the early warning radar defence system, which contributed to the RAF's success during the Battle of Britain. Clarke spent most of his wartime service working on Ground Controlled Approach (GCA) radar as documented in the semi-autobiographical Glide Path, his only non-science-fiction novel. Although GCA did not see much practical use in the war, it proved vital to the Berlin Airlift of 1948–1949 after several years of development. Clarke initially served in the ranks, and was a Corporal instructor on radar at No 9 Radio School, RAF Yatesbury in Wiltshire. He was commissioned as a Pilot Officer (Technical Branch) on 27 May 1943. He was promoted Flying Officer on 27 November 1943. He was appointed chief training instructor at RAF Honiley in Warwickshire and was demobilised with the rank of Flight Lieutenant. After the war he earned a first-class degree in mathematics and physics at King's College London.

In the postwar years, Clarke became the Chairman of the British Interplanetary Society from 1946-1947. and again from 1951-1953 Although he was not the originator of the concept of geostationary satellites, one of his most important contributions may be his idea that they would be ideal telecommunications relays. He advanced this idea in a paper privately circulated among the core technical members of the BIS in 1945. The concept was published in Wireless World in October of that year. Clarke also wrote a number of non-fiction books describing the technical details and societal implications of rocketry and space flight. The most notable of these may be The Exploration of Space (1951) and The Promise of Space (1968). In recognition of these contributions the geostationary orbit above the equator is officially recognised by the International Astronomical Union as a Clarke Orbit.

On a trip to Florida in 1953 Clarke met and quickly married Marilyn Mayfield, a 22-year-old American divorcee with a young son. They separated permanently after six months, although the divorce was not finalised until 1964. "The marriage was incompatible from the beginning", says Clarke. Clarke never remarried but was close to a Sri Lankan man, Leslie Ekanayake, whom the author called his "only perfect friend of a lifetime" in his dedication to The Fountains of Paradise. Clarke is buried with Ekanayake, who predeceased him by three decades, in the Colombo central cemetery. In his biography of Stanley Kubrick, John Baxter cites Clarke's homosexuality as a reason why he relocated, due to more tolerant laws with regard to homosexuality in Sri Lanka. Journalists who enquired of Clarke whether he was gay were told, "No, merely mildly cheerful." However, Michael Moorcock has written: }} Moorcock's assertion is not supported by other reports, although in an interview in the July 1986 issue of Playboy magazine, Clarke stated "Of course. Who hasn't?" when asked if he had had bisexual experience.

Clarke maintained a vast collection of manuscripts and personal memoirs, maintained by his brother Fred Clarke in Taunton, Somerset, England, and referred to as the "Clarkives." Clarke said that some of his private diaries will not be published until 30 years after his death. When asked why they were sealed up, he answered "'Well, there might be all sorts of embarrassing things in them".

Writing career

While Clarke had a few stories published in fanzines, between 1937 and 1945, his first professional sales appeared in Astounding Science Fiction in 1946: "Loophole" was published in April, while "Rescue Party", his first sale, was published in May. Along with his writing Clarke briefly worked as Assistant Editor of Science Abstracts (1949) before devoting himself to writing full-time from 1951 onward. Clarke also contributed to the Dan Dare series published in Eagle, and his first three published novels were written for children.

Clarke corresponded with C. S. Lewis in the 1940s and 1950s and they once met in an Oxford pub, The Eastgate, to discuss science fiction and space travel. Clarke, after Lewis's death, voiced great praise for him, saying the Ransom Trilogy was one of the few works of science fiction that could be considered literature.

In 1948 he wrote "The Sentinel" for a BBC competition. Though the story was rejected, it changed the course of Clarke's career. Not only was it the basis for A Space Odyssey, but "The Sentinel" also introduced a more cosmic element to Clarke's work. Many of Clarke's later works feature a technologically advanced but still-prejudiced mankind being confronted by a superior alien intelligence. In the cases of The City and the Stars (and its original version, Against the Fall of Night), Childhood's End, and the 2001 series, this encounter produces a conceptual breakthrough that accelerates humanity into the next stage of its evolution. In Clarke's authorised biography, Neil McAleer writes that: "many readers and critics still consider [Childhood's End] Arthur C. Clarke's best novel."

