Sri Lanka - Read about Sri Lanka before visiting the island. Where is Sri Lanka on the map? What was the name of the island of Sri Lanka
Inexperienced tourists who are not very well versed in geography are sometimes not only interested in where Sri Lanka is located on the world map, but also ask such stupid questions as, for example, “What country is this?” I remember after returning from my first trip to Sri Lanka, many of my friends and acquaintances said: “ Sri Lanka? Where is it?"It is not surprising that many people do not know where Sri Lanka is on the world map.
To begin with, we note that Sri Lanka is an island country. Previously, this island was called Ceylon. In general, it is stupid to ask what country this is, Sri Lanka, since Sri Lanka is an independent country within the borders of a large island.
Now let's answer the question of where exactly Sri Lanka is located. Former Ceylon is located in the Indian Ocean, between 5 and 10 degrees north latitude. The distance to India at the narrowest point of the strait dividing the countries is about 50 kilometers. The long but narrow island of Sri Lanka is home to 21 million people. Of these, Sinhalese constitute the largest proportion and Tamils are the second largest population group.
Due to its favorable location in Southeast Asia and the northern Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka has always been considered an important location on many trade routes. The population of the island knew this and managed to properly take advantage of this advantage by exporting coconuts, spices and the world famous Ceylon tea and rubber.
Where is Sri Lanka on the world map? The island can be found fairly quickly at a glance at the map. To do this, you must first find the Indian Ocean, and at the very top of this ocean, to the right of India, you will see the island of Sri Lanka. Usually this island is marked on all general geographical maps.
Where is the capital of Sri Lanka? Colombo, the capital and economic center, is on the west coast and has coordinates of 7 degrees north latitude and 80 degrees east longitude. About 700,000 people live and work in Colombo. It is an important political and cultural center of Sri Lanka.
Area of Sri Lanka, length, width and geographical coordinates
Belonging to the continent of Asia, Sri Lanka covers an area of 64,630 square kilometers of territory and 980 square kilometers of water area. This makes Sri Lanka the 123rd largest country in the world by land area, with a total area of 65,610 square kilometers.
Since Sri Lanka is a large island, it is not correct to name any specific geographical coordinates. The northernmost major city, Jaffna, has the following coordinates: 9 degrees 40 minutes north latitude and 79 degrees 51 minutes east longitude. The southernmost major city, Halle, has coordinates: 6 degrees 2 minutes north latitude and 80 degrees 13 minutes east longitude.
The length of the island of Sri Lanka is 452 km, and the width at its widest point is 227 km.
Map of Sri Lanka with resorts in Russian
If you want to study in more detail the location of cities, resorts and other objects on the island, then you will need a detailed map of Sri Lanka with resorts in Russian. There are many maps of this island, but nowadays it is best to use interactive maps, one of which you will see below. This map allows you to find any object and zoom in to such a value that you can see any house on the streets of the cities of Sri Lanka.Sri Lanka has a warm climate. From May to October there are often unpredictable storms, but the rest of the time you can enjoy gentle sea breezes. Sri Lanka rarely gets very hot, but the island's high humidity worries many Russian travelers. Climate-sensitive travelers usually need a few days to acclimatize. Depending on the region of the island, the air temperature during the day can fluctuate between 16 and 35 degrees. While the wetter southwestern region of the island can expect very high rainfall, especially from May to October, the northeastern region remains relatively dry. The sunniest weather in Sri Lanka usually occurs between January and April.
Most of Sri Lanka is covered with tropical forests, which is typical for a region with a predominantly humid and warm climate. The enormous wealth of plants and trees is the result of these climatic conditions. The Bodhi Tree, the oldest tree in the world, defies all the unevenness of nature today and is truly attractive. In the north and east of the island, due to the drier climate, there are noticeably more bushes and shrubs.
Another gift of nature in Sri Lanka are the beautiful ones, which are appreciated by numerous tourists.
Sri Lanka's diverse fauna have adapted to the warm, humid climate. Animal lovers will be delighted to see monkeys jumping from tree to tree, Asian elephants and a beautiful palm squirrel, which is similar to the chipmunks we know. Even thousands of crawling animals feel very comfortable here.
Mountains of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka can be divided into three landscape zones. One of them is the mountainous terrain, where you can climb mountains up to 2500 meters high. This is also the area of the world famous Ceylon tea. In the highlands of Sri Lanka you will find many attractions and very beautiful places, such as the giant Bambarakanda waterfall. This waterfall is famous for the fact that the water here falls from a height of 240 meters.
