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</li> <li id="toc-Opposition_views" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Opposition_views"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.2.4</span> <span>Opposition views</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Opposition_views-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Final_rectification" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Final_rectification"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.2.5</span> <span>Final rectification</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Final_rectification-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Society" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Society"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2</span> <span>Society</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-Society-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle Society subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-Society-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Demographics" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Demographics"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.1</span> <span>Demographics</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Demographics-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Language" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Language"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.2</span> <span>Language</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Language-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Social_structure" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Social_structure"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.3</span> <span>Social structure</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Social_structure-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Customs" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Customs"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.4</span> <span>Customs</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Customs-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Religion" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Religion"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.5</span> <span>Religion</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Religion-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-Folk_deities" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Folk_deities"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.5.1</span> <span>Folk deities</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Folk_deities-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Temple_societies" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-3"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Temple_societies"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2.5.2</span> <span>Temple societies</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Temple_societies-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Labour_practices" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Labour_practices"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3</span> <span>Labour practices</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Labour_practices-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Prominent_people" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Prominent_people"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4</span> <span>Prominent people</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Prominent_people-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-See_also" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#See_also"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5</span> <span>See also</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-See_also-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-References" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#References"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6</span> <span>References</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-References-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Further_reading" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Further_reading"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7</span> <span>Further reading</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Further_reading-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-External_links" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#External_links"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">8</span> <span>External links</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-External_links-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="mw-content-container"> <main id="content" class="mw-body"> <header class="mw-body-header vector-page-titlebar"> <nav aria-label="Contents" class="vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-titlebar-toc vector-button-flush-left" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Toggle the table of contents" > <label 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href="https://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%EC%8A%A4%EB%A6%AC%EB%9E%91%EC%B9%B4%EC%9D%98_%EC%9D%B8%EB%8F%84%EA%B3%84_%ED%83%80%EB%B0%80%EC%A1%B1" title="스리랑카의 인도계 타밀족 – Korean" lang="ko" hreflang="ko" data-title="스리랑카의 인도계 타밀족" data-language-autonym="한국어" data-language-local-name="Korean" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>한국어</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ne mw-list-item"><a href="https://ne.