Clarke lived in Sri Lanka from 1956 until his death in 2008, having emigrated there when it was still called Ceylon, first in Unawatuna on the south coast, and then in Colombo. Clarke held citizenship of both the UK and Sri Lanka. He was an avid scuba diver and a member of the Underwater Explorers Club. In addition to writing, Clarke set up several diving-related ventures with his business partner Mike Wilson. In 1956, while scuba diving, Wilson and Clarke uncovered ruined masonry, architecture and idol images of the sunken original Koneswaram temple — including carved columns with flower insignias, and stones in the form of elephant heads — spread on the shallow surrounding seabed. Other discoveries included Chola bronzes from the original shrine, and these discoveries were described in Clarke's 1957 book The Reefs of Taprobane. In 1961, while filming off Great Basses Reef, Wilson found a wreck and retrieved silver coins. Plans to dive on the wreck the following year were stopped when Clarke developed paralysis, ultimately diagnosed as polio. A year later, Clarke observed the salvage from the shore and the surface. The ship, ultimately identified as belonging to the Mughal Emperor, Aurangzeb, yielded fused bags of silver rupees, cannons, and other artefacts, carefully documented, became the basis for The Treasure of the Great Reef. Living in Sri Lanka and learning its history also inspired the backdrop for his novel The Fountains of Paradise in which he described a space elevator. This, he believed, would make rocket based access to space obsolete and, more than geostationary satellites, would ultimately be his scientific legacy.

His many predictions culminated in 1958 when he began a series of essays in various magazines that eventually became Profiles of the Future published in book form in 1962. A timetable up to the year 2100 describes inventions and ideas including such things as a "global library" for 2005. The same work also contained "Clarke's First Law" and text which would become Clarke's three laws in later editions.

Later years

In the early 1970s Clarke signed a three-book publishing deal, a record for a science-fiction writer at the time. The first of the three was Rendezvous with Rama in 1973, which won him all the main genre awards and has spawned sequels that, along with the 2001 series, formed the backbone of his later career.

In the 1980s Clarke became well known to many for his television programmes Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World, Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers and Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious Universe. In 1986 he was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America. In 1988 he was diagnosed with post-polio syndrome, having originally contracted polio in 1962, and needed to use a wheelchair most of the time thereafter. Clarke was for many years a Vice Patron of the British Polio Fellowship.

In the 1989 Queen's Birthday Honours Clarke was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) "for services to British cultural interests in Sri Lanka". The same year he became the first Chancellor of the International Space University, serving from 1989 to 2004 and he also served as Chancellor of Moratuwa University in Sri Lanka from 1979 to 2002.

In 1994, Clarke appeared in a science fiction film; he portrayed himself in the telefilm Without Warning, an American production about an apocalyptic alien first contact scenario presented in the form of a faux newscast. That same year, he became a patron of the Gorilla Organization which fights for the preservation of lowland gorillas. When tantalum mining for cell phone manufacture threatened the gorillas, he lent his voice to their cause.

On 26 May 2000 he was made a Knight Bachelor "for services to literature" at a ceremony in Colombo. The award of a knighthood had been announced in the 1998 New Year Honours, but investiture with the award had been delayed, at Clarke's request, because of an accusation, by the British tabloid The Sunday Mirror, of paedophilia. The charge was subsequently found to be baseless by the Sri Lankan police. According to The Daily Telegraph (London), the Mirror subsequently published an apology, and Clarke chose not to sue for defamation. Clarke was then duly knighted.

Although he and his home were unharmed by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake tsunami, his "Arthur C. Clarke Diving School" at Hikkaduwa was destroyed. He made humanitarian appeals, and the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation worked towards a better disaster notification systems. The school has since been rebuilt.

In September 2007, he provided a video greeting for NASA's Cassini probe's flyby of Iapetus (which plays an important role in 2001: A Space Odyssey). In December 2007 on his 90th birthday, Clarke recorded a video message to his friends and fans bidding them good-bye.