Mountains occupy a fairly large area of Sri Lanka, but still the largest part of the island is covered by tropical areas.
The third zone, which is the most popular among holidaymakers, is the coastal zone with beautiful beaches and a large number of coconut trees.
The request for "Ceylon" is redirected here; see also other meanings. This article is about the state, about the island, see Sri Lanka (island). Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ජය இலங்கை ஜனநாயக… … Wikipedia
Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, state in South. Asia, on the island Sri Lanka. Name from Sanskrit. sri glorious, magnificent, blessed, lanka land. Until 1972 it was called Ceylon. This name is based on Sanskrit. Sinhala dvipa... ... Geographical encyclopedia
Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (until 1972 Ceylon), a state in South Asia, on the island of Sri Lanka in the Indian Ocean, at the southern tip of the Hindustan Peninsula. 65.6 thousand km2. Population over 18.3 million people (1996), in... ... encyclopedic Dictionary
Sri Lanka- Sri Lanka. Ancient city of Anuradhapura. SRI LANKA (Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka), a state in South Asia, on the island of Sri Lanka in the Indian Ocean, off the southern tip of the Hindustan Peninsula. Area 65.6 thousand km2.… … Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary
Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (until 1972 Ceylon), a state in the South. Asia, on the island Sri Lanka in the Indian region, at the southern tip of the Hindustan Peninsula. 65.6 thousand km². population of St. 17.6 million people (1993), mostly Sinhalese... ... Big Encyclopedic Dictionary
Ceylon, emerald island Dictionary of Russian synonyms. Sri Lanka noun, number of synonyms: 4 emerald island (1) ... Synonym dictionary
Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon)- (Sri Lanka), an island state in the Indian Ocean, near the southeast. coast of India. The early history of Sh.L. was greatly influenced by India, and modern times. The state was formed as a result of three stages of Europe. colonization. Here they dominated at first... ... The World History
- (until 1972 Ceylon) Republic of Sri Lanka, a state on the island of the same name in the Indian Ocean, southeast of the Hindustan Peninsula. Member of the Commonwealth (British). Area 65.6 thousand km2. Population 13.7 million people. (1976). The capital is Colombo. IN… … Great Soviet Encyclopedia
State in South. ASIA, on the island of Sri Lanka. Under this name the island was known in ancient times along with the self-name Sinhaladvipa (lit. lion island); its Arabic distortion of Serendib was transformed by the Portuguese into Ceilão, by the Dutch into... ... Soviet historical encyclopedia
Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon), an island state in South Asia, south of the Hindustan Peninsula. Separated from the mainland by the shallow Polk Strait and the Gulf of Manara, between which there is a chain of islands... ... Collier's Encyclopedia
Books
- Sri Lanka with a map! (RG11204), Heine Paul. What is Sri Lanka? The tropical island is located in the Indian Ocean. The north of Sri Lanka and the south of India are separated by the Palk Strait, 35 km wide, and connected by Adam’s Bridge - a chain of shoals and coral...
- Guide to Sri Lanka 14 routes 12 maps map, Heine P.. What is Sri Lanka? The tropical island is located in the Indian Ocean. The north of Sri Lanka and the south of India are separated by the Palk Strait, 35 km wide, and connected by Adam’s Bridge, a chain of shallows and coral...
Full name: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
Capital: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte.
Area: 65,610 sq. km.
Population: 21,675,648 people.
Official languages: Sinhala, Tamil and English.
Official currency: Sri Lankan rupee.
In the warm waters of the Indian Ocean, not far from the coast of India, there is a small island shaped like a drop.
Everyone has heard about it at least once, and every day they probably enjoy its gifts - delicious black or green tea. His real name is rarely spoken, but his “nickname” Ceylon is heard by many. This is Sri Lanka!
Sri Lanka is separated from the Hindustan Peninsula by the narrow Palk Strait.
The people of Sri Lanka are called Sri Lankans.
At the beginning of the 19th century. the island was a colony (dependent territory) of Great Britain and was called Ceylon, and in 1972 it became independent and received a new name - Sri Lanka, which means “blessed land” in Sinhala.
