(Encyclopedia) NegomboNegombonāgōmˈbō [key], town (1991 est. pop. 65,000) W Sri Lanka, at the mouth of the Negombo Lagoon. Chiefly noted for its ceramics and brassware, it is also a fishing center…
(Encyclopedia) Adam's Peak, Sinhalese Sri Padastanaya and Samanaliya, mountain, 7,360 ft (2,243 m) high, S central Sri Lanka. It is a sacred mountain, famous as a goal of pilgrimage for Buddhists,…
(Encyclopedia) JaffnaJaffnajăfˈnə [key], peninsula, northernmost part of Sri Lanka, separated from India by Palk Strait. The peninsula is densely inhabited, largely by Tamil-speaking people. Jaffna…
(Encyclopedia) GalleGallegäl [key], city (1995 est. pop. 87,000), capital of Southern prov., extreme S Sri Lanka, on the Indian Ocean. An agricultural market center, it exports tea, rubber, coconut…
(Encyclopedia) RatnapuraRatnapurarŭtˈnəp&oobreve;rə [key] [Sinhalese,=city of gems], town (1995 est. pop. 46,000), SW Sri Lanka. Located in a rubber- and rice-producing area, Ratnapura is Sri…
(Encyclopedia) Premadasa, Ranasinghe, 1924–1993, Sri Lankan political leader. As a member of the Ceylon Labour party, he worked as a labor organizer and was elected deputy mayor of Colombo in 1955.…
(Encyclopedia) sapphire, precious stone. A transparent blue corundum, it is classified among the most valuable of gems. Sapphires are found chiefly in Madagascar, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar and also in…
(Encyclopedia) Jayawardene, Junius RichardJayawardene, Junius Richardjīˌəwärˈdēn [key], 1906–96, prime minister (1977–78) and president (1978–88) of Sri Lanka. Active in Sri Lankan politics since the…
(Encyclopedia) Bandaranaike, Solomon West Ridgeway Dias, 1899–1959, prime minister (1956–59) of Ceylon (later Sri Lanka); husband of Sirimavo Bandaranaike. A lawyer educated in England, he entered…
