The Land

Sri Lanka lies 10 degrees North of the Equator and South East of India, separated from it by the Gulf of Mannar, Palk’s Bay and Palk Strait, which at its narrowest point, Rameswaram in India and the Jaffna Peninsula, is less than 80 km wide. The sea crossing between Rameswaram in India, and Mannar Island, off the North-West coast of Sri Lanka, is only around 32km.

There is evidence of a natural land bridge connecting Sri Lanka with India at this point, and indeed this vanished causeway, only a few meters below sea level, is still known as Adam’s Bridge. This close proximity to the subcontinent has meant that Sri Lanka’s history and ecology have always been exposed to strong influences from its larger neighbour.

The History of Ceylon

Early Inhabitation

The earliest-known inhabitants of the island now known as Sri Lanka were probably the ancestors of the Wanniyala-The Aetto people, also known as Veddahs and numbering roughly 3,000 inhabitants. Linguistic analysis has found a correlation of the Sinhalese language with the languages of the Sindh and Gujarat, although most historians believe that the Sinhala community emerged well after the assimilation of various ethnic groups.

From the ancient period date some remarkable archaeological sites including the ruins of Sigiriya,[Wiki] the so-called "Fortress in the Sky", and huge public works. Among the latter are large "tanks" or reservoirs, important for conserving water in a climate that alternates rainy seasons with dry times, and elaborate aqueducts, some with a slope as finely calibrated as one inch to the mile. Ancient Sri Lanka was also the first in the world to have established a dedicated hospital in Mihintale in the 4th Century BCE. Ancient Sri Lanka was also the world's leading exporter of cinnamon, which was exported to Egypt as early as 1400 BCE. Sri Lanka was also the first Asian nation to have a female ruler in Queen Anula (47–42 BC).

Paleolithic human settlements have been discovered at excavations in several cave sites in the western plains region and the south-western face of the central hills region. Anthropologists believe that some discovered burial rites and certain decorative artifacts exhibit similarities between the first inhabitants of the island and the early inhabitants of Southern India. Recent bio-anthropological studies have however dismissed these links, and have placed the origin of the people to the northern parts of India. One of the first written references to the island is found in the Indian epic Ramayana, which described the emperor Ravana as monarch of the powerful kingdom of Lanka, which was created by the divine sculptor Vishwakarma for Kubera, the treasurer of the Gods. English historian James Emerson Tennent also theorised Galle, a southern city in Sri Lanka, which was the ancient seaport of Tarshish from which King Solomon is said to have drawn ivory, peacocks and other valuables. The main written accounts of the country's history are the Buddhist chronicles of Mahavansa and Dipavamsa.

Ancient Sri Lankan Legacy

The island was also invaded by the kingdoms of Kalinga (modern Orissa) and those from the Malay Peninsula. Buddhism arrived from India in the 3rd Century BCE, brought by Bhikkhu Mahinda, who is believed to have been the son of Mauryan emperor Ashoka. Mahinda's mission won over the Sinhalese Monarch Devanampiyatissa of Mihintale, who embraced the faith and propagated it throughout the Sinhalese population.

The Buddhist kingdoms of Sri Lanka would maintain a large number of Buddhist schools and monasteries, and support the propagation of Buddhism into Southeast Asia.

Sanghamitta arriving in Sri Lanka with the Holy Bodhi Tree. Since ancient times Sri Lanka was ruled by monarchs, most notably of the Sinha royal dynasty that lasted over 2000 years. The island was also infrequently invaded by South Indian kingdoms and parts of the island were ruled intermittently by the Chola dynasty, the Pandya dynasty, the Chera dynasty and the Pallava dynasty.

Colonial Era

Sri Lanka had always been an important port and trading post in the ancient world, and was increasingly frequented by merchant ships from the Middle East, Persia, Burma, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and other parts of Southeast Asia. The island was known to the first European explorers of South Asia and settled by many groups of Arab and Malay merchants. A Portuguese colonial mission arrived on the island in 1505 headed by Lourenço de Almeida the son of Francisco de Almeida.