Due to former British rule, almost everyone speaks English in Sri Lanka today. Only he is not quite familiar. Often, a resident of the British Isles or the USA will not fully understand a Sri Lankan, although both will communicate in the same language. This is because local residents add a lot of “their” words to their speech.
The flag of Sri Lanka is one of the oldest. It features a Sinhalese lion and two multi-colored stripes. The lion is the symbol of the ancestors of modern Sri Lankans, the green and orange stripes mean the few Muslims and Hindus, and the red part of the flag symbolizes the predominant Buddhists on the island. In the corners of the flag there are 4 leaves of paipula, a tree sacred to Buddhists.
Sri Lanka is an island of precious stones. In its depths are rubies, garnets, moonstone, and amethysts. But the “king” of stones is sapphire - blue, pink, yellow, white and very rare star. A Lankan sapphire even adorns the English crown!
As in other Asian countries, motorized pedicabs are popular in Sri Lanka. Here they are called "knock-knock". This is the only safe means of transportation, since it can easily go around any obstacle. Chaos is happening on the streets of Sri Lankan cities! Local residents do not follow traffic rules. They can stop their vehicle whenever and wherever they want just to let a cow pass or go out to say hello to an acquaintance whom they suddenly saw on the street...
This is interesting!
Taking Sri Lankan rupees abroad, even as a souvenir, is prohibited by law.
An umbrella in Sri Lanka is not a means of keeping out the rain, but the main protection from the sun. It won’t save you from the downpours that happen here, but it won’t save you from the hot sun without an umbrella. That's why umbrellas are sold even in grocery stores.
In a cafe, before putting a dish on a plate, they put a plastic bag on it. In this way, Sri Lankans maintain hygiene, and there is no need to wash dishes after eating.
One state - two capitals
The small state of Sri Lanka can boast that it has not one capital, but two! This is the large metropolis of Colombo and the little-known town with the complex name of Sri Jayawardanapura Kotte. The first houses the residence of the President of Sri Lanka, and the second houses the country's parliament and the Supreme Court.
Colombo means “mangrove harbour” in Sinhala. The city is indeed located in an area with many mangroves. But there is another version of the name. It is believed that the Portuguese, who conquered Sri Lanka in the past, could have named the city this way in honor of the navigator Christopher Columbus.
Colombo is the largest city on the island and the largest port in Sri Lanka. It's noisy and crowded here all the time, the streets are filled with cars and tuk-tuks. Colombo is the only city in Sri Lanka where there are high-rise buildings and skyscrapers. And only here temples belonging to representatives of three religions at once coexist safely - churches (Christianity), mosques (Islam) and Buddhist temples.
Colombo is home to one of the best botanical gardens in Asia. Its highlights are the Orchid House and the Spice Garden. The world's rarest species of these plants grow in the Orchid House. And in the Spice Garden all the aromatic plants and herbs of the island of Sri Lanka are collected. The king of the garden is pepper, and the queen is cinnamon. It is thanks to the huge amount of spices that the island was interesting for many European countries. Their rulers always dreamed of capturing plantations of allspice, vanilla, cloves, and ginger, which had no equal in the world.
Sri Jayawardanapura Kotte is a town in the suburbs of Colombo. When at the beginning of the 16th century. Envoys of the Portuguese king arrived on the island, the guides managed to stretch the five-kilometer route between Colombo and Kotte into a three-day hike around the entire island! This was done to confuse uninvited guests and hide the exact location of the capital from them. The expression “to go to Kotte” for modern Sri Lankans means “to take a roundabout route.”
The city of Colombo was the capital during the domination of Ceylon by the Portuguese, Dutch and British. When the state became independent, the city of Kotte received the capital function.
Today Kotte is a beautiful, quiet town with many universities and colleges. The Sri Lankan Parliament sits here. A luxurious building was specially built for him in the center of the city lake. Various festivals and fun carnivals are often held on the streets, in which brightly and beautifully dressed elephants - the symbol and pride of Sri Lanka - always take part.
Elephant City
In the past, elephants were the main transport in Sri Lanka. They transported people and cargo in the mountains and jungles. Today this is done by tractors and trucks, but the elephant is still the main animal and symbol of the island. 
The Sri Lankan elephant is different from its African brother. The inhabitants of the hot continent are larger, their ears are of a different shape and they always have powerful tusks. Among Sri Lankan elephants, tusks can be seen on about one in 20 animals.
