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Location: Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south
of India
Geographic coordinates: 7 00 N, 81 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area:
total: 65,610 sq km
land: 64,740 sq km
water: 870 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 1,340 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental
margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to
March); southwest monsoon (June to October)
Terrain: mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in
south-central interior
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m
Natural resources: limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems,
phosphates, clay, hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 14%
permanent crops: 15%
permanent pastures: 7%
forests and woodland: 32%
other: 32% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 5,500 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: occasional cyclones and tornadoes
Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion;
wildlife populations threatened by poaching and urbanization; coastal
degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; freshwater
resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff;
waste disposal; air pollution in Colombo
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution,
Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note: strategic location near major Indian Ocean
sea lanes
Geography
Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon. Lies between a chain of tiny islands
known as Adam's Bridge. Sri Lanka is somewhat pear-shaped. The total
area of Sri Lanka is 65,610 sq km (25,332 sq mi). Colombo is the
commercial capital and the largest city.
Sri Lanka has an irregular surface with low-lying coastal plains
running inland from the northern and eastern shores. The central
and southern areas slope into hills and mountains. The highest peak
is Pidurutalagala (2524m/8281ft).
Climate
Tropical climate. Upland areas are cooler and more temperate and
coastal areas are cooled by sea breezes.
There are two monsoons, which occur May to July and December to
January.
The average annual temperature is about 32° C (about 90° F) in the
lowlands and about 21° C (about 70° F) in the higher mountainous
regions.
Sri Lanka is a beautiful island country in the Indian Ocean. It
lies about 32 kilometres off the southeast coast of India. Its official
name is the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
The country was formerly called Ceylon.
Occupied by the Portuguese in the 16th century and the Dutch in
the 17th century, the island was ceded to the British in 1802. As
Ceylon it became independent in 1948; its name was changed in 1972.
Tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted
in violence in the mid-1980s. Tens of thousands have died in an
ethnic war that continues to fester.
Sri Lanka
GEOGRAPHY
Size: Pear-shaped island 29 kilometers off southeastern
coast of India; total area 65,610 square kilometers, of which land
area 64,740 square kilometers.
Topography: Irregular, dissected, central massif
dominates south; highest elevation Pidurutalagala (2,524 meters)
but better-known mountain Adam's Peak (2,243 meters), destination
of interfaith pilgrimages. Coastal belt (less than 100 meters elevation)
succeeded by rolling plains (100-500 meters elevation) of varying
width extends from seashore to foothills of central massif. In northern
half of island, topography falls away to rolling plain, relieved
only by isolated ridges. Rivers extend radially from central massif
to coast; longest Mahaweli Ganga (860 kilometers), which flows in
northeasterly direction. About 40 percent of island forested. Coastline
regular but indented by numerous lagoons and marked by sandy beaches.
Climate: Equatorial and tropical influenced by
elevation above sea level, but marked by only slight diurnal and
seasonal variations; temperature in Colombo (at sea level) varies
from 25°C to 28°C, and in central massif (site of highest
elevations) 14°C to 16°C. Subject to southwest monsoon from
mid May to October and northeast monsoon December to March. Rainfall
uneven; divides country climatically into wet zone comprising southwestern
quarter and dry zone on remainder of island. Annual precipitation
in wet zone averages 250 centimeters; in dry zone precipitation
varies from 120 to 190 centimeters.
Data as of October 1988
Sri Lanka
THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT
Geology
More than 90 percent of Sri Lanka's surface lies on Precambrian
strata, some of it dating back 2 billion years. The metamorphic
rock surface was created by the transformation of ancient sediments
under intense heat and pressure during mountain-building processes.
The theory of plate tectonics suggests that these rocks and related
rocks forming most of south India were part of a single southern
landmass called Gondwanaland. Beginning about 200 million years
ago, forces within the earth's mantle began to separate the lands
of the Southern Hemisphere, and a crustal plate supporting both
India and Sri Lanka moved toward the northeast. About 45 million
years ago, the Indian plate collided with the Asian landmass, raising
the Himalayas in northern India, and continuing to advance slowly
to the present time. Sri Lanka experiences few earthquakes or major
volcanic events because it rides on the center of the plate.