Clarke died in Sri Lanka on 19 March 2008 after suffering from respiratory failure, according to Rohan de Silva, one of his aides. His aide described the cause as respiratory complications and heart failure stemming from post-polio syndrome.

A few days before he died, he had reviewed the manuscript of his final work, The Last Theorem, on which he had collaborated by e-mail with his contemporary Frederik Pohl. The book was published after Clarke's death. Clarke was buried in Colombo in traditional Sri Lankan fashion on 22 March. His younger brother, Fred Clarke, and his Sri Lankan adoptive family were among the thousands in attendance.

The Big Three

Clarke, Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein became known as the "Big Three" of science fiction. Clarke and Heinlein began writing to each other after The Exploration of Space was published in 1951, and first met in person the following year. They remained on cordial terms for many years, including visits in the United States and Sri Lanka. In 1984, Clarke testified before Congress against the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). Later, at the home of Larry Niven in California, Heinlein attacked Clarke verbally over his views on United States foreign and space policy (especially the SDI). Although the two reconciled, formally, they remained distant until Heinlein's death in 1988.

Clarke and Asimov first met in New York City in 1953, and they traded friendly insults and jibes for decades. They established a verbal agreement, the "Clarke–Asimov Treaty", that when asked who was best, the two would say Clarke was the best science fiction writer and Asimov was the best science writer. In 1972, Clarke put the "treaty" on paper in his dedication to Report on Planet Three and Other Speculations.

Views

On religion

Themes of religion and spirituality appear in much of Clarke's writing. He said, "Any path to knowledge is a path to God—or Reality, whichever word one prefers to use". and described himself as "fascinated by the concept of God". Near the end of J. B. S. Haldane's life, in a personal letter to Clarke, it was suggested that he should receive a prize in theology for being one of the few people to write anything new on the subject, and went on to say that if Clarke's writings did not contain multiple contradictory theological views, he might have been a menace. When he entered the Royal Air Force, he insisted that his dog tags be marked "pantheist" rather than the default, Church of England, and in a 1991 essay entitled "Credo", described himself as a logical positivist from the age of ten. In 2000, Clarke told the Sri Lankan newspaper, The Island, "I don't believe in God or an afterlife," and he identified himself as an atheist. He was honoured as a Humanist Laureate in the International Academy of Humanism. He has also described himself as a "crypto-Buddhist", insisting that Buddhism is not a religion. He displayed little interest about religion early in his life, for example, only discovering a few months after marrying that his wife had strong Presbyterian beliefs.

A famous quotation of Clarke's is often cited: "One of the great tragedies of mankind is that morality has been hijacked by religion." He was quoted in Popular Science in 2004 as saying of religion: "Most malevolent and persistent of all mind viruses. We should get rid of it as quick as we can." In a three-day "dialogue on man and his world" with Alan Watts, Clarke stated that he was biased against religion and said that he could not forgive religions for what he perceived as their inability to prevent atrocities and wars over time. In a reflection of the dialogue where he more broadly stated "mankind", his introduction to the penultimate episode of Mysterious World, entitled, "Strange Skies", Clarke said, "I sometimes think that the universe is a machine designed for the perpetual astonishment of astronomers." Near the very end of that same episode, the last segment of which covered the Star of Bethlehem, he stated that his favourite theory was that it might be a pulsar. Given that pulsars were discovered in the interval between his writing the short story, "The Star" (1955), and making Mysterious World (1980), and given the more recent discovery of pulsar PSR B1913+16, he said, "How romantic, if even now, we can hear the dying voice of a star, which heralded the Christian era."

Clarke left written instructions for a funeral that stated: "Absolutely no religious rites of any kind, relating to any religious faith, should be associated with my funeral."

On paranormal phenomena

Early in his career, Clarke had a fascination with the paranormal and stated that it was part of the inspiration for his novel Childhood's End. Citing the numerous promising paranormal claims that were shown to be fraudulent, Clarke described his earlier openness to the paranormal having turned to being "an almost total sceptic" by the time of his 1992 biography. During interviews, both in 1993 and 2004–2005, he stated that he did not believe in reincarnation, citing that there was no mechanism to make it possible, though he stated "I'm always paraphrasing J. B. S. Haldane: 'The universe is not only stranger than we imagine, it's stranger than we can imagine.'" He described the idea of reincarnation as fascinating, but favoured a finite existence.