An elephant lives as long as a person - 70-80 years. An adult animal weighs about 5 tons. He needs 250 kg of reed or coconut palm leaves and 200 liters of water per day.
For us, elephants are a symbol of wisdom and tranquility. But Sri Lankans think differently. They consider giants a natural disaster and fight them. Most animals are not killed by poachers. They are shot... by farmers. Elephants wander into fields, destroy crops and even destroy houses. A herd of angry elephants can destroy an entire village! The giants are not stopped by either fences or traps, and it is useless to try to “negotiate” with them. Lankan elephants are considered more aggressive and “clueless” than their African relatives.
There are fewer and fewer elephants in Sri Lanka every year. To protect the animals from extinction, the Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage was built on the island. This is a huge nursery where elephants left without parents, disabled elephants and retired elephants live. By the way, the oldest animal here is more than 60 years old, and the youngest is only two months old. He is given warm milk from the nipple to make him stronger and feel good.
Elephants are the main participants in all holidays and festivals in Sri Lanka. They are dressed in special mask costumes and decorated with jewelry.
Elephants have been trained for performances for many years. When elephants grow up, they “work off” their care and maintenance by giving tourists rides on their backs. This is the most popular attraction among visitors and the main business of local residents. Before riding, the elephant is saddled. This is done only for the sake of tourists. Sri Lankans ride bareback. Maintaining balance while riding is very difficult, but an excellent view opens from the back of the animal. Traveling on horseback, you become convinced that the elephant seems clumsy only from the outside. Despite its impressive weight, it moves almost silently. Usually an elephant walks at walking speed, but if necessary, giants can reach speeds of up to 40 km/h.
An elephant that has worked up an appetite during the trip must be thanked. The best way to do this is to feed him bananas, the elephant's favorite dessert.
The fauna of Sri Lanka is very diverse. Animals and birds on the island feel free, they are not afraid of humans and live next to him.
Based on materials
Sri Lanka Island
(Sri Lanka)
Blue sky, dark turquoise sea and green fringe of coconut palms over a yellow strip of beach - this is how the coast of the island of Sri Lanka opens to the traveler's eye. To Europeans, this island always seemed like an earthly paradise. It is no coincidence that the chain of islands crossing the Palk Strait and connecting Sri Lanka with India was called Adam's Bridge. It was according to him, as legend says, that the forefather of mankind, expelled from paradise, came to earth. By the way, one of the highest mountain peaks in Sri Lanka is also called Adam's Peak. It even has a rock with a dent similar to a human foot - as they say, the imprint of Adam's foot. On religious holidays, thousands of pilgrims climb along a narrow path to the top of the peak, eager to touch the shrine.
The island of Sri Lanka was known back in the 1st millennium BC. In the ancient Indian tale of Rama and Sita, better known to us as the Ramayana, there is an episode when the wife of Prince Rama, Sita, is kidnapped by the evil king of Sri Lanka, Ravana. But, although the Sri Lankan ruler took refuge on his island under the protection of a huge army, the brave Rama, with the help of the mighty monkey king Hanuman, who helped him, managed to defeat the army of Ravana and regain Sita. They also say that after returning home across Adam’s Bridge. Rama asked Hanuman how he could thank him. And the far-sighted monkey king replied that he would like to live as long as people remember the prince’s exploits. This is how Hanuman became immortal, for the memory of the divine Rama and his victories is passed on in India from generation to generation.
Over its long history, the island has changed many names, but all of them have always expressed admiration. The Arabs called it Serendib ("Blessed Island"). The ancient Greeks called it Taprobana (meaning "Coast of Bronze Palms"). The British gave the island the name Ceylon. This word comes from the distorted “Singala-dvina” - “Lion Island” - this is what the Sinhalese Indians who moved here in ancient times called this country. The current name of the island and country translated from Sanskrit means “Fertile Land”.
The great Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore once called Sri Lanka “the pearl in the Indian Ocean.” Since then, many wonderful writers have visited the island - from Zweig and Kipling to the classic of modern science fiction Arthur C. Clarke, and everyone admired him in their own way. Russian writers also visited here: Goncharov and Chekhov, Garin and Bunin. It is impossible to list the enthusiastic epithets that they bestowed on Sri Lanka: “Emerald drop in the warm sea”, “Treasure Island”, “Paradise”, “Pearl Treasury of the East”, “Land of Eternal Summer”, etc.
