"India. Sir Arthur C. Clarke, who was living in Sri Lanka at that time, protested against the switch, saying that it will make life inconvenient to everyone who has to relate to the rest of the world. Currently Sri Lanka does not observe daylight saving time, though it was used during World War II. Sri Lanka Standard Time Sri Lanka Standard Time (SLST) (Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ සම්මත වේලාව ""Shri Lankavay Sammatha Velava"" Tamil: இலங்கை நியம நேரம்) is the time zone for Sri Lanka. It is 5 hours and 30 minutes ahead of GMT/UTC (). The Sri Lanka Time reverted on"
"Sinhalese language Sinhalese (), known natively as Sinhala (; ""siṁhala"" ), is the native language of the Sinhalese people, who make up the largest ethnic group in Sri Lanka, numbering about 16 million. Sinhalese is also spoken as a second language by other ethnic groups in Sri Lanka, totalling about four million. It belongs to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. Sinhalese is written using the Sinhalese script, which is one of the Brahmic scripts, a descendant of the ancient Indian Brahmi script closely related to the Kadamba alphabet. Sinhalese is one of the official and national languages of"
"into one group as Asian British or Asian Other. Sinhalese people speak Sinhala, also known as ""Helabasa""; this language has two varieties, spoken and written. Sinhala is an Indo-Aryan language within the broader group of Indo-European languages. The Eerly form of the language was brought to Sri Lanka by the ancestors of the Sinhalese people from northern India who settled on the island in the 6th century BCE. Sinhala developed in a way different from the other Indo-Aryan languages because of the geographic separation from its Indo-Aryan sister languages. It was influenced by many languages, prominently Pali, the sacred language"
"the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka passed the Sinhala Only Act, an act where Sinhalese replaced English as the only official language of Sri Lanka. Due to this, many Tamils were forced to resign as civil servants/public servants because they were not fluent in Sinhalese. The Sri Lankan Tamils saw this act as linguistic, cultural and economic discrimination against them. After anti-Tamil pogroms in 1956, 1958 and 1977 and police brutality against the Tamils protesting against these acts, guerilla groups like the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam were established. They aimed to set up an independent Tamil state, Tamil Eelam."
"in Sri Lanka from the late eighteenth century to 1948. English was the official language of administration then. Just before the departure of the British, a ""swabhasha"" (your own language) movement was launched in a bid to phase out English slowly, replacing it with Sinhala or Tamil. However, shortly after the departure of the British the campaign, for various political reasons, evolved from advocating Sinhala and Tamil replacing English to just Sinhala replacing English. In 1956, the first election after independence, the opposition won and the official language was declared to be Sinhala. The Tamil people were unhappy, feeling that"
"groups such as the Burghers (of mixed European descent) and Malays from Southeast Asia. Moreover, there is a small population of Vedda people who are believed to be the original indigenous group to inhabit the island. Sinhalese and Tamil are the two official languages of Sri Lanka. The Constitution defines English as the link language. English is widely used for education, scientific and commercial purposes. Members of the Burgher community speak variant forms of Portuguese Creole and Dutch with varying proficiency, while members of the Malay community speak a form of Creole Malay that is unique to the island. Sri"
"Sinhala Only Act The Sinhala Only Act, formally the Official Language Act No. 33 of 1956, was an act passed in the Parliament of Ceylon in 1956. The act replaced English as the official language of Ceylon with Sinhalese. The act failed to give official recognition to Tamil, which had not received official recognition before. Sinhalese is the language of Sri Lanka's majority Sinhalese people, who accounted for around 70% of the country's population at that time. Tamil is the first language of Ceylon's three largest minority ethnic groups, the Indian Tamils, Sri Lankan Tamils and Moors, who together accounted"
"Sri Lankan English Sri Lankan English (SLE, en-LK) or Ceylonese English is the English language as it is spoken in Sri Lanka. However, the classification of SLE as a separate dialect of English is controversial. English in Sri Lanka is fluently spoken by approximately 48% of the population, and widely used for official and commercial purposes. It is the native language of approximately 74,000 people. The British colonial presence in South Asia led to the introduction of English to Sri Lanka. Since 1681, some words have been borrowed from the Sinhala and Tamil language by English. In 1948, Sri Lanka"