At that point the island consisted of three kingdoms, namely Kandy in the central hills, Kotte at the western coast, and Yarlpanam (Anglicised Jaffna) in the north. The Dutch arrived in the 17th Century. Although much of the island came under the domain of European powers, the interior, hilly region of the island remained independent, with its capital in Kandy. The British East India Company established control of the island in 1796, declaring it a crown colony in 1802, although the island would not be officially connected with British India. The fall of the kingdom of Kandy in 1815 unified the island under the British rule.

20th Century and the World Wars

European colonists established a series of tea, cinnamon, rubber, sugar, coffee and indigo plantations. The British also brought a large number of indentured workers from Tamil Nadu to work in the plantation economy. The city of Colombo was established as the administrative centre, and the British established here modern schools, colleges, roads and churches that brought western-style education and culture to the native people. Increasing grievances over the denial of civil rights, mistreatment and abuse of natives by the colonial authorities gave rise to a struggle for independence in the 1930’s, when the youth leagues opposed the "ministers' memorandum," which asked the colonial authority to increase the powers of the board of ministers without granting popular representation or civil freedoms. Buddhist scholars and the teetotalist movement also played a vital role in this time. During World War II, the island served as an important allied military base. A large segment of the British and American fleet were deployed on the island, as were tens of thousands of soldiers committed to the war against Japan in Southeast Asia.

Sri Lankan independence and independence movement

Following the war, popular pressure for independence had intensified. The office of the Prime Minister of Ceylon was created in advance of independence on 14 October 1947,with Don Stephen Senanayake being the first Prime Minister. On February 04, 1948 the country won its independence as the Commonwealth of Ceylon. On July 21, 1960 Sirimavo Bandaranaike took office as Prime Minister, and became the world's first female Prime Minister and the first female head of Government in post-colonial Asia. In 1972, during Sirimavo Bandaranaike's second term as Prime Minister, the country became a republic within the Commonwealth, and the name was changed to Sri Lanka. The island enjoyed good relations with the United Kingdom and had the British Royal Navy stationed here at Trincomalee.
Source-http://www.sltda.lk/history

T20 World Cup History 

can be traced back as the time of origin of Twenty20 cricket. However, it was in the year 2001 that the idea of a shortened form of cricket, earlier discussed by England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), began to take a concrete shape. The concept of 40-over game, with 20 overs per innings, was presented to the county chairman in the same year and later, passed with a voting of 11-7, 11 in favor and 7 against. Soon, the new form of cricket was given the name of Twenty20, more popularly T20.

 

T20 Cricket was formally introduced to the world in 2003, when ECB launched the Twenty20 Cup, along with slogan “I don’t like cricket, I love it”. The same year, the first Twenty20 cricket tournament was organized in England, with various county cricket teams. The tournament proved to be a success, with thousands of spectators filling the England’s cricket stadiums, a first in many decades. Soon, other cricket playing nations of the world also started to take notice of Twenty20 cricket.

 

Soon after the first Twenty20 cricket tournament was played and became overnight success, South Africa, Australia and the West Indies also organized similar tournaments, which again attracted huge cricket audience. In the year 2005, history was created, when Twenty20 cricket made its international debut, with the first T20 International being played, between Australia and New Zealand at Eden Park. As the popularity of the new form of cricket started rising, surpassing that of even ODIs and Tests, the game was taken more seriously.

 

By 2007, the popularity of Twenty20 had gained such heights that ICC organized the first international Twenty20 tournament, rather the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup, creating another history of sorts. With South Africa as the host, the tournament included 10 Test playing nations, apart from ICC associate nations - Kenya and Scotland. India won the first ICC T20 World Cup, beating Pakistan in the finals.

ICC World Twenty20 Details (Since 2007)

Year	Host	Winner	Runner-Up
2007	South Africa	India	Pakistan
2009	England	Pakistan	Sri Lanka
2010	West Indies	England	Australia
2012	Sri Lanka	West Indies	Sri Lanka
2014	Bangladesh	Sri Lanka	India
2016	---------------	-------------	-----------

Source -http://www.cricketworld4u.com/series/history/twenty20-world-cup-history.php

  ICC T20 2014 SL Won By 6 WIckets

The ICC World Twenty20 (also referred to as the ICC World T20 or the World Twenty20) is the international championship ofTwenty20 cricket. Organised by cricket's governing body, the International Cricket Council (ICC), the tournament consists of 12 teams, comprising all ten ICC full members and two other ICC members chosen through the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier. The event is generally held every two years, and all matches are accorded Twenty20 International status. The 2014 event was a host to 16 nations. See the full list below.