It must be said that there is no exaggeration in the last name: the climate of the country is, indeed, even and warm throughout the year. In both summer and winter, the temperature here is about plus 27, and in the mountains - 20–25 degrees. From May to August, humid sea winds - monsoons bring heavy rains to the island. At this time, the clouds above the ground thicken so much that everything is plunged into darkness, as if a solar eclipse had occurred, and whole streams of water fall from the sky, so dense that nothing can be seen twenty steps away. Rivers overflow their banks, and violent floods sometimes destroy entire villages. Thus, in 1957, due to floods caused by monsoon rains, almost three hundred thousand residents of the country were left homeless. But the rest of the time the sun shines brightly over Sri Lanka.
The island's forests amaze with their power and diversity. Here you can find giant trees reaching 50 meters in height, small but beautiful flowering plants, and numerous vines entwining the trunks and branches of other trees. Among them are many valuable, unique species: sandalwood with delicately fragrant branches, ebony, also called “black” for the color of the wood, rosewood - teak, breadfruit with edible fruits, tree ferns, papaya, mango and many others. But most of all in the forests there are various palm trees, of which in the first place, of course, are coconut trees. Their slender silhouettes, sometimes rising 30–35 meters, are found everywhere on the island.
This plant has long served man in tropical countries. Its nuts are used as food and provide oil used in soap and candle making. Palm leaves are used to cover huts, baskets, mats and brushes are made from them, the wood is used for buildings, and dishes are made from nut shells. Palm fiber is used for weaving ropes and making fabrics.
From other types of palm trees, sweet juice is obtained, which after fermentation becomes an intoxicating drink, starch, sugar, wax and other substances. In ancient times, the leaves of the talipot palm were used to make paper similar to parchment. Ancient manuscripts written on it have survived to this day - more than a thousand years! And the fruits of the cabbage palm are still included in the menu of the island’s residents.
Near Buddhist monasteries there are always groves of banyan trees - the sacred tree of India and Sri Lanka. After all, it was under the banyan tree that two and a half thousand years ago, the founder of Buddhism, Prince Gautama, experienced “enlightenment,” that is, he understood the cause of human suffering and the way to get rid of it. This happened in one of the cities of Northern India. Since then, Gautama took the name Buddha ("Enlightened One"). Every year, millions of pilgrims come to bow to the tree, which has survived to this day.
And in 245 BC, envoys from Sri Lanka turned to the priests guarding the sacred Indian tree with a request to allow them to take one branch of banyan tree to their island so that they too would grow a symbol of true faith. Permission was given, and the cutting of the tree in a golden vessel traveled down the Ganges River and then by sea to Sri Lanka, where it was planted on a hill in the ancient capital of the country - Anuradhapura and watered with sacred water from the Ganges. And the tree took root in the new place and has been blooming and bearing fruit for more than two thousand years. The monks spread its fruits throughout the island, and now there is no Buddhist temple in Sri Lanka that does not have a banyan tree growing near it.
By the way, this tree is a close relative of the well-known indoor ficus. By the way, the ficus family, which is widespread in the Mediterranean, also includes the fig tree, or fig tree, as the Bible calls it. An amazing feature of the banyan tree is its ability to form numerous aerial roots hanging from the branches to the ground. Having taken root in the soil, these roots begin to thicken, turning into powerful additional trunks, reaching a meter in diameter. (The main trunk can sometimes be up to ten meters in diameter.) Gradually the tree turns into a real forest, sometimes occupying an entire hectare and consisting of 600–800 trunks! The largest banyan tree is considered to be a five-hundred-year-old tree in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, resembling a huge green hill with an area of two hectares. It is even listed in the Guinness Book of Records. True, such giants have not been recorded in Sri Lanka.
In the forests of the island there is a real abundance of animals: there are wild elephants and buffaloes, black sloth bears and leopards, jackals and meter-sized bats - flying foxes, as well as many monkeys, flocks of which regularly devastate the fields and gardens of local residents. There are five species of deer in Sri Lanka, including the largest axis deer with a spotted coat and the mouse deer, which is the size of a hare.
The jungles of Sri Lanka also abound in birds, many of which fly here in winter from the north. But among them there are also permanent residents - these are peacocks, weaver birds, spur partridges and amazingly beautiful Ceylon kingfishers, whose feathers on the back shimmer in all shades of blue.