Clarke was well known for his television series investigating paranormal phenomena Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World (1980), Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious Universe (1985) and Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers (1994), enough to be parodied in an episode of The Goodies in which his show is cancelled after it is claimed he does not exist.

Themes, style, and influences

Clarke's work is marked by an optimistic view of science empowering mankind's exploration of the Solar System, and the world's oceans. His images of the future often feature a Utopian setting with highly developed technology, ecology, and society, based on the author's ideals. His early published stories would usually feature the extrapolation of a technological innovation or scientific breakthrough into the underlying decadence of his own society.

A recurring theme in Clarke's works is the notion that the evolution of an intelligent species would eventually make them something close to gods. This was explored in his 1953 novel Childhood's End and briefly touched upon in his novel Imperial Earth. This idea of transcendence through evolution seems to have been influenced by Olaf Stapledon, who wrote a number of books dealing with this theme. Clarke has said of Stapledon's 1930 book Last and First Men that "No other book had a greater influence on my life ... [It] and its successor Star Maker (1937) are the twin summits of [Stapledon's] literary career".

Clarke also took a major interest in "Inner Space", which can be seen in his stories, Big Game Hunt, The Deep Range and The Shining Ones, as well as Dolphin Island.

Adapted screenplays

2001: A Space Odyssey

Clarke's first venture into film was the Stanley Kubrick directed 2001: A Space Odyssey. Kubrick and Clarke had met in New York City in 1964 to discuss the possibility of a collaborative film project. As the idea developed, it was decided that the story for the film was to be loosely based on Clarke's short story "The Sentinel", written in 1948 as an entry in a BBC short story competition. Originally, Clarke was going to write the screenplay for the film, but Kubrick suggested during one of their brainstorming meetings that before beginning on the actual script, they should let their imaginations soar free by writing a novel first, upon which the film would be based. "This is more or less the way it worked out, though toward the end, novel and screenplay were being written simultaneously, with feedback in both directions. Thus I rewrote some sections after seeing the movie rushes -- a rather expensive method of literary creation, which few other authors can have enjoyed." The novel ended up being published a few months after the release of the movie.

Due to the hectic schedule of the film's production, Kubrick and Clarke had difficulty collaborating on the book. Clarke completed a draft of the novel at the end of 1964 with the plan to publish in 1965 in advance of the film's release in 1966. After many delays the film was released in the spring of 1968, before the book was completed. The book was credited to Clarke alone. Clarke later complained that this had the effect of making the book into a novelisation, that Kubrick had manipulated circumstances to downplay Clarke's authorship. For these and other reasons, the details of the story differ slightly from the book to the movie. The film contains little explanation for the events taking place. Clarke, on the other hand, wrote thorough explanations of "cause and effect" for the events in the novel. James Randi later recounted that upon seeing the premiere of 2001 for the first time, Clarke left the theatre in tears, at the intermission, after having watched an eleven-minute scene (which did not make it into general release) where an astronaut is doing nothing more than jogging inside the spaceship, which was Kubrick's idea of showing the audience how boring space travels could be.

In 1972, Clarke published The Lost Worlds of 2001, which included his accounts of the production, and alternate versions, of key scenes. The "special edition" of the novel A Space Odyssey (released in 1999) contains an introduction by Clarke in which he documents the events leading to the release of the novel and film.

2010

In 1982 Clarke continued the 2001 epic with a sequel, 2010: Odyssey Two. This novel was also made into a film, 2010, directed by Peter Hyams for release in 1984. Because of the political environment in America in the 1980s, the film presents a Cold War theme, with the looming tensions of nuclear warfare not featured in the novel. The film was not considered to be as revolutionary or artistic as 2001, but the reviews were still positive.