The island contains relatively limited strata of sedimentation
surrounding its ancient hills. Aside from recent deposits along
river valleys, only two small fragments of Jurassic (140 to 190
million years ago) sediment occur in Puttalam District, while a
more extensive belt of Miocene (5 to 20 million years ago) limestone
is found along the northwest coast, overlain in many areas by Pleistocene
(1 million years ago) deposits (see
fig. 1). The northwest coast is part of the deep Cauvery (Kaveri)
River Basin of southeast India, which has been collecting sediments
from the highlands of India and Sri Lanka since the breakup of Gondwanaland.
Data as of October 1988
Sri Lanka
Topography
Extensive faulting and erosion over time have produced a wide range
of topographic features, making Sri Lanka one of the most scenic
places in the world. Three zones are distinguishable by elevation:
the Central Highlands, the plains, and the coastal belt .
The south-central part of Sri Lanka--the rugged Central Highlands--is
the heart of the country. The core of this area is a high plateau,
running north-south for approximately sixty-five kilometers. This
area includes some of Sri Lanka's highest mountains. (Pidurutalagala
is the highest at 2,524 meters.) At the plateau's southern end,
mountain ranges stretch 50 kilometers to the west toward Adams Peak
(2,243 meters) and 50 kilometers to the east toward Namunakuli (2,036
meters). Flanking the high central ridges are two lower plateaus.
On the west is the Hatton Plateau, a deeply dissected series of
ridges sloping downward toward the north. On the east, the Uva Basin
consists of rolling hills covered with grasses, traversed by some
deep valleys and gorges. To the north, separated from the main body
of mountains and plateaus by broad valleys, lies the Knuckles Massif:
steep escarpments, deep gorges, and peaks rising to more than 1,800
meters. South of Adams Peak lie the parallel ridges of the Rakwana
Hills, with several peaks over 1,400 meters. The land descends from
the Central Highlands to a series of escarpments and ledges at 400
to 500 meters above sea level before sloping down toward the coastal
plains.
Most of the island's surface consists of plains between 30 and
200 meters above sea level. In the southwest, ridges and valleys
rise gradually to merge with the Central Highlands, giving a dissected
appearance to the plain. Extensive erosion in this area has worn
down the ridges and deposited rich soil for agriculture downstream.
In the southeast, a red, lateritic soil covers relatively level
ground that is studded with bare, monolithic hills. The transition
from the plain to the Central Highlands is abrupt in the southeast,
and the mountains appear to rise up like a wall. In the east and
the north, the plain is flat, dissected by long, narrow ridges of
granite running from the Central Highlands.
A coastal belt about thirty meters above sea level surrounds the
island. Much of the coast consists of scenic sandy beaches indented
by coastal lagoons. In the Jaffna Peninsula, limestone beds are
exposed to the waves as low-lying cliffs in a few places. In the
northeast and the southwest, where the coast cuts across the stratification
of the crystalline rocks, rocky cliffs, bays, and offshore islands
can be found; these conditions have created one of the world's best
natural harbors at Trincomalee on the northeast coast, and a smaller
rock harbor at Galle on the southwestern coast.
Sri Lanka's rivers rise in the Central Highlands and flow in a
radial pattern toward the sea. Most of these rivers are short. There
are sixteen principal rivers longer than 100 kilometers in length,
with twelve of them carrying about 75 percent of the mean river
discharge in the entire country. The longest rivers are the Mahaweli
Ganga (335 kilometers) and the Aruvi Aru (170 kilometers). In the
highlands, river courses are frequently broken by discontinuities
in the terrain, and where they encounter escarpments, numerous waterfalls
and rapids have eroded a passage. Once they reach the plain, the
rivers slow down and the waters meander across flood plains and
deltas. The upper reaches of the rivers are wild and usually unnavigable,
and the lower reaches are prone to seasonal flooding. Human intervention
has altered the flows of some rivers in order to create hydroelectric,
irrigation, and transportation projects. In the north, east, and
southeast, the rivers feed numerous artificial lakes or reservoirs
(tanks) that store water during the dry season. During the 1970s
and 1980s, large-scale projects dammed the Mahaweli Ganga and neighboring
streams to create large lakes along their courses . Several hundred
kilometers of canals, most of which were built by the Dutch in the
eighteenth century, link inland waterways in the southwestern part
of Sri Lanka.