Dangerous animals are also found here, such as poisonous snakes (including cobras), crocodiles, sometimes growing up to five meters in length, and in coastal sea waters - sharks. The rivers are home to a rare fisherman, similar to a huge eel, up to a meter long. During the dry season, it is able to crawl overland from one body of water to another that has not yet dried up.
And the gecko lizards, common in Sri Lanka, are tamed and kept in houses by residents to combat flies, mosquitoes and mosquitoes.
The island's fertile climate provides excellent conditions for the cultivation of many cultivated plants, and therefore most of the plains of Sri Lanka (and they occupy four-fifths of the country) have been converted into plantations. Rubber trees such as hevea and cocoa, coconut palms and coffee trees, bananas and citrus fruits grow on them. But the main asset of Sri Lanka is its famous tea, which we call Ceylon tea from old memory. A third of all the tea harvested in the world is grown here, and it provides the lion's share of revenue to the state treasury.
But the nature of the island is famous not only for its richness of flora. In its mountains, on the roads of Sri Lanka, the richest reserves of the world's best graphite have been found, and "black sands" - the most valuable ore of titanium and zirconium - are mined off the coast. However, first of all, Sri Lanka is known throughout the world for its precious stones. More than forty different types of gems hide its depths: rubies and topazes, amethysts and garnets, tourmalines and alexandrites. Deposits of the latter are known, by the way, only in two places in the world: in Sri Lanka and here in the Urals. “Cat's eye” is also mined here - a stone that, according to legend, protects against assassination attempts and poisoning. They say that in the Middle Ages there was a ring with this stone; seven times he saved the life of the crown prince, the son of the ruler of the Sinhalese, whose enemies tried to take his life either with a dagger, or poison, or by sawing a bridge across the abyss on his way. But the magic talisman protected its owner every time, and the prince eventually became the ruler of the island.
Sapphire is rightly considered the most valuable gem in Sri Lanka. This blue stone is highly rated among connoisseurs. For one carat of it (0.2 grams) they pay up to two thousand dollars!
In the East there is an ancient legend about the origin of this wonderful gem. They say that people turned to the supreme deity of Hindus, Brahma, to show them the most precious of all seven wonders of the universe. Brahma climbed the sacred Mount Kailash, filled the cup with the magical drink of immortality - amrita, and splashed it out onto the surrounding area. Sprays of amrita scattered all over the world and, falling to the ground, turned into precious stones. These were sapphires.
The mountains of Sri Lanka, as already mentioned, occupy only a fifth of the island's area. But these are steep, rocky ridges and plateaus, sometimes rising two and a half kilometers above the plain. Rivers flowing from the mountains abound with waterfalls. Based on their number, Sri Lanka can be compared with the most “waterfall” country in the world - the South African kingdom of Lesotho. There are more than a hundred large waterfalls here, a good dozen of them are more than a hundred meters high. In the central part of the island, south of the ancient capital of the country - Kandy, in an area measuring fifty by fifty kilometers, there are seven such waterfalls and cascades, including the 210-meter Kurundu and the 190-meter Diyaluma.
The city of Kandy itself, known since the 16th century, is located at an altitude of 700 meters at the foot of the Piduru Range and has a temperate climate. It is considered the coolest city in the country. The longest river in Sri Lanka, the Mahaweli, surrounds the city buildings in a semicircle. The main attraction of Kandy is the ancient temple, which houses one of the main Buddhist shrines - the Tooth Relic. This sacred relic was initially kept in one of the temples of India, but when Muslims took over the Buddhists in the principality where the temple was located, the daughter of the ruler, hiding the Tooth in her high hairstyle, managed to get out of the city and reached Sri Lanka by ship. Here the Buddhist shrine was presented to the king of the island, who built a special temple for it in 1592, which became a place of pilgrimage for Buddhists from all over the world. The most important holiday of Sri Lanka - Perahera - is dedicated to the sacred tooth of Buddha. On this day, a solemn procession is organized in Kandy, in which 200 festively dressed elephants take part, one of which carries on its back a golden copy of the casket - the repository of the Tooth.
And not far from the ancient capital there is another pearl of Sri Lanka - Sigiriya Rock ("Lion Mountain"). With its outlines, it really resembles a mighty predator preparing to jump. A palace city was built on an unusual rock back in the 5th century, which at that time served as the residence of the king, and later served as a home for Buddhist monks.
