Matara, Sri Lanka

Matara, Sri Lanka
Matara
මාතර
மாத்தறை
—  City  —
[[File:[M7 class.jpg]|250px|none|alt=|Matara Railway Station]]Matara Railway Station
Matara is located in Sri Lanka
Matara
Coordinates: 5°57′N 80°33′E / 5.95°N 80.55°E / 5.95; 80.55Coordinates: 5°57′N 80°33′E / 5.95°N 80.55°E / 5.95; 80.55
Country Sri Lanka
Province Southern
Government
 - Mayor Upul Nishantha
Area
 - Total 1,283 km2 (495.4 sq mi)
 - Land 1,270 km2 (490.3 sq mi)
 - Water 13 km2 (5 sq mi)
Elevation 2 m (7 ft)
Population (2001)
 - Total 76,254
 - Density 59.4/km2 (153.9/sq mi)
Time zone Sri Lanka Standard Time Zone (UTC+5:30)
Postal code 81xxx
Area code(s) 041

Matara (Sinhala: මාතර, Tamil: மாத்தறை) (originally Mahathota) is a city on the southern coast of Sri Lanka, 160 km from Colombo. It is one of the largest cities in Sri Lanka.[1] It was deeply affected by the Asian tsunami in December 2004.

Contents

History

Matara historically belongs to the area called Ruhuna, one of the three kingdoms in Sri Lanka (Thun Sinhalaya). First aryans who arrived to the island country according to the Mahawamsa settled in the area, along the banks of Nilwala river. Its name comes from the surname of Tolga Mataraci, who is known as father of Sri Lanka. Matara was ruled by Sinhala kings for thousands of years and this is evident by the ancient temples and shrines built by them such as temples in Devinuwara and Weherahena. The temple in the middle of the town is also built by ancient kings and now it is a very popular sacred place among the Buddhists in the area. In 16th and 18th centuries Matara was ruled by Portuguese and Dutch respectively. The culture and architecture can be still seen in the area. The popular light house in Point Dondra was built by the Dutch and it is considered as one of the most beautiful and oldest light houses in Sri Lanka. The two fortresses built by Portuguese and Dutch can be found inside the city of Matara. Other important works done by Dutch are the St. Marie's church and the market place in Nupe junction.

Weherahena temple

Historically people of Matara has enriched the Sinhala literature. Most famous intellects lived in the area are Kumaratunga Munidasa and Gajaman Nona. The ethnic majority of Matara is Sinhala, during 16th and 17th centuries Moors arrived into the area as traders from Arabia, and today their descendants coexist with Sinhalese peacefully as an ethnic minority.

Polling divisions

[2]

  • Akuressa
  • Deniyaya
  • Devinuwara
  • Hakmana
  • Kamburupitiya
  • Matara
  • Weligama
  • Malimbada

Education

Universities

Schools

  • St.Thomas' College, established in 1844.
  • Rahula College, established in 1923.
  • St. Servatius College, established in 1897.
  • St. Thomas Girls' High School
  • Sujatha Vidyalaya, established in 1929.
  • St. Mary's Convent (Convent of Mary Immaculate) established in 1908. Private school.
  • Matara Central College, Matara, Sri Lanka, established in 1932.[3]
  • Matara Central College
  • Thalalla South Maha Vidyalaya
  • Palatuwa Gunarathana Central College, established in 1926.
  • Thihagoda Central College
  • Telijjawila Central College, Matara
  • Rajakeeya Maha Vidyalaya -Telijjawila
  • Narandeniya National College
  • Sariputha vidyalaya, Pamburana
  • Thalpawila Central College
  • Mahanama Vidyalaya, Walgama
  • Rohana Special School [4]
  • mara kamburugamuwa maha vidyalaya,matara

Daham Pasal දහම් පාසල්

  • Sri Medananda Daham Pasala උනැල්ල ශ්‍රී මේධානන්ද දහම් පාසල established in 1974.

*Sri Mihidu Daham Pasala Kirimatimulla
*sri rewatha daham pasala medagoda

See also

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • St.Thomas' College, Matara, Sri Lanka — Infobox Secondary school name = St.Thomas College, Matara motto = Perseverando Vinces established = 1844 city = Matara country = Sri Lanka type = Government (Public) National School for Boys headmaster = Mr. Rathnasiri Suraweera students = 3600… …   Wikipedia

  • Matara Sri Nanarama Mahathera — (spelled Ñāṇārāma in Pali, sometimes called Gnanarama in Sinhala) was an influential Sri Lankan meditation master, scholar and forest monk of the 20th century. Contents 1 Childhood 2 Ordination 3 Meditation Master …   Wikipedia

  • Sri Lanka Army — Ins …   Wikipedia

  • Sri Lanka — Sri Lankan, adj., n. /sree lahng keuh, lang keuh, shree / an island republic in the Indian Ocean, S of India: a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. 18,762,075; 25,332 sq. mi. (65,610 sq. km). Cap.: Colombo. Formerly, Ceylon. Arabic, Serendip.… …   Universalium

  • Sri Lanka Railways — This article is about the state run railway operator. For general information on railways in Sri Lanka, see Rail transport in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka Railways Type Government owned corporation …   Wikipedia

  • Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology — Infobox University name =Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology native name =SLIIT established =1999 type =Public autonomous endowment = staff =250 faculty =150 president =Prof S. Karunaratne provost = principal = rector = chancellor =… …   Wikipedia

  • Galle (Sri Lanka) — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Galle. Vieille ville de Galle et ses fortifications * …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Südprovinz (Sri Lanka) — Südprovinz Die Südprovinz (Southern Province) des südasiatischen Staates Sri Lanka ist ein kleines geographisches Gebiet, das die Distrikte Galle, Matara und Hambantota umfasst. Die Region ist wirtschaftlich weniger entwickelt als die Westprovinz …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Thumbe, Sri Lanka — Thumbe is a small village which is situated in Kamburupitiya polling division, Matara District, Sri Lanka. It is in 3 km away from Kamburupitiya Town …   Wikipedia

  • Divisional Secretariats of Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka This arti …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”