Clarke's email correspondence with Hyams was published in 1984. Titled The Odyssey File: The Making of 2010, and co-authored with Hyams, it illustrates his fascination with the then-pioneering medium of email and its use for them to communicate on an almost daily basis at the time of planning and production of the film while living on different continents. The book also includes Clarke's list of the best science-fiction films ever made.

Clarke appeared in the film, first as the man feeding the pigeons while Dr. Heywood Floyd is engaged in a conversation in front of the White House. Later, in the hospital scene with David Bowman's mother, an image of the cover of Time portrays Clarke as the American President and Kubrick as the Russian Premier.

Rendezvous with Rama

Clarke's award-winning 1972 novel Rendezvous with Rama was optioned many years ago, but is currently in "development hell". In the early 2000s, actor Morgan Freeman expressed his desire to produce a film based on Rendezvous with Rama. After a drawn-out development process — which Freeman attributed to difficulties in procuring funding — it appeared in 2003 this would indeed be happening. IMDb at one point upgraded the status of the project to "announced" with an estimated release date in 2009. The film was to be produced by Freeman's production company, Revelations Entertainment. David Fincher, touted on Revelations' Rama web page as far back as 2001, stated in a late 2007 interview (where he also credited the novel as an influence on the films Alien and Star Trek: The Motion Picture) that he is still attached to helm. Revelations and IMDb indicated that Stel Pavlou had written the adaptation.

In late 2008, David Fincher stated the movie is unlikely to be made. "It looks like it's not going to happen. There's no script and as you know, Morgan Freeman's not in the best of health right now. We've been trying to do it but it's probably not going to happen." The IMDb page for the project was for a time removed. But in 2010 it was announced that the film was back on board for future production, and the IMDb page was restored with a projected release date in 2013. At the end of 2010, Fincher described it as still needing a worthy script.

Beyond 2001

2001: A Space Odyssey, Clarke's most famous work, was extended well beyond the 1968 movie as the Space Odyssey series. Its 1984 sequel, 2010 was based on Clarke's 1982 novel, 2010: Odyssey Two. There were two further sequels that have not been adapted to the cinema: 2061: Odyssey Three and 3001: The Final Odyssey.

In 2061, Halley's Comet swings back to nearby Earth, and Clarke uses the event as an excuse to take an aged Dr. Heywood Floyd on a romp through the solar system, visiting the comet before crash-landing on Europa, where he discovers the fates of Dave Bowman, HAL 9000, and the Europan life-forms which have been protected by the Monoliths.

With 3001: The Final Odyssey, Clarke returns to examine the character of astronaut Frank Poole, who was killed outside Discovery by HAL in the original novel and film, but whose body was revived in the year 3001.

Essays and short stories

Most of Clarke's essays (from 1934 to 1998) can be found in the book Greetings, Carbon-Based Bipeds! (2000). Most of his short stories can be found in the book The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke (2001). Another collection of early essays was published in The View from Serendip (1977), which also included one short piece of fiction, "When the Twerms Came". Clarke wrote short stories under the pseudonyms of E. G. O'Brien and Charles Willis.

Concept of the geostationary communications satellite

Clarke has contributed to the popularity of the idea that geostationary satellites would be ideal telecommunications relays. He described this concept in a paper titled Extra-Terrestrial Relays — Can Rocket Stations Give Worldwide Radio Coverage?, published in Wireless World in October 1945. The geostationary orbit is now sometimes known as the Clarke Orbit or the Clarke Belt in his honour.

It is not clear that this article was actually the inspiration for the modern telecommunications satellite. According to John R. Pierce, of Bell Labs, who was involved in the Echo satellite and Telstar projects, he gave a talk upon the subject in 1954 (published in 1955), using ideas that were "in the air", but was not aware of Clarke's article at the time. In an interview given shortly before his death, Clarke was asked whether he'd ever suspected that one day communications satellites would become so important; he replied }}

Though different from Clarke's idea of telecom relay, the idea of communicating with satellites in geostationary orbit itself had been described earlier. For example, the concept of geostationary satellites was described in Hermann Oberth's 1923 book Die Rakete zu den Planetenräumen (The Rocket into Interplanetary Space) and then the idea of radio communication with those satellites in Herman Potočnik's (written under the pseudonym Hermann Noordung) 1928 book Das Problem der Befahrung des Weltraums — der Raketen-Motor (The Problem of Space Travel — The Rocket Motor), sections: Providing for Long Distance Communications and Safety and (possibly referring to the idea of relaying messages via satellite, but not that 3 would be optimal) Observing and Researching the Earth's Surface published in Berlin.  Clarke acknowledged the earlier concept in his book Profiles of the Future.