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%B6%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%80%E0%A4%B2%E0%A4%99%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%BE_%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%A4%E0%A5%80%E0%A4%AF_%E0%A4%A4%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%B2" title="श्रीलङ्काका भारतीय तमिल – Nepali" lang="ne" hreflang="ne" data-title="श्रीलङ्काका भारतीय तमिल" data-language-autonym="नेपाली" data-language-local-name="Nepali" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>नेपाली</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-si mw-list-item"><a href="https://si.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%B6%89%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%AF%E0%B7%92%E0%B6%BA%E0%B7%8F%E0%B6%B1%E0%B7%94_%E0%B7%83%E0%B6%B8%E0%B7%8A%E0%B6%B7%E0%B7%80%E0%B6%BA%E0%B6%9A%E0%B7%8A_%E0%B7%83%E0%B7%84%E0%B7%92%E0%B6%AD_%E0%B7%81%E0%B7%8A%E2%80%8D%E0%B6%BB%E0%B7%93_%E0%B6%BD%E0%B7%8F%E0%B6%82%E0%B6%9A%E0%B7%92%E0%B6%9A_%E0%B6%AF%E0%B7%99%E0%B6%B8%E0%B7%85_%E0%B6%A2%E0%B6%B1%E0%B6%BA%E0%B7%8F" title="ඉන්දියානු සම්භවයක් සහිත ශ්‍රී ලාංකික දෙමළ ජනයා – Sinhala" lang="si" hreflang="si" data-title="ඉන්දියානු සම්භවයක් සහිත ශ්‍රී ලාංකික දෙමළ ජනයා" data-language-autonym="සිංහල" data-language-local-name="Sinhala" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>සිංහල</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-simple mw-list-item"><a href="https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka – Simple English" lang="en-simple" hreflang="en-simple" data-title="Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka" data-language-autonym="Simple English" 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searchaux" style="display:none">Tamil people of Indian origin in Sri Lanka</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236090951">.mw-parser-output .hatnote{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output div.hatnote{padding-left:1.6em;margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .hatnote i{font-style:normal}.mw-parser-output .hatnote+link+.hatnote{margin-top:-0.5em}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .hatnote{display:none!important}}</style><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Not to be confused with <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Tamils" title="Sri Lankan Tamils">Sri Lankan Tamils</a>.</div> <div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">Ethnic group</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1257001546">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme)>div:not(.notheme)[style]{background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data:not(.notheme) div:not(.notheme){background:#1f1f23!important;color:#f8f9fa}}@media(min-width:640px){body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table{display:table!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>caption{display:table-caption!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table>tbody{display:table-row-group}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table tr{display:table-row!important}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table th,body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .infobox-table td{padding-left:inherit;padding-right:inherit}}</style><table class="infobox vcard"><caption class="infobox-title fn org">Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka</caption><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-above nickname" style="font-size:115%; font-weight:normal;"><div><span title="Tamil-language text"><span lang="ta">மலையகத் தமிழர்</span></span><br /><span title="Sinhala-language text"><span lang="si">ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ ඉන්දියානු දෙමළ ජනතාව</span></span></div></th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><span class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Frameless"><a href="/wiki/File:SriLanka_TeaTamilWoman_(pixinn.net).jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/SriLanka_TeaTamilWoman_%28pixinn.net%29.jpg/220px-SriLanka_TeaTamilWoman_%28pixinn.net%29.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="331" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/SriLanka_TeaTamilWoman_%28pixinn.net%29.jpg/330px-SriLanka_TeaTamilWoman_%28pixinn.net%29.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/SriLanka_TeaTamilWoman_%28pixinn.net%29.jpg/440px-SriLanka_TeaTamilWoman_%28pixinn.net%29.jpg 2x" data-file-width="717" data-file-height="1080" /></a></span><div class="infobox-caption">Indian Tamil woman working in a tea plantation in central <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lanka" title="Sri Lanka">Sri Lanka</a></div></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header" style="background-color:#b0c4de;">Total population</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data">842,323<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><br />(4.2% of the <a href="/wiki/Demographics_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Demographics of Sri Lanka">Sri Lankan</a> population) (2012)<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header" style="background-color:#b0c4de;">Regions with significant populations</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"><a href="/wiki/Provinces_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Provinces of Sri Lanka">Province</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;"><span data-sort-value="Central"><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Central_Province.png/23px-Central_Province.