Data as of October 1988
Sri Lanka
Climate
Sri Lanka's position between 5 and 10 north latitude endows the
country with a warm climate, moderated by ocean winds and considerable
moisture. The mean temperature ranges from a low of 15.8° C
in Nuwara Eliya in the Central Highlands (where frost may occur
for several days in the winter) to a high of 29° C in Trincomalee
on the northeast coast (where temperatures may reach 37° C).
The average yearly temperature for the country as a whole ranges
from 26° C to 28° C. Day and night temperatures may vary
by 4 to 7 . January is the coolest month, causing people, especially
those in the highlands, to wear coats and sweaters. May, the hottest
period, precedes the summer monsoon rains.
The rainfall pattern is influenced by the monsoon winds of the
Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal and is marked by four seasons. The
first is from mid-May to October, when winds originate in the southwest,
bringing moisture from the Indian Ocean. When these winds encounter
the slopes of the Central Highlands, they unload heavy rains on
the mountain slopes and the southwestern sector of the island. Some
of the windward slopes receive up to 250 centimeters of rain per
month, but the leeward slopes in the east and northeast receive
little rain. The second season occurs in October and November, the
intermonsoonal months. During this season, periodic squalls occur
and sometimes tropical cyclones bring overcast skies and rains to
the southwest, northeast, and eastern parts of the island. During
the third season, December to March, monsoon winds come from the
northeast, bringing moisture from the Bay of Bengal. The northeastern
slopes of the mountains may be inundated with up to 125 centimeters
of rain during these months. Another intermonsoonal period occurs
from March until mid-May, with light, variable winds and evening
thundershowers.
Humidity is typically higher in the southwest and mountainous areas
and depends on the seasonal patterns of rainfall. At Colombo, for
example, daytime humidity stays above 70 percent all year, rising
to almost 90 percent during the monsoon season in June. Anuradhapura
experiences a daytime low of 60 percent during the intermonsoonal
month of March, but a high of 79 percent during the November and
December rains. In the highlands, Kandy's daytime humidity usually
ranges between 70 and 79 percent.
Data as of October 1988
Sri Lanka
Ecological Zones
The pattern of life in Sri Lanka depends directly on the availability
of rainwater. The mountains and the southwestern part of the country,
known as the "wet zone," receive ample rainfall (an annual average
of 250 centimeters). Most of the southeast, east, and northern parts
of the country comprise the "dry zone, which receives between 120
and 190 centimeters of rain annually. Much of the rain in these
areas falls from October to January; during the rest of the year
there is very little precipitation, and all living creatures must
conserve precious moisture. The arid northwest and southeast coasts
receive the least amount of rain--60 to 120 centimeters per year--
concentrated within the short period of the winter monsoon .
The natural vegetation of the dry zone is adapted to the annual
change from flood to drought. The typical ground cover is scrub
forest, interspersed with tough bushes and cactuses in the driest
areas. Plants grow very fast from November to February when rainfall
is heavy, but stop growing during the hot season from March to August.
Various adaptations to the dry conditions have developed. To conserve
water, trees have thick bark; most have tiny leaves, and some drop
their leaves during this season. Also, the topmost branches of the
tallest trees often interlace, forming a canopy against the hot
sun and a barrier to the dry wind. When water is absent, the plains
of the dry zone are dominated by browns and grays. When water becomes
available, either during the wet season or through proximity to
rivers and lakes, the vegetation explodes into shades of green with
a wide variety of beautiful flowers. Varieties of flowering acacias
are well adapted to the arid conditions and flourish on the Jaffna
Peninsula. Among the trees of the dry-land forests are some valuable
species, such as satinwood, ebony, ironwood, and mahogany.
In the wet zone, the dominant vegetation of the lowlands is a tropical
evergreen forest, with tall trees, broad foliage, and a dense undergrowth
of vines and creepers. Subtropical evergreen forests resembling
those of temperate climates flourish in the higher altitudes. Montane
vegetation at the highest altitudes tends to be stunted and windswept.