A huge rock mass, towering above the green wall of the forest, was visible from afar. To further highlight it, the sheer walls of the mountain were whitewashed and polished to a mirror shine. A marble palace with a luxurious garden and fountains was erected on the flat top of Sigiriya. Only one inaccessible path led to it from the foot of the cliff, ending at the walls of the residence. The gates were built in the shape of a giant lion's head. To get into the palace, one had to go through the ferocious, grinning mouth of the beast.
According to legend, a fabulous structure on an impregnable peak was built by the evil and treacherous prince Kasiyapa. To seize power in the country, he killed his father and sent his younger brother into exile. After this, he, fearing revenge, ordered the construction of a palace on the rock and took refuge there. But eighteen years later, the villain still suffered his well-deserved retribution. His brother, Moggolana, gathered an army, stormed Sigiriya and executed the criminal. A Buddhist monastery was established in the empty palace. And after several centuries, the monastery was empty, and soon the green wall of the jungle hid this unique masterpiece of architecture from people. And only at the beginning of the 19th century, using fragmentary information preserved in ancient manuscripts, archaeologists were able to find and clear the ancient ruins. Now Sigiriya is included in the list of the most valuable historical monuments in the world and is under the auspices of UNESCO.
Such is this amazing island, endowing the traveler with a precious bouquet of the most exquisite and varied impressions: amazing trees and unique animals, beaches of the warm sea and shady groves of coconut palms, scatterings of precious stones and foamy streams of waterfalls, white marble palaces and mysterious ancient rituals, fruits worthy of gourmets, and legends that have survived thousands of years... And it is no coincidence that one of the wise and experienced thinkers of our time, the American science fiction writer Arthur Clarke, having visited Sri Lanka, was so captivated by it that he remained to live here forever. And when he was asked about the reasons for such an act, he answered briefly and simply: “I don’t know a better place on our planet!”
This text is an introductory fragment. From the book Great Soviet Encyclopedia (KO) by the author TSB From the book Great Soviet Encyclopedia (LA) by the author TSBKos (island) Kos (Greek Kos), an island in the Aegean Sea, in the archipelago of the Southern Sporades, near the Asia Minor peninsula. Belongs to Greece. Length about 40 km, width up to 10 km, area 267 km2. Rolling plains and plateaus predominate; in the east there are low mountains with an altitude of up to 846 m (the town of Dikeos).
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From the book All about Paris author Belochkina Yulia VadimovnaTreasure Island - French Island Why, having given all possible attention to your walks along the left and right banks of Paris, did we bother with walks AROUND PARIS? Yes, because it occurred to us that, dizzy, running around the city on our short-term
From the book I Explore the World. Wonders of the world author Solomko Natalia ZorevnaDemocratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Consular Section of the Embassy: Colombo, Sir Ernest de Silva Mawatha, 62, tel. 57-35-55 (24 hours a day), telex
From the book Philatelic Geography. European foreign countries. author Vladinets Nikolai IvanovichIle Saint-Louis Ile Saint-Louis (lie Saint-Louis) - the smaller of the two surviving islands of the Seine in Paris administratively belongs to the IV arrondissement. Unlike the neighboring Ile de la Cité, whose history dates back to antiquity, Saint-Louis remained uninhabited for a long time . He consisted
From the book Philatelic Geography. Asian countries (without the USSR). author Vladinets Nikolai IvanovichKrk Island This strange name goes to a small island in the Adriatic Sea, belonging to Croatia. Once upon a time, the Romans, whose roads passed throughout Europe, including here, called it Curicorum - after the name of the long-vanished Mediterranean people. Apparently, people
From the author's bookIsle of Man Isle of Man in the Irish Sea. Terr. OK. 600 sq. km. Terr. Great Britain, enjoying postal independence. Us. 56.2 thousand Ch. mountains - Douglas.Den. UK system: 1 pound sterling = 100 pence. First post. dept. was opened in 1778, and the first post office - in 1822. In 1833 there was
From the author's bookSRI LANKA (Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka) Ceylon. Sri Lanka State in the Indian Ocean on the island. Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon) in the south. tip of the Hindustan Peninsula. Terr. 65.5 thousand sq. km.Us. approx. 14.9 million (1981): Sinhalese - 70%, Tamils - 22%, etc. Capital - Colombo. State language -