Awards, honours and other recognition

In 1956, Clarke won a Hugo award for his short story, "The Star". Clarke won the UNESCO–Kalinga Prize for the Popularization of Science in 1961. He won the Stuart Ballantine Medal in 1963. Following the release of 2001, Clarke became much in demand as a commentator on science and technology, especially at the time of the Apollo space program. The fame of 2001 was enough to get the Command Module of the Apollo 13 craft named "Odyssey". Shared a 1969 Academy Award nomination with Stanley Kubrick in the category Best Writing, Story and Screenplay - Written Directly for the Screen for 2001: A Space Odyssey.

In 1986, Clarke provided a grant to fund the prize money (initially £1,000) for the Arthur C. Clarke Award for the best science fiction novel published in the United Kingdom in the previous year. In 2001 the prize was increased to £2001, and its value now matches the year (e.g., £2005 in 2005).

He received a CBE in 1989, and was knighted in 2000. Clarke's health did not allow him to travel to London to receive the honour personally from the Queen, so the United Kingdom's High Commissioner to Sri Lanka invested him as a Knight Bachelor at a ceremony in Colombo. In 1994, Clarke was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize by law professor Glenn Reynolds. In 2000, he was named a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association.

The 2001 Mars Odyssey orbiter is named in honour of Sir Arthur's works.

In 2003, Sir Arthur was awarded the Telluride Tech Festival Award of Technology where he appeared on stage via a 3-D hologram with a group of old friends which included Jill Tarter, Neil Armstrong, Lewis Branscomb, Charles Townes, Freeman Dyson, Bruce Murray and Scott Brown.

In 2004, Sir Arthur was awarded the Heinlein Award for outstanding achievement in hard or science-oriented science fiction.

In 2005 he lent his name to the inaugural Sir Arthur Clarke Awards—dubbed "the Space Oscars". His brother attended the awards ceremony, and presented an award specially chosen by Arthur (and not by the panel of judges who chose the other awards) to the British Interplanetary Society.

On 14 November 2005 Sri Lanka awarded Clarke its highest civilian award, the Sri Lankabhimanya (The Pride of Sri Lanka), for his contributions to science and technology and his commitment to his adopted country.

Sir Arthur was the Honorary Board Chair of the Institute for Cooperation in Space, founded by Carol Rosin, and served on the Board of Governors of the National Space Society, a space advocacy organisation originally founded by Wernher von Braun.

An asteroid was named in Clarke's honour, 4923 Clarke (the number was assigned prior to, and independently of, the name - 2001, however appropriate, was unavailable, having previously been assigned to Albert Einstein).

A species of ceratopsian dinosaur, Serendipaceratops arthurcclarkei, discovered in Inverloch in Australia.

The Learning Resource Centre at Richard Huish College, Taunton, which Clarke attended when it was Huish Grammar School, is named after him.

Clarke was a distinguished vice-president of the H. G. Wells Society, being strongly influenced by H. G. Wells as a science-fiction writer.

The main protagonist of the Dead Space series of video games, Isaac Clarke, takes his surname from Arthur C. Clarke, and his given name from Clarke's friendly rival and associate, Isaac Asimov.

A proposed outer-circular orbital beltway in Colombo, Sri Lanka is to be named 'Arthur C. Clarke Expressway' in honor of Clarke.

Awards established as legacy

Sir Arthur Clarke Award, for achievements in space, awarded annually in the United Kingdom.

Arthur C. Clarke Awards for science fiction writing, awarded annually in the United Kingdom.

Arthur C. Clarke Foundation scholarships and awards. The Sir Arthur C. Clarke Memorial Trophy Inter School Astronomy Quiz Competition, held in Sri Lanka every year and organized by the Astronomical Association of Ananda College, Colombo. The competition first started in 2001.