"the Chapter 4: Language of Legislation of the Sri Lanka constitution, previously written act is to be interpreted in Sinhala to avoid mis-interpretation. In the case of a new act the parliament, at the stage of enactment has the authority to determine which version of the legislation prevails in the event of inconsistencies. Sinhala Only Act The Sinhala Only Act, formally the Official Language Act No. 33 of 1956, was an act passed in the Parliament of Ceylon in 1956. The act replaced English as the official language of Ceylon with Sinhalese. The act failed to give official recognition to"
"Sinhala slang Sinhala slang is used by speakers of the Sinhala language in Sri Lanka, as well as many other Sinhala-speaking individuals. Sinhala dialects are the various minor variations of Sinhalese language which are based on the locale (within Island of Sri Lanka) and the social classes and social groups (e.g. University Students). Most of the slang are common across all dialects. However certain slang are restricted to certain social classes or groups. Sinhalese is an Indo-Aryan language and exhibits a marked diglossia between the spoken and written forms. As such, it is also difficult to find instances of colloquial"
"Sri Lanka. Sinhalese, along with Pali, played a major role in the development of Theravada Buddhist literature. The oldest Sinhalese Prakrit inscriptions found are from the third to second century BCE following the arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, the oldest extant literary works date from the ninth century. The closest relative of Sinhalese is the Maldivian language. Sinhalese is of two main varieties – written and spoken. Spoken Sinhalese is easier to learn because it has lost the rigidity and formality of grammar. ""Sinhala"" () is a Sanskrit term; the corresponding Middle Indo-Aryan (Eḷu) word is ""Sīhala"". The name"
"are taught in Malay. In vernacular schools, all subjects with the exception of the sciences and mathematics are taught in the primary language that is used in the respective schools. The sciences and mathematics are taught in English, although some Mandarin vernacular schools have dispensation to teach those subjects concurrently in Mandarin. In Sri Lanka, where the official state languages are Sinhalese, Tamil, and English, all government schools instruct either in Sinhala or Tamil. A few higher-level government schools (national level schools) also offer instruction in English. All students studying in Sinhalese or English are also taught English as a"
"Sinhalese people The Sinhalese (Sinhala: සිංහල ජාතිය ""Sinhala Jathiya"", also known as ""Hela"") are an Indo-Aryan-speaking ethnic group native to the island of Sri Lanka. They constitute about 75% of the Sri Lankan population and number greater than 16.2 million. The Sinhalese identity is based on language, historical heritage and religion. The Sinhalese people speak the Sinhalese language, an Indo-Aryan language, and are predominantly Theravada Buddhists, although a small percentage of Sinhalese follow branches of Christianity. The Sinhalese are mostly found in North Central, Central, South, and West Sri Lanka. According to the 5th century epic poem Mahavamsa, and the"
"Sinhala numerals Sinhalese belongs to the Indo-European language family with its roots deeply associated with Indo-Aryan sub family to which the languages such as Persian and Hindi belong. Although it is not very clear whether people in Sri Lanka spoke a dialect of Prakrit at the time of arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, there is enough evidence that Sinhala evolved from mixing of Sanskrit, Magadi (the language which was spoken in Magada Province of India where Lord Buddha was born) and local language which was spoken by people of Sri Lanka prior to the arrival of Vijaya in Sri"
"toilets. Sinhala slang Sinhala slang is used by speakers of the Sinhala language in Sri Lanka, as well as many other Sinhala-speaking individuals. Sinhala dialects are the various minor variations of Sinhalese language which are based on the locale (within Island of Sri Lanka) and the social classes and social groups (e.g. University Students). Most of the slang are common across all dialects. However certain slang are restricted to certain social classes or groups. Sinhalese is an Indo-Aryan language and exhibits a marked diglossia between the spoken and written forms. As such, it is also difficult to find instances of"
"Sinhalese script The Sinhalese script (Sinhalese: සිංහල අක්ෂර මාලාව) (Siṁhala Akṣara Mālāva) is a writing system used by the Sinhalese people and most Sri Lankans in Sri Lanka and elsewhere to write the Sinhalese language, as well as the liturgical languages Pali and Sanskrit. The Sinhalese Akṣara Mālāva, one of the Brahmic scripts, is a descendant of the ancient Indian Brahmi script and closely related to the South Indian Grantha script and Kadamba alphabet. The Sinhalese script is an abugida written from left to right. Sinhalese letters are ordered into two sets. The core set of letters forms the alphabet"