The inaugural event, the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, was staged in South Africa. Pakistan were originally selected to host it. It ran from 11–24 September 2007. The tournament was won by India, who became the first World T20 Champions after defeatingPakistan by 5 runs in the final at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg. The second event, the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 took place in England from 5–21 June 2009. This tournament was won by the previous runners-up Pakistan who defeated Sri Lanka by 8 wickets in the final at Lord's, London.^[3][4] The third tournament, the 2010 ICC World Twenty20 was held from 30 April–16 May 2010 and hosted by the West Indies. The winners were England who defeated Australia by 7 wickets in the final at Kensington Oval, Barbados. This was the first ever ICC tournament won by England. The fourth tournament, the 2012 ICC World Twenty20, was held from 18 September to 7 October 2012 and was hosted by Sri Lanka. The winners were West Indies who defeated Sri Lanka by 36 runs, their first appearance in a World cricket final since 1983 and their first victory since 1979.^[5] The fifth tournament, the 2014 ICC World Twenty20, was held from 16 March to 6 April. The winners of the tournament were Sri Lanka, who made it to the finals for the third time, by beating India by 6 wickets.
Source-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICC_World_Twenty20

Our Champions

The 1996 ICC Cricket World Cup Final was the sixth instalment of the ICC Cricket World Cup since its inception in 1975 in England. The match was played on 17 March 1996 at Lahore's 62,645 capacity Gaddafi Stadium in Pakistan for the first time.

The match was contested between former World Cup winners Australia and underdog Sri Lanka. It was Australia's third World Cup final appearance after their win in the 1987 edition and the loss to West Indies in the 1975 ICC Cricket World Cup final.

Sri Lankan captain Arjuna Ranatunga won the toss and sent Australia out to bat. After a blazing start from captain Mark Taylor and young superstar and future captain Ricky Ponting, Australia fell from being 1–137 to 5–170 after which Sri Lanka's 4 prong spin attack took its toll. After Australia limped to 7–241 in its quota of 50 overs, Sri Lanka overcame a nervous start where they lost both openers before the score was 30, to win in 45 overs. Sri Lankan batting sensation Aravinda De Silva played a match-winning knock of 107 not out and was assisted ably by fellow veterans Asanka Gurusingha (65) and captain Ranatunga (47 not out). De Silva was named man of the match after he had taken 3–42 in his 10 overs eairlier in the Australian innings as well^[1] & Sanath Jayasuriya gotman of the series award.

Source-Wikipedia

Culture

Sri Lanka’s culture is made up of various influencing factors. Religion and colonialisation by the Dutch, the Portuguese and the British have been the primary influencers, while its close connections with neighbouring India have also played a key role.

During the last century, Sri Lanka has changed remarkably. Historically, Sri Lankans were largely influenced by their own traditional food and Buddhism. However, with global developments, economical growth and intense competition in developed countries, Sri Lankans have ventured overseas and received global exposure. Consequently, this resulted in the integration of the western culture into the Sri Lankan community.

Sri Lanka's cuisine mainly consists of boiled or steamed rice served with curry. Another well-known rice dish is Kiribath, meaning "milk rice." Curries in Sri Lanka are not just limited to meat- or fish-based dishes but include vegetables and fruits. A typical Sri Lankan meal consists of a "main curry" (fish, chicken, or mutton), as well as several other curries that are made with vegetable and lentils. Side-dishes include pickles, chutneys and "sambols" which could be very hot to eat. The most popular sambol is the coconut sambol. Apart from sambols, Sri Lankans like to eat "mallung", chopped leaves that are mixed with grated coconut and red onions. Coconut milk is found in most Sri Lankan dishes to give the cuisine its unique flavour.