Partial bibliography

Select novels

The Sands of Mars (1951)

Prelude to Space (1953)

Childhood's End (1953)

The City and the Stars (1956)

A Fall of Moondust (1961) (Hugo nominee, 1963)

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Rendezvous with Rama (1972) (BSFA and Nebula Awards winner, 1973; Hugo, Campbell, and Locus Awards winner, 1974)

A Meeting with Medusa (Nebula Award for best novella) (1972)

Imperial Earth (1975)

The Fountains of Paradise (1979) (Hugo Award winner, BSFA nominee, 1979; and Nebula Award winner, Locus Award nominee, 1980) 2010: Odyssey Two (1982) (Hugo and Locus Awards nominee, 1983)

The Songs of Distant Earth (1986)

2061: Odyssey Three (1987)

3001: The Final Odyssey (1997)

The Light of Other Days (2000) (with Stephen Baxter)

Short story collections

Expedition to Earth (1953)

Reach for Tomorrow (1956)

Tales from the White Hart (1957)

The Other Side of the Sky (1958)

Tales of Ten Worlds (1962)

The Nine Billion Names of God (1967)

The Wind from the Sun (1972)

The Best of Arthur C. Clarke (1973)

The Sentinel (1983)

The Collected Stories of Arthur C. Clarke (2001)

Non-fiction

Interplanetary Flight: an introduction to astronautics. London: Temple Press, 1950

The Exploration of Space. New York: Harper, 1951

Voice Across the Sea. New York: Harper, 1958

Voices from the Sky: Previews of the Coming Space Age. New York: Harper & Row, 1965

Astounding Days: A Science Fictional Autobiography. London: Gollancz, 1989

Greetings, Carbon-Based Bipeds! : Collected Works 1934-1998. New York: St. Martin's Press, 1999

1977

Notes

:a. Full text: :b. Full text:

References

External links

The Arthur C. Clarke Foundation

Sir Arthur Clarke Awards

Sir Arthur C Clarke: 90th Birthday Reflections

Arthur C. Clarke (1917-2008) International Astronautical Federation

Arthur C. Clarke 31 word short story on Letters of Note

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name	Premasiri Khemadasa
background	non_performing_personnel
alias	Khemadasa Master
birth date	January 25, 1937
death date	October 24, 2008
origin	Sri Lanka
genre	Sri Lankan music
Spouse	Soma Latha Khemadasa
Children	Anupa Khemadasa, Gayathri Khemadasa
occupation	Music Director,Composer
notable instruments	}}

Premasiri Khemadasa (also Khemadasa) (January 25, 1937 – October 24, 2008) also known as "Khemadasa Master" is one of the most influential composers in Sri Lankan music. Exploring the various styles of music around the world Khemadasa endeavored to develop a unique style of music. He combined Sinhala folk tunes, Hindustani music, Western music and many other streams of music in his compositions while adapting them to fit contemporary music.

Biography

Early life

Khemadasa grew up in Talpitiya, Wadduwa and attended St. John's College Panadura and Sri Sumangala College. As a teenager, he became a gifted flautist.

Khemadasa was asked to come to the Radio Ceylon for an interview on the day he was scheduled to take his Senior School Certificate examination. He finished the examination much ahead of time and travelled to the audition. He passed the audition and became a member of Radio Ceylon.

As a composer

Khemadasa's debut as a film composer came with Sirisena Wimalaweera's Roddie Kella. With his score for Bambaru Ewith he introduced a style of music unacquainted to Sri Lankan cinema. He then began collaborating with acclaimed director Lester James Peries handling the music for films like Golu Hadawatha and Nidhanaya. Critics praised his film scores and he was honorally dubbed "Khemadasa master." Khemadasa's signature in film music is molded by the use of elements from Classical Western music and other sources to heighten the emotion suggested by the picture. Some of his compositions are influenced by Western composers of opera such as Giuseppe Verdi and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Lately Premasiri Khemadasa has given his contribution to films such as Agnidahaya and very recently to Ammavarune, the last film by Lester James Peiris who has announced his retirement.