"However sections within the Sinhalese community, who wanted the country to distance itself from its colonial past, began a campaign to have Sinhala made the official language of Sri Lanka. At the 1956 parliamentary elections, the leader of the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna, S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike campaigned on a promise to make Sinhala the sole official language of Sri Lanka. With the support of extremist Sinhalese figures, Bandaranaike won the election and was named the 4th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka. After his government was set up, he made it his priority to follow up on his promises related"
"that of helping the growing population of unemployed youth who were disenfranchised by the Sinhala Official Language policy. A majority of civil servants under colonial rule were Tamil whose positions benefited from free English-medium missionary schools in the north and east of the island. The Tamil Federal Party led a group of Tamil volunteers and staged a sit-down ""satyagraha"" (peaceful protest). The Sinhala Official Language policy was gradually weakened by all subsequent governments and in 1987 Tamil was made an official language of Sri Lanka, alongside Sinhala. English has remained the de facto language of governance; government activity continues to"
"Sri Lanka, may also additionally speak Sinhala and or English. According to the 2012 Census 32.8% or 614,169 Sri Lankan Tamils also spoke Sinhala and 20.9% or 390,676 Sri Lankan Tamils also spoke English. The Negombo Tamil dialect is used by bilingual fishermen in the Negombo area, who otherwise identify themselves as Sinhalese. This dialect has undergone considerable convergence with spoken Sinhala. The Batticaloa Tamil dialect is shared between Tamils, Muslims, Veddhas and Portuguese Burghers in the Eastern Province. Batticaloa Tamil dialect is the most literary of all the spoken dialects of Tamil. It has preserved several ancient features, remaining"
"to host to Sinhala Ola leaf collections are in Arizona, US, Brussels, Belgium and Netherlands. Sinhala numerals were added to the Unicode Standard in June, 2014 with the release of version 7.0. The Unicode block for Sinhala numerals, called Sinhala Archaic Numbers, is U+111E0–U+111FF: Sinhala numerals Sinhalese belongs to the Indo-European language family with its roots deeply associated with Indo-Aryan sub family to which the languages such as Persian and Hindi belong. Although it is not very clear whether people in Sri Lanka spoke a dialect of Prakrit at the time of arrival of Buddhism in Sri Lanka, there is"
"[[Category:Dutch Ceylon]] [[nl:Ceylons-Nederlands]] Sri Lankan Portuguese creole Sri Lanka Indo-Portuguese, Ceylonese Portuguese Creole or Sri Lankan Portuguese Creole (SLPC) is a language spoken in Sri Lanka. While the predominant languages of the island are Sinhala and Tamil, the interaction of the Portuguese and the Sri Lankans led to the evolution of a new language, Sri Lanka Portuguese Creole (SLPC), which flourished as a ""lingua franca"" on the island for over 350 years (16th to mid-19th centuries). SLPC continues to be spoken by an unknown, extremely small population. All speakers of SLPC are members of the Burgher community: descendents of the"
"viewed by the Sinhalese as a threat to their singular identity. As a result, Sinhalese became the official language of Sri Lanka and politics became Sinhalese-dominated, tending toward a Sinhala hegemonic state. Consequently, the Tamil culture and identity was oppressed. On the other hand, the Tamils saw Sri Lanka as a place of coexistence, a place with equal rights whilst maintaining their culture and values. Sri Lankan Tamils are descendants of the indigenous Tamils and subdivided into three predominate groups: Jaffina Tamils of the Jaffina Peninsula and the Northern Province; Batticaloa Tamils; and the Tamils of the Eastern coastal region"
"Sri Lankan Portuguese creole Sri Lanka Indo-Portuguese, Ceylonese Portuguese Creole or Sri Lankan Portuguese Creole (SLPC) is a language spoken in Sri Lanka. While the predominant languages of the island are Sinhala and Tamil, the interaction of the Portuguese and the Sri Lankans led to the evolution of a new language, Sri Lanka Portuguese Creole (SLPC), which flourished as a ""lingua franca"" on the island for over 350 years (16th to mid-19th centuries). SLPC continues to be spoken by an unknown, extremely small population. All speakers of SLPC are members of the Burgher community: descendents of the Portuguese and Dutch"
"The Sinhala language is spoken by the Sinhalese people, who constitute approximately 74% of the national population and total about 13 million. It utilizes the Sinhala abugida script, which is derived from the ancient Brahmi script. The Rodiya language, a dialect of Sinhala, is spoken by the low-caste community of chamodi veddhas. The Veddah peoples, totaling barely 2500, speak a distinct language, possibly a creolized form of an earlier indigenous language. The Tamil language is spoken by Sri Lankan Tamils, as well as by Tamil migrants from the neighboring Indian state of Tamil Nadu and by most Sri Lankan Moors."