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Central_Province.png/35px-Central_Province.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fc/Central_Province.png/45px-Central_Province.png 2x" data-file-width="324" data-file-height="216" /></span></span> </span><a href="/wiki/Central_Province,_Sri_Lanka" title="Central Province, Sri Lanka">Central</a></span></th><td class="infobox-data">484,429</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;"><span data-sort-value="Uva"><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/Flag_of_the_Uva_Province_%28Sri_Lanka%29_SVG.svg/22px-Flag_of_the_Uva_Province_%28Sri_Lanka%29_SVG.svg.png" decoding="async" width="22" height="15" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/Flag_of_the_Uva_Province_%28Sri_Lanka%29_SVG.svg/33px-Flag_of_the_Uva_Province_%28Sri_Lanka%29_SVG.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6d/Flag_of_the_Uva_Province_%28Sri_Lanka%29_SVG.svg/43px-Flag_of_the_Uva_Province_%28Sri_Lanka%29_SVG.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="900" data-file-height="630" /></span></span> </span><a href="/wiki/Uva_Province" title="Uva Province">Uva</a></span></th><td class="infobox-data">154,252</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;"><span data-sort-value="Sabaragamuwa"><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/67/Sabaragamuwa_Province_Flag.png/23px-Sabaragamuwa_Province_Flag.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="14" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/67/Sabaragamuwa_Province_Flag.png/35px-Sabaragamuwa_Province_Flag.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/67/Sabaragamuwa_Province_Flag.png/46px-Sabaragamuwa_Province_Flag.png 2x" data-file-width="347" data-file-height="216" /></span></span> </span><a href="/wiki/Sabaragamuwa_Province" title="Sabaragamuwa Province">Sabaragamuwa</a></span></th><td class="infobox-data">104,063</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;"><span data-sort-value="Western"><span class="flagicon"><span class="mw-image-border" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Western_Province_Flag_%28SRI_LANKA%29.png/23px-Western_Province_Flag_%28SRI_LANKA%29.png" decoding="async" width="23" height="11" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Western_Province_Flag_%28SRI_LANKA%29.png/35px-Western_Province_Flag_%28SRI_LANKA%29.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e8/Western_Province_Flag_%28SRI_LANKA%29.png/46px-Western_Province_Flag_%28SRI_LANKA%29.png 2x" data-file-width="340" data-file-height="160" /></span></span> </span><a href="/wiki/Western_Province,_Sri_Lanka" title="Western Province, Sri Lanka">Western</a></span></th><td class="infobox-data">61,826</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header" style="background-color:#b0c4de;">Languages</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"><a href="/wiki/Tamil_language" title="Tamil language">Tamil</a> (<a href="/wiki/First_language" title="First language">L1</a>)<br /><a href="/wiki/Sinhala_language" title="Sinhala language">Sinhala</a> (<a href="/wiki/Second_language" title="Second language">L2</a>)</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header" style="background-color:#b0c4de;">Religion</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"><b>Majority</b><br /><a href="/wiki/Hinduism" title="Hinduism">Hinduism</a><br /><b>Minority</b><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1129693374">.mw-parser-output .hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul{margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt,.mw-parser-output .hlist li{margin:0;display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ul{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist .mw-empty-li{display:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dt::after{content:": "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li::after{content:" · ";font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li:last-child::after{content:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li li:first-child::before{content:" (";font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd li:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt li:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li li:last-child::after{content:")";font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol{counter-reset:listitem}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol>li{counter-increment:listitem}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol>li::before{content:" "counter(listitem)"\a0 "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd ol>li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt ol>li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li ol>li:first-child::before{content:" ("counter(listitem)"\a0 "}</style><div class="hlist"><ul><li><a