Other scores written by the master for films such as Hansawilak,Thunweniyamaya, Paradige, Yasa Isuru widened his acclaim in the field of cinema. He has also composed music for films produced outside Sri Lanka (Thousand Flowers).

Dr. Khemadasa's contribution to teledramas also brought outstanding masterpieces to the public. His collaboration with director Jayantha Chandrasiri has turned out remarkable products whereas the themes he created for Chandrasiri's television series Dandubasnamanaya have shown unprecedented power of mesmerization. A repertoire of scores written for teledramas including Chandrasiri's Weda hamine, Sathara denek senpathiyo, Akala sandhya, Dharmasena Pathiraja's Gangulen egodata, Ella langa walawwa, Pura sakmana and Bandula Vithanage's Asalwesiyo bestowed the public with unforgettable musical experiences. Also, he has contributed to the teledrama Sadisi tharanaya by Devinda koongahage, which is most probably his last contribution for a teledrama.

He also contributed to stage dramas such as Jayantha Chandrasiri's Mora, Ath, and Dharmasiri Bandaranayake's Makarakshaya & Dhawala bheeshana.

Furthermore, he has composed symphonies like Muhuda, Mage kale mavni and Sinhala Avurudda. His cantata named Pirinivan Mangalya, probably the only Buddhist cantata ever composed, was based on the passing away of the Lord Buddha and it was played at his funeral by the students of the Khemadasa Foundation.

The presence of operatic and harmonic vocals in his music is explained by his vast knowledge of opera and harmony. In his lifetime he made many experiments with techniques of singing and playing, which include the use of asymmetric patterns of beats, revolutionary harmonies and novel techniques of playing musical instruments such as the sitar.

Khemadasa is the only known Sri Lankan musician who practised and created opera. He has a large group of students many of whom were derived from rural milieus and trained for performing in his operas. His famous operas include Manasawila, Doramandalawa and Sondura Varnadasi. Recently he created the opera, Agni (opera) about early civilization. His operas, being written in Sinhalese, form what can be recognized as Sinhalese opera. Khemadasa and his pupils have conducted shows in several countries. After a layoff following a kidney transplant he returned to the field of music, even in his 70s, trying to secure the future of Sri Lankan music. At the time of the maestro's demise on 24 October 2008, he was 71 years old.

Filmography

Music director

! Year	! Film	! Other notes
1965	Sapatha Soya	first solo direction
	Sanasuma Kothanada?
Sithala Wathura
Kapatikama	one song (Latha's "Kurulu Ran") and background music
	Rana Giraw
Manamalayo
	Golu Hadawatha	won Sarasavi and Radio Ceylon Magazine awards
Vanasara
Bicycle Hora
1970	Narilatha	won Sarasavi award
1971	Seeye Nottuwa
1972	Nidhanaya
1976	Janaka Saha Manhu
1978	Bambaru Awith
1980	Hansa Wilak
1982	Kaliyugaya
1983	Yuganthaya	won OCIC and Sarasavi awards
1987	Maldeniye Simion	won OCIC award
	Sandakada Pahana	won Sarasavi award
Siri Medura	won Sarasavi, OCIC and Swarna Sankha awards
1993	Meeharaka	won Swarna Sankha award
1994	Lokuduwa
1999	Julietge Bhoomikava	won OCIC and President’s award
	Agnidahaya
Mathu Yam Dawasa
2005	Guerilla Marketing
2006	Ammawarune	last film of Lester James Peries

See also

Agni Opera

References

External links

Premasiri Khemadasa Agni Opera

A man on fire

Comprehensive biography of Khemadasa

The immortal note that captures the heart beat of the nation

Sondura Warnadaasi - an Opera by Khemadasa

Listen to compositions by Dr. Khemadasa at Sinhala Jukebox

Reminiscence of his real-life sonata

Sonic canvas of Premasiri Khemadasa

Premasiri Khemadasa in Sinhala

Premasiri Khemadasa Master in Sri lanka

Category:Sri Lankan musicians Category:1937 births Category:2008 deaths Category:Sri Lankan composers

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