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Sri Lanka (srê läng´ke),
officially Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, island republic
(1994 est. pop. 18,130,000), S Asia, 25,332 sq mi (65,610 sq km), in the
Indian Ocean, SE of India. The capital is COLOMBO. The island is mainly
flat or gently rolling; among the mountains in the south central area is
Adam's Peak (7,360 ft/2,243 m), sacred to Buddhists. Plantation crops,
principally tea, rubber, and coconuts, dominate the agricultural sector
of the economy and are important exports. Manufactures include textiles
(the most important export), processed agricultural products, and consumer
goods. Sri Lanka is also a leading producer of high-grade graphite. The
population is composed mainly of Sinhalese, who are Theravada Buddhists.
Hindu Tamils make up a large minority, and there are smaller Muslim, European,
and Eurasian minorities. The national languages are Sinhala (the official
language) and Tamil. English is also spoken.
Sri Lanka (History) The aboriginal inhabitants were conquered in the 6th cent. B.C. by the Sinhalese, from N India, who established their capital at Anuradhapura. With the introduction of Buddhism in the 3d cent. B.C. the island became one of the world centers of that religion. Europeans were drawn by the spice trade, and the island came under the Portuguese (16th cent.), the Dutch (17th cent.), and the British, who made it the crown colony of Ceylon in 1798. A nationalist movement arose during World War I, and the island was granted independence in 1948. The new nation was challenged by rapid population growth, economic difficulties, and separatist demands by the Tamil minority. After the assassination of Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike in 1959 his widow, Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE, served as prime minister (1960-65, 1970-77), implementing such policies as nationalization of Western-owned businesses. A new constitution in 1972 adopted the Sinhalese name Sri Lanka and declared the country a republic. Economic crises and social unrest continued to plague the nation, and Mrs. Bandaranaike's party was overwhelmingly defeated by the conservatives in 1977, who consitutionally changed the government to a presidential one. Western-style capitalism was promoted by Pres. J.R. Jayewardene, who was reelected in 1982; in 1989 Ranasinghe Premadasa became president. Hostility among Sri Lanka's ethnic groups continued to be a serious problem into the 1990s. Tamil forces, allegedly supplied by the government of India, kept the nation in civil war through much of the 1980s and seized control of the Jaffna peninsula in the north. India's attempt to mediate the conflict, including stationing (1987-90) its troops in Tamil areas, was unsuccessful, and fighting resumed in 1990. In 1993 Premadasa was assassinated; he was succeeded as president by Prime Min. Dingiri Banda Wijetunga. In an election the next year, Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, daughter of S.W.R.D. and Sirimavo Bandaranaike, won the presidency. She promised to abolish the powerful post and reestablish a parliamentary democracy.
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