href="/wiki/Christianity" title="Christianity">Christianity</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Islam" title="Islam">Islam</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Buddhism" title="Buddhism">Buddhism</a></li></ul></div></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header" style="background-color:#b0c4de;">Related ethnic groups</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-full-data"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><div class="hlist"><ul><li><a href="/wiki/Tamils" title="Tamils">Tamils</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Tamils" title="Sri Lankan Tamils">Sri Lankan Tamils</a></li><li>Other <a href="/wiki/Dravidian_peoples" title="Dravidian peoples">Dravidians</a></li></ul></div> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p><b>Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka</b> are <a href="/wiki/Tamils" title="Tamils">Tamil people</a> of Indian origin in <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lanka" title="Sri Lanka">Sri Lanka</a>. They are also known as <b>Malayaga Tamilar</b>, <b>Hill Country Tamils</b>, <b>Up-Country Tamils</b> or simply <b>Indian Tamils</b>. They predominantly descend from workers sent during the <a href="/wiki/British_Raj" title="British Raj">British Raj</a> from <a href="/wiki/South_India" title="South India">Southern India</a> to Sri Lanka in the 19th and 20th centuries to work in <a href="/wiki/Coffee" title="Coffee">coffee</a>, <a href="/wiki/Tea" title="Tea">tea</a> and <a href="/wiki/Rubber" class="mw-redirect" title="Rubber">rubber</a> plantations. Some also migrated on their own as merchants and as other service providers. These <a href="/wiki/Tamil_language" title="Tamil language">Tamil</a> speakers mostly live in the central highlands, also known as the Malayakam or Hill Country, yet others are also found in major urban areas and in the <a href="/wiki/Northern_Province,_Sri_Lanka" title="Northern Province, Sri Lanka">Northern Province</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Although they are all termed as Tamils today, some have <a href="/wiki/Telugu_people" title="Telugu people">Telugu</a> and <a href="/wiki/Malayalee" class="mw-redirect" title="Malayalee">Malayalee</a> origins as well as diverse South Indian <a href="/wiki/Caste" title="Caste">caste</a> origins. They are instrumental in the plantation sector economy of Sri Lanka. In general, socio-economically their <a href="/wiki/Standard_of_living" title="Standard of living">standard of living</a> is below that of the national average and they are described as one of the poorest and most neglected groups in Sri Lanka.<sup id="cite_ref-veconomist_5-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-veconomist-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In 1964 a large percentage were repatriated to India, but left a considerable number as stateless people. By the 1990s most of these had been given Sri Lankan citizenship. Most are <a href="/wiki/Hindus" title="Hindus">Hindus</a> with a minority of <a href="/wiki/Christians" title="Christians">Christians</a> and <a href="/wiki/Muslims" title="Muslims">Muslims</a> amongst them. There are also a small minority followers of <a href="/wiki/Buddhism" title="Buddhism">Buddhism</a> among them. Politically they are supportive of <a href="/wiki/Trade_union" title="Trade union">trade union</a>-based political parties that have supported most of the ruling coalitions since the 1980s. </p><p>The Tamils in Sri Lanka can be divided into two groups, the <i><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Tamils" title="Sri Lankan Tamils">Sri Lankan Tamils</a></i>, who are native to the island of Sri Lanka and the <i>Indian Tamils</i> or <i>Hill Country Tamils</i>, who are descendants of <a href="/wiki/Indentured_servant" class="mw-redirect" title="Indentured servant">bonded labourers</a> sent from <a href="/wiki/Tamil_Nadu" title="Tamil Nadu">Tamil Nadu</a> to Sri Lanka in the 19th century to work in <a href="/wiki/Tea" title="Tea">tea</a> plantations.<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Many came as laborers to work in the plantations, but few of them came as business people. Most of the recruits came as they were recruited by the head man in their villages, mostly by high caste Tamils. </p><p><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Tamils" title="Sri Lankan Tamils">Sri Lankan Tamils</a> mostly live in the Northern and <a href="/wiki/Eastern_Province,_Sri_Lanka" title="Eastern Province, Sri Lanka">Eastern Provinces</a> and in the capital of <a href="/wiki/Colombo" title="Colombo">Colombo</a>, whereas Hill Country Tamils largely live in the central highlands.<sup id="cite_ref-ss_7-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-ss-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The Hill Country Tamils and Ceylon Tamils historically have seen themselves as separate communities, particularly due to the nativity of the island, and due to caste level differences as well.<sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In 1949, the <a href="/wiki/United_National_Party" title="United National Party">United National Party</a> (UNP) government stripped the <i>Indian Tamils</i> of their nationality, including their right to vote. Prominent Tamil political leaders such as <a href="/wiki/S._J._V._Chelvanayakam" title="S. J. V. Chelvanayakam">S. J. V. Chelvanayakam</a> and his Tamil opposition party opposed this move.