Forests at one time covered nearly the entire island, but by the
late twentieth century lands classified as forests and forest reserves
covered only one-fifth of the land. The southwestern interior contains
the only large remnants of the original forests of the wet zone.
The government has attempted to preserve sanctuaries for natural
vegetation and animal life, however. Ruhunu National Park in the
southeast protects herds of elephant, deer, and peacocks, and Wilpattu
National Park in the northwest preserves the habitats of many water
birds, such as storks, pelicans, ibis, and spoonbills. During the
Mahaweli Garga Program of the 1970s and 1980s in northern Sri Lanka,
the government set aside four areas of land totalling 190,000 hectares
as national parks.
Data as of October 1988
Sri Lanka
Land Use and Settlement Patterns
The dominant pattern of human settlement during the last 2,500
years has consisted of village farming communities. Even in the
1980s, the majority of people lived in small villages and worked
at agricultural pursuits. Traditional farming techniques and life-styles
revolve around two types of farming--"wet" and "dry"--depending
upon the availability of water .
The typical settlement pattern in the rice-growing areas is a compact
group of houses or neighborhood surrounding one or several religious
centers that serve as the focus for communal activities. Sometimes
the houses may be situated along a major road and include a few
shops, or the village may include several outlying hamlets. The
life-sustaining rice fields begin where the houses end and stretch
into the distance. Some irrigated fields may include other cash
crops, such as sugarcane, or groves of coconut trees. Palmyra trees
grow on the borders of fields or along roads and paths. Individual
houses also may have vegetable gardens in their compounds. During
the rainy seasons and thereafter, when the fields are covered by
growing crops, the village environment is intensely verdant.
The nature of agricultural pursuits in Sri Lanka has changed over
the centuries and has usually depended upon the availability of
arable land and water resources. In earlier times, when villagers
had access to plentiful forests that separated settlements from
each other, slash-and-burn agriculture was a standard technique.
As expanding population and commercial pressures reduced the amount
of available forestland, however, slash-and-burn cultivation steadily
declined in favor of permanent cultivation by private owners. Until
the thirteenth century, the village farming communities were mainly
on the northern plains around Anuradhapura and then Polonnaruwa,
but they later shifted to the southwest (see Decline
of the Sinhalese Kingdom, 1200-1500 , ch. 1). In the 1980s,
wide expanses of the northern and eastern plains were sparsely populated,
with scattered villages each huddled around an artificial lake.
The Jaffna Peninsula, although a dry area, is densely populated
and intensively cultivated. The southwest contains most of the people,
and villages are densely clustered with little unused land . In
the Central Highlands around Kandy, villagers faced with limited
flat land have developed intricately terraced hillsides where they
grow rice. In the 1970s and 1980s, the wet cultivation area was
expanding rapidly, as the government implemented large-scale irrigation
projects to restore the dry zone to agricultural productivity. In
the 1980s, the area drained by the Mahaweli Ganga changed from a
sparsely inhabited region to a wet rice area similar to the southwest.
Through such projects, the government of Sri Lanka has planned to
recreate in the dry zone the lush, irrigated landscape associated
with the ancient Sinhalese civilization.
Beginning in the sixteenth century and culminating during the British
rule of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the plantation economy
came to dominate large sections of the highlands. Plantation farming
resulted in a drastic reduction in the natural forest cover and
the substitution of domesticated crops, such as rubber, tea, or
cinnamon. It also brought about a changed life-style, as the last
hunting-and-gathering societies retreated into smaller areas and
laborers moved into the highlands to work on plantations. Through
the late twentieth century, workers on large plantations lived in
villages of small houses or in "line rooms" containing ten to twelve
units. The numerous plantations of small landholders frequently
included attached hamlets of workers in addition to the independent
houses of the plantation owners.
The coastal belt surrounding the island contains a different settlement
pattern that has evolved from older fishing villages. Separate fishing
settlements expanded laterally along the coast, linked by a coastal
highway and a railway. The mobility of the coastal population during
colonial times and after independence led to an increase in the
size and number of villages, as well as to the development of growing
urban centers with outside contacts. In the 1980s, it was possible
to drive for many kilometers along the southwest coast without finding
a break in the string of villages and bazaar centers merging into
each other and into towns.
Data as of October 1988
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