Sri Lanka has had a continuous record of human settlement for more
than two millennia, and its civilization has been shaped largely by
that of the Indian subcontinent. The island’s two major ethnic groups,
the Sinhalese and the Tamils, and its two dominant religions, Buddhism
and Hinduism, made their way to the island from India, and Indian
influence pervaded such diverse fields as art, architecture,
literature, music, medicine, and astronomy.
Despite its obvious affinities with India, Sri Lanka nevertheless
developed a unique identity over the ages that ultimately set it apart
from its neighbour. Cultural traits brought from India necessarily
underwent independent growth and change in Sri Lanka, owing in part to
the island’s physical separation from the subcontinent. Buddhism, for
instance, virtually disappeared from India, but it continued to
flourish in Sri Lanka, particularly among the Sinhalese. Moreover, the
Sinhalese language, which grew out of Indo-Aryan dialects from the
mainland, eventually became indigenous solely to Sri Lanka and
developed its own literary tradition.
Also important to Sri Lanka’s cultural development has been its
position as the nexus of important maritime trade routes between
Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Long before the European discovery
of an oceanic route to India in the 15th century, Sri Lanka was known
to Greek, Roman, Persian, Armenian, Arab, Malay, and Chinese sailors.
With the coming of the Europeans, however, the strategic importance of
Sri Lanka increased, and Western maritime powers fought to control its
shores. Both Sri Lanka and India came under European influence and
colonial rule. This common experience worked to tighten the
long-standing links between the two countries, and, with the
attainment of independence in the mid-20th century, Sri Lankan and
Indian social institutions and ideologies began to resonate more
closely with each other.
Geologically, Sri Lanka is an extension of peninsular India that separated from the mainland perhaps as recently as the Miocene Epoch (roughly 25 to 5 million years ago). Archaeological excavations undertaken since the late 20th century have indicated that the island already supported human inhabitants some 75,000 to 125,000 years ago. The earliest occupants of the region were, like other Paleolithic peoples, hunters and gatherers who made and used fairly rough stone tools. Finer tools made of quartz and occasionally of chert become visible in the archaeological record about 28,000 years ago. The artifacts from this era, which include many microliths (very small, sharp flakes of stone that can be used individually or hafted together to make a serrated edge), have been found throughout the country, especially among the grasslands of the hills and the sandy tracts of the coast. By about the 9th century BCE, people had begun to experiment with food production and irrigation and had gained access to some of the iron tools produced on the continent.
The earliest human settlers in Sri Lanka were likely peoples of the
proto-Australoid group, perhaps akin to the indigenous hill peoples of
southern India. Links with peoples from the Southeast Asian
archipelago also are possible, however. Remnants of these early
inhabitants were absorbed by the Indo-Aryans—or, more precisely,
speakers of Indo-Aryan languages—who immigrated from northern India
about the 5th century BCE and developed into the Sinhalese. The Tamils
were probably later immigrants from areas of central, eastern, and
southern India where Dravidian languages were spoken; their early
migrations spanned a period from about the 3rd century BCE to about
1200 CE.
Sri Lanka possesses a historical tradition preserved in written form
by Buddhist chroniclers. The earliest of the extant chronicles is the
Dipavamsa (“Island’s Chronicle”), compiled probably by Buddhist nuns
in the 4th century CE. The Dipavamsa was followed by the Mahavamsa
(“Great Chronicle”) and its continuation, called the Culavamsa
(“Little Chronicle”). Together, these chronicles constitute a literary
record of the establishment and growth of Sinhalese political power
and of Sri Lankan Buddhism; however, the documents must be used with
caution and always in conjunction with archaeological—especially
epigraphic—material.
According to the Sinhalese tradition, as recorded in the Mahavamsa, the first Indian settlers on Sri Lanka were Prince Vijaya and his 700 followers, who landed on the west coast near Puttalam (5th century BCE). They had been banished for misconduct from the kingdom of Sinhapura in northern India by Vijaya’s father, King Sinhabahu, who put them all in a ship and drove them away. When Vijaya’s band landed on the island, it was inhabited by yakshas (a type of spirit; perhaps referring here to human members of a cult of yaksha devotees), whom they defeated and chased into the interior. Vijaya married a yaksha princess and had two children by her. Later he drove her and the children away and sent to the Madurai court in India for a Pandu (probably referring to the Pandya dynasty) princess and for wives for his 700 followers. Vijaya settled down to reign as king after a ceremonial enthronement and marriage and founded a dynasty. He had no heir to the throne, and toward the end of his reign he sent for his younger brother at Sinhapura. The brother, unwilling to leave his native land, sent his youngest son, Panduvasudeva, to Sri Lanka. Panduvasudeva landed with 32 followers at Gokanna (now Trincomalee) on the east coast. He was enthroned at Upatissagama and continued the Vijaya dynasty.