<sup id="cite_ref-uthr1_9-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-uthr1-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Under an agreement between the Sri Lankan and Indian governments in the 1960s, around 40% of Hill Country Tamils were granted Sri Lankan nationality and many of the remainder were repatriated to India.<sup id="cite_ref-Silva,_C.R._p.262_10-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Silva,_C.R._p.262-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> However, the <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_civil_war" title="Sri Lankan civil war">ethnic conflict</a> has led to the growth of a greater sense of common Tamil identity, and the two groups are now more supportive of each other.<sup id="cite_ref-SN_11-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SN-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> By the 1990s most Indian Tamils had received Sri Lankan citizenship and some were not granted Sri Lankan citizenship until 2003, during the peace talks between the <a href="/wiki/Tamil_Tigers" class="mw-redirect" title="Tamil Tigers">Tamil Tigers</a> and the <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Government" class="mw-redirect" title="Sri Lankan Government">Sri Lankan Government</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-Silva,_C.R._p.262_10-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Silva,_C.R._p.262-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r886046785">.mw-parser-output .toclimit-2 .toclevel-1 ul,.mw-parser-output .toclimit-3 .toclevel-2 ul,.mw-parser-output .toclimit-4 .toclevel-3 ul,.mw-parser-output .toclimit-5 .toclevel-4 ul,.mw-parser-output .toclimit-6 .toclevel-5 ul,.mw-parser-output .toclimit-7 .toclevel-6 ul{display:none}</style><div class="toclimit-3"><meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="History">History</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: History"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Initial_recruitment">Initial recruitment</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: Initial recruitment"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Tamil_Woman_SriLanka_1907.JPG" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/Tamil_Woman_SriLanka_1907.JPG/150px-Tamil_Woman_SriLanka_1907.JPG" decoding="async" width="150" height="219" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/Tamil_Woman_SriLanka_1907.JPG/225px-Tamil_Woman_SriLanka_1907.JPG 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4e/Tamil_Woman_SriLanka_1907.JPG/300px-Tamil_Woman_SriLanka_1907.JPG 2x" data-file-width="469" data-file-height="686" /></a><figcaption>Indian Tamil worker at a tea plantation in Ceylon, <i>The National Geographic Magazine</i>, April 1907</figcaption></figure> <p>The Hill Country Tamils derive their origins from a <a href="/wiki/British_Empire" title="British Empire">British</a> <a href="/wiki/Colonialism" title="Colonialism">colonial</a> era project. According to Professor Bertram Bastianpillai, workers around the <a href="/wiki/Tamil_Nadu" title="Tamil Nadu">Tamil Nadu</a> cities of <a href="/wiki/Thirunelveli" class="mw-redirect" title="Thirunelveli">Thirunelveli</a>, <a href="/wiki/Tiruchi" class="mw-redirect" title="Tiruchi">Tiruchi</a>, <a href="/wiki/Madurai" title="Madurai">Madurai</a> and <a href="/wiki/Tanjore" class="mw-redirect" title="Tanjore">Tanjore</a> were recruited in 1827<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-13"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>13<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> by <a href="/wiki/Edward_Barnes_(British_Army_officer)" title="Edward Barnes (British Army officer)">Governor Sir Edward Barnes</a> on the request of <a href="/wiki/George_Bird_(coffee_planter)" title="George Bird (coffee planter)">George Bird</a>, a pioneering planter.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> There is also a trading community of Indian Tamils who were not part of the plantation economy.<sup id="cite_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> As soon as these migrant workers were brought to <a href="/wiki/Mannar,_Sri_Lanka" title="Mannar, Sri Lanka">Mannar</a>, the port at which they landed on their arrival by boat from South India, they were moved via <a href="/wiki/Kurunegala" title="Kurunegala">Kurunegala</a> to camps in the town of <a href="/wiki/Matale" title="Matale">Matale</a>. There they were <a href="/wiki/Quarantined" class="mw-redirect" title="Quarantined">quarantined</a> for a period of a week or more, examined for infectious diseases such as <a href="/wiki/Small_pox" class="mw-redirect" title="Small pox">small pox</a>, <a href="/wiki/Cholera" title="Cholera">cholera</a> or <a href="/wiki/Typhoid" class="mw-redirect" title="Typhoid">typhoid</a> and vaccinated against those diseases before they were sent to <a href="/wiki/Kandy" title="Kandy">Kandy</a>, from where they were dispersed to locations where they would either work on estates already established by a previous gang of workers or clear land to establish new ones. Many died during their first few months of employment.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> They were instrumental in the establishment of <a href="/wiki/Tea" title="Tea">tea</a>, <a href="/wiki/Rubber" class="mw-redirect" title="Rubber">rubber</a>, <a href="/wiki/Coffee" title="Coffee">coffee</a> and <a href="/wiki/Coconut" title="Coconut">coconut</a> plantations. They formed the bulk of the labour