Sri Lanka, an island in the
Indian Ocean is located to the south of the Indian
subcontinent. It lies between 50 55' and 90 55'
north of the equator and between the eastern
longitudes 790 42' and 810 53'. The total land
area is 65,610 sq.km, encompass beautiful tropical
beaches, verdant vegetation, ancient monuments and
a thousand delights to please all tastes. The
relief features of the island consist of a
mountainous mass somewhat south of the center,
with height exceeding 2,500 metres, surrounded by
broad plains. Palm fringed beaches surround the
island and the sea temperature rarely falls below
27oC.
Sri Lanka has a
population of 19.0 million of whom the majority
are Sinhalese (74%). Other ethnic groups are made
up of Sri Lankan Tamils (12.6%), Indian Tamils
(5.5), Moors, Malays, Burghers (of Portuguese
& Dutch descent) and others
(7.9%).
Religion
Although
Sri Lanka is a multi-religious country, Buddhists
constitute the majority with 69.3%. Other
religious groups are Hindus 15.5%, Muslims 7.6%
and Christians 7.5%. Sri Lanka's literacy rate of
90.1% is one of the highest in Asia. Sri Lnaka is
a land of religious freedom and tolerance.
Wherever you travel you will come across a
Buddhist Temple or Dagoba, a Hindu Kovil, a
Christian Church or a Mosque, each with its own
distinctive architecture. When you are visiting
holy places, please conform to the requirements as
regards dress in order not to show
disrespect.
Language
Sinhala and
Tamil are official languages in Sri Lanka.
Sinhala, a language of Indo-Aryan origin is the
language of the majority. English is widely spoken
and understood. Place names and sign-boards on
buses and trains are usually in all three
languages.