Religion

Sri Lanka's culture is heavily influenced by its religion. The Buddhist community observes Poya Days, which are an important day of prayers to the Hindus, as well. Poya Days come once a month and are determined according to the Lunar calendar.

The Hindus, Christians and Muslims also observe their own holidays.

The history of Sri Lanka has centred around religion on numerous times. There are many Buddhist Temples in Sri Lanka and many Mosques, Hindu temples and Christian churches all situated across the island.

Cricket Mania

During the history of Sri Lanka, sports has played a big part in the culture. Historical records reveal kings and nobleman engaging in various sports such as Elephant Polo.

Cricket is the most popular sport in Sri Lanka. Everyone loves cricket in Sri Lanka and it is common to see the young and old playing cricket in the neighbourhood or at playing fields during the evening or on weekends. A popular pastime of the Sri Lankan population is to watch their national cricket team play in action. It is even common for businesses to shut down when foreign matches are being televised here. In 1996 the Sri Lankan team entered the Cricket World Cup Final. In anticipation of the match, the entire country came to a virtual halt in order to watch the match. Hardly a car was on the road!

Music

Buddhism and Portuguese colonizers are the two primary influences on Sri Lankan music. The Lord Buddha's visit to Ceylon as it was then called in 300 BC resulted in the arrival of Buddhism and all its traditions. The Portuguese arrived here in the 15th Century and brought the cantiga ballads, ukuleles, guitars and came along with African slaves, who further diversified the musical roots of the island. The African slaves were called kaffrinha, and their dance music was called baila.

Traditional Sri Lankan music includes the hypnotic Kandyan drums. Drumming is a very source of music in both the Buddhist and Hindu temples in Sri Lanka.

Arts And Crafts

Sri Lanka’s arts and crafts are largely influenced by its Buddhist culture. Many ancient paintings, sculpture and architecture have originated from religious beliefs and customs.

Cave and temple painting is a unique feature found in Sri Lanka. The Sigiriya frescoes and Dambulla cave paintings are two such examples.

Other art and crafts include the traditional wooden handicrafts and clay pottery. These are popular in the hill country. Portuguese-inspired lacework and Indonesian-inspired Batik are also seen in certain parts of the island.

Tea

Sri Lanka is globally known for its scenic tea plantations in the hill country. Being one of the largest producers of tea in the world, Sri Lankan’s favourite drink is tea, with many consuming at least three cups a day.

Source : http://www.sltda.lk/culture

SriLankan History.

A teardrop-shaped island cast adrift in the Indian Ocean, Sri lanka is filled with cultural and natural treasures. Indians, Portuguese, Dutch and British have all left their marks here, making for a delightful mix of ancient cities, monuments and atmospheric colonial architecture.

At the same time, palm-fringed beaches are never far away and lush mountainous greenery beckons inland. It’s clear to see why Marco Polo proclaimed Sri Lanka to be one of the best islands in the world.Sri Lanka is one of those places where history seems to fade into the mist of legend. Is not Adam’s Peak said to be the very place where Adam set foot on earth, having been sent out of heaven Isn’t that his footprint squarely on top of the mountain to prove it’s Or is it the Buddha’s footprint on Sri Pada And isn’t Adam’s Bridge (the chain of islands linking Sri Lanka to India) the very series of stepping stones Rama, aided by his faithful ally, the monkey god Hanuman, stepped across in his mission to rescue Sita from the clutches of the Rawana,King of Lanka, in the epic Ramayana

The first entries in the Mahavamsa or Great History date back to 543BC, which coincides with the arrival of Prince Vijaya in Sri Lanka. Some 300 years later, commenced the early Anuradhapura Period, with King Devanampiya Tissa as the first ruler. It was in this period that a sapling of the sacred Bo Tree, under which the Lord Buddha attained enlightenment, was brought to Sri Lanka.
The late Anuradhapura Period, which began in the year 459, saw the reign of King Kasyapa, and the construction of Sigiriya. The Polonnaruwa period, witnessed the transfer of the capital from Anuradhapura to Polonnaruwa in 1073. Famed explorer, Marco Polo, arrived in Sri Lanka in the period between 1254 and 1324, and, in 1505, the Portuguese landed, and occupied the island’s coastal regions.