Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan Flag
Sri Lanka is an island which in located in the Indian Ocean. It was once known as Ceylon. It is shaped like a tear drop. There are about 21 million people living on the island. Colombo, the biggest city on the island, is on the west coast. Sri Lanka has two monsoon seasons! The south-west is hit by a monsoon between May and July but the north-east of the country is hit by a monsoon between October and January. |
About 21 million people live in Sri Lanka. The population is made up of 4 main ethnic groups.
In the 7th century AD Arab traders from the Middle East arrived. Their descendants are called Moors. By the 17th century Dutch, British and Portuguese colonialists had arrived. Their descendants are called Burghers.
School in Sri Lanka
Having a good education is considered very important in Sri Lanka. Children attend primary school from the age of four to the age of 10. They attend junior secondary until the age of 14, senior secondary until the age of 16 and collegiate until the age of 19. If they do well in their exams they can go on to university.
Learn some Sinhalese
Sri Lankan Writing & Art
Click on the picture to learn more about Sri Lankan writing and art.
Inside a Sri Lankan Home
Click on the picture to take a tour inside a Sri Lankan home.
Food
There is a lot of delicious food in Sri Lanka.
Interesting Scenery
There are lots of interesting things to see in Sri Lanka: cliffs, beaches, mountains, lakes, rivers and woodlands. Click on the photograph to learn about them.
Festivals & Traditions
Religion in Sri Lanka
Animals
There are lots of animals to be found in the wild. Click on the picture to learn about them.
Photographs
Click on the picture to see some photographs of Sri Lanka.
Interesting Facts
- Sinhalese and Tamil are the official languages of Sri Lanka. English is also widely spoken. Those that speak Sinhalese don't necessarily speak Tamil and visa versa which means that people of different communities cannot communicate with each other.
- Sri Lanka has always been known for its cinnamon.
- Traders in Ancient times from India, Greece, China and Persia visited the island.
- After Sri Lanka won the cricket world cup in 1996 cricket became the most popular sport in Sri Lanka.
- People in Sri Lanka traditionally eat with their hands rather than with a knife and fork.
- Sirimavo Bandaranaike, the first woman in the world to be elected as Prime Minister, was from Sri Lanka.
- In Sri Lanka you can buy paper, pencils, note books and other items made from elephant dung.
- The currency of Sri Lanka is the rupee. There are pictures of cultural scenes and animals on the notes.