"is a unique mixture of the Sinhalese language and the Tamil language with Malay. Sri Lanka Malay (SLM) is a restructured vernacular of Malay base spoken by at least five different communities in Sri Lanka which has evolved to be significantly divergent from other varieties of Malay due to intimate contact with the dominant languages of Sinhala and Tamil. The Malays in Sri Lanka, whose ancestry include labourers brought by the Dutch and British, as well as soldiers in the Dutch garrison, now constitute 0.3% of the population, numbering some 46,000. It is spoken exclusively by the Malay ethnic minority"
"exchange of vocabulary between Tamil and Sinhala. Tamil is one of the official languages of Sri Lanka. De-Tamilization refers to disappearance of Tamil culture and language. By the end of 13th century, the power of Tamil dynasties like Pandyans, Cheras and Cholas slowly declined in Tamilakam. The Tamil language disappeared in western Tamilakam (Kerala), which led to the rise of Malayalam, the people's language. The state backed De-Tamilization or Sinhalisation of Sri Lanka was a major factor in contributing to the ethnic polarization towards the outbreak of the Sri Lankan civil war. List of countries where Tamil is an official"
"data sources. The CIA World Factbook lists Sri Lanka's current population as 20,653,913 persons. Considering the island is only , it is a very densely populated nation. Over 85% of the population live in non-urban environments. The largest city is Colombo, with a population of 1,819,777. Sri Lanka is occupied by several ethnic groups. The Sinhalese are the predominant ethnic group (74%), followed by Sri Lankan Tamils (13%), Indian Tamils (5%) and Moors (Muslim) (7%). Sinhala is the national language and is the predominant language spoken by 74% of the population. Most Tamils and Moors speak Tamil, part of the"
"to the language issue, and introduced the Official Language Act (commonly known as the Sinhala Only Act) on June 5, 1956. In opposition to the act, Tamil People staged a hartal in parts of the country, and demonstrated in front of the parliament at Galle Face Green. In reaction to the legislation, the main Tamil political party in Sri Lanka, the Federal Party (known as the ""Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi"" in Tamil) put forward four major demands at their convention held in Trincomalee on August 20, 1956. They were, The Federal Party vowed that if their demands were not met"
"oldest in the world. Sinhalese people The Sinhalese (Sinhala: සිංහල ජාතිය ""Sinhala Jathiya"", also known as ""Hela"") are an Indo-Aryan-speaking ethnic group native to the island of Sri Lanka. They constitute about 75% of the Sri Lankan population and number greater than 16.2 million. The Sinhalese identity is based on language, historical heritage and religion. The Sinhalese people speak the Sinhalese language, an Indo-Aryan language, and are predominantly Theravada Buddhists, although a small percentage of Sinhalese follow branches of Christianity. The Sinhalese are mostly found in North Central, Central, South, and West Sri Lanka. According to the 5th century epic"
"for a number of key maps and techniques such as traditional, phonetic and assisted techniques. In addition, newer versions of Android mobile operating system also support both rendering and input of the Sinhala script. Sinhalese script was added to the Unicode Standard in September 1999 with the release of version 3.0. This character allocation has been adopted in Sri Lanka as the Standard SLS1134. The main Unicode block for Sinhala is U+0D80–U+0DFF. Another block, Sinhala Archaic Numbers, was added to Unicode in version 7.0.0 in June 2014. Its range is U+111E0–U+111FF. Sinhalese script The Sinhalese script (Sinhalese: සිංහල අක්ෂර මාලාව)"
"The Sinhala alphabet comprises 60 letters whereas English has only 26. Moreover, Sinhala has a syllable based alphabet and two English characters had to be used to represent one Sinhala consonant, thus distorting the semblance to sighted print. Therefore, this method was not practical although many users continued to use it as there was no alternative at the time. In 1947, the first non-foreign principal of the school for the blind at Ratmalana, Kingsley C. Dassanaike, introduced a more practical code which was influenced by the principles and practices of the English braille code. Since then, Sinhala braille has played"
"radio news broadcasts, etc.), whereas the spoken language is used as the language of communication in everyday life (see also Sinhala slang and colloquialism). As a rule the literary language uses more Sanskrit-based words. The most important difference between the two varieties is the lack of inflected verb forms in the spoken language. The situation is analogous to one where Middle or even Old English would be the written language in Great Britain. The children are taught the written language at school almost like a foreign language. Sinhalese also has diverse slang. Most slang words and terms were regarded as"
"the riots of 1958. Political parties and groups representing Tamilain Sri Lankans felt that the implementation of the Sinhala Only Act deprived the Tamil populations in the north and east of the country of their right to fully integrate into government institutions. They saw this as an injustice brought upon this ethnic minority. In 1958, the Tamil political leadership acquiesced to a formula of Sinhala as the official language, but with the ""reasonable use of Tamil"". Only the leftist parties opposed this, holding out for parity of status between the two languages. However, after the Tamil people gave an overwhelming"