The account of Sri Lanka’s settlement as presented in the Mahavamsa
contains an element of historical fact—the settlers were Indo-Aryan
peoples from northern India. However, controversy exists as to the
exact provenance of the early settlers; the legends contain evidence
pointing to both the northeastern and the northwestern parts of the
Indo-Gangetic Plain. Vijaya’s ancestors hailed from Bengal, in the
northeast, but his father established himself subsequently in Gujarat,
the area in northwest India from which the adventurers were put out to
sea. Before arriving in Sri Lanka, their ship called at Supara, on the
west coast of India. Their landing in Sri Lanka, at Tambapanni, near
Puttalam, would indicate their arrival from western India. Some early
tribal names occurring in Sri Lanka also suggest connections with
northwestern India and the Indus River region.
While considerable evidence points to western India as the home of the
first immigrants, it seems probable that a subsequent wave arrived
from the vicinity of Bengal and Orissa in the northeast. One band of
settlers landed in Sri Lanka at the east-coast port of Gokanna, a
natural port of disembarkation for vessels arriving from the Bay of
Bengal. The traditional accounts of the arrival of Panduvasudeva may
portray a second wave of migration following the first mentioned in
the Vijaya legend. Linguistic affinities between the early Sinhalese-
and Prakrit-speaking peoples of eastern India strengthen the
hypothesis of a migration from this area.
The tradition speaks primarily of settlement by conquest, and tribes
of conquerors led by a warrior nobility would certainly have propelled
the Indo-Aryan migration southward. Also important, however, was the
pursuit of trade (as opposed to military conquest). Indo-Aryan
merchants probably reached Sri Lanka while sailing down the Indian
coast, and some of these merchants, motivated by a lucrative trade in
Sri Lanka’s natural products, may have founded settlements.
The view that Indo-Aryan migrants laid the foundations of Sinhalese
civilization increasingly has come into question since the late 20th
century. Archaeological evidence has indicated that settled
agriculture, tank irrigation, use of iron, and pottery were features
present before the Indo-Aryan migrations. During the early phases of
these migrations, a synthesis seems to have taken place between
Indo-Aryan, pre-Indo-Aryan, and possibly Dravidian elements to create
the early Sinhalese culture of the Anuradhapura period, which spanned
the 3rd century BCE to the 10th century CE. The chronicled account of
Vijaya’s confrontation with the yakshas and the search for consorts in
the Pandu kingdom of Madurai (if this may be presumed to be the Pandya
Tamil kingdom of southern India) point to such integration.
In any case, Indo-Aryan settlements grew in different parts of the
island from about the 5th century BCE. The settlers came in numerous
clans or tribes; the most powerful were the Sinhalese, who eventually
gave their name to the descendants of the various groups. The earliest
settlers were those on the west-central coast, who pushed inland along
the Malwatu River and founded a number of riverbank villages. Their
seat of government was Upatissagama.
Tradition attributes the founding of the kingdom of Anuradhapura to
Pandukkabhaya, the third king of the Vijaya dynasty. With its growth
as the strongest Sinhalese kingdom, the city of Anuradhapura and the
nearby settlements flourished. Kings built up the city and developed
it for urban life as they extended royal control over villages and
outlying settlements. With the establishment of strong government, the
population grew and the kingdom expanded into the north-central
region.
According to Sinhalese tradition, Buddhism was first brought to Sri
Lanka by a mission sent out from eastern India during the reign of the
Mauryan emperor Ashoka (c. 273–232 BCE). The leader of the mission to
Sri Lanka, Mahendra (Mahinda), is described as Ashoka’s son. Mahendra
and his colleagues traveled to the Mihintale hill (the site of some of
the earliest inscriptions), 8 miles (13 km) from Anuradhapura. There
they chanced to meet the Sinhalese king Tissa, to whom they delivered
a sermon on Buddhism. The king was brought into the Buddhist fold, and
he invited Mahendra and his followers to the city. The missionaries
were settled in a royal pavilion in the city park of Mahamegha, where
they preached first to members of the royal family and then to the
common people. Many embraced the new religion, some taking holy orders
and joining the Buddhist sangha (community of monks). The king donated
the Mahamegha park to the sangha. Meanwhile, the monastery of
Mahavihara was established, and it became the prime centre of Buddhism
in Sri Lanka. Mahendra sent for his sister Sanghamitta, who arrived
with a branch of the Bo tree (at Bodh Gaya), under which the Buddha
had attained enlightenment. The sapling was ceremonially planted in
the city. Sanghamitta founded an order of nuns, and a stupa (shrine),
the Thuparamacetiya, was built by the king for popular worship. Thus,
with the founding of these and other institutions, Buddhism became an
established religion in Sri Lanka.
Through the conversion of King Tissa and the missionary activity of
monks in the villages, by the 2nd century BCE the Sinhalese had
accepted Buddhism, and this faith helped produce a unity and
consciousness on which subsequent political and economic strength was
founded. However, it should be recognized that while the monastic
chronicles accord the pride of place to Buddhism, other religions also
were practiced on the island. Jainism, for instance, probably
represented another major religious tradition, and a Jain monastery is
mentioned in the Mahavamsa. The chronicle also indicates the presence
of Brahmans—Hindus of the highest social rank—in Sri Lanka.
Expansion of Buddhism preceded political unification; many of the areas embraced by the new religion were still ruled by a multitude of chiefs. The ruler of Anuradhapura, Duttagamani Abhaya (reigned 161–137 BCE), was preeminent among these chiefs, and, as Buddhism spread, the Anuradhapura kingdom extended its political control over the rest of Sri Lanka.
The Vijaya dynasty of kings continued, with brief interruptions, until
65 CE, when Vasabha, a member of the Lambakanna royal family, founded
the Lambakanna dynasty. The Lambakannas ruled for about four
centuries. Their most noteworthy king was Mahasena (reigned 276–303),
who constructed many major irrigation systems and championed heterodox
Buddhist sects.
A Pandyan invasion from southern India put an end to this dynasty and,
briefly, to Sinhalese rule in 432. Dhatusena (reigned 459–477)
defeated the Pandyas and reestablished Sinhalese rule with the line of
Moriya kings. His son Kashyapa I (reigned 477–495) moved the capital
from Anuradhapura to the rock fortress of Sigiriya. After Kashyapa’s
dethronement the capital was returned to Anuradhapura.
From the 7th century there was an increase in the involvement of south
Indian powers in the island’s politics and in the presence of Tamil
mercenaries in and around the capital. Manavamma, a Sinhalese royal
fugitive, was placed on the throne in 684 with the support of the
Pallava rulers of south India.
Manavamma founded the second Lambakanna dynasty, which reigned in
Anuradhapura for about 400 years. The dynasty produced a number of
distinguished kings, who consolidated and extended Sinhalese political
power. During this period, Sinhalese involvement with southern India
was even closer. Sinhalese kings were drawn into the dynastic battles
between the Pandyas, Pallavas, and Colas. Invasions from south India
to Sri Lanka and retaliatory raids were a recurrent phenomenon. In the
10th century the island’s political and military power weakened
because of regional particularism and internecine warfare; the
Colas—hostile because of the Sinhalese alliance with Pandya—attacked
and occupied the Sinhalese kingdom in 993 and annexed Rajarata (in the
north-central region of Sri Lanka) as a province of the Cola empire.
The conquest was completed in 1017, when the Colas seized the southern
province of Ruhuna.
The Colas occupied Sri Lanka until 1070, when Vijayabahu liberated the island and reestablished Sinhalese power. He shifted the capital eastward to Polonnaruwa, a city that was easier to defend against south Indian attacks and that controlled the route to Ruhuna. The capital remained there for some 150 years. The most colourful king of the Polonnaruwa period was Parakramabahu I (reigned 1153–86), under whom the kingdom enjoyed its greatest prosperity. He followed a strong foreign policy, dispatching a punitive naval expedition to Myanmar (Burma) and sending the army to invade the Pandyan kingdom; however, these initiatives achieved no permanent success. After Parakramabahu I the throne passed to the Kalinga dynasty, and the influence of south India increased. Nissankamalla (reigned c. 1186–96) was the last effective ruler of this period. The last Polonnaruwa king was Magha (reigned 1215–36), an adventurer from south India who seized power and ruled with severity
Kingship was the unifying political institution in the Anuradhapura
and Polonnaruwa periods, a symbol of the aims and achievements of the
Sinhalese people. The kingship was essentially Brahmanic (hereditary
within the priestly social class), with strong Buddhist influences;
all the kings were practicing Buddhists and patrons of Buddhist
institutions. The support and blessing of the clergy, moreover, were
perceived as essential to a peaceful and continuous reign. This
connection between kingship and Buddhism enabled Buddhism to flourish.
Kings built, maintained, and endowed many shrines and monasteries, and
they intervened to establish order and prevent schism within the
Buddhist community. Nobles and commoners too were lavish in their
support, and thus Buddhist institutions prospered. Many beautiful
temples were built with finely carved sculpture, and monasteries
thrived as centres of learning in the Pali and Sinhalese languages and
in Buddhist philosophy.
The king was supported by an inner administrative hierarchy consisting
of members of his family and influential nobles. The yuvaraja, the
king’s chosen heir to the throne, was given responsible office. The
army was the major prop of royal absolutism, and the senapati, or
commander in chief, was the king’s closest counselor and confidant.
Sinhalese society was segmented into social classes—castes—each of
which performed a particular occupation. (The caste system in Sri
Lanka, however, was not as rigid as its counterpart in India.) The
Govi, or cultivators, made up the highest caste in Sri Lanka, but many
other castes also engaged in farming. Administrative officials were
drawn from the Govi caste, which was stratified into chiefs, titled
men, and peasants. Chiefs were important supporters of royal
absolutism and helped administer the government. Nonagricultural
people, the Hina, were considered of lower rank and were divided into
occupational groups. These caste groups were endogamous; each lived in
its own section, along particular streets. Castes were stratified in
terms of status, with the lowest on the scale—the candala—performing
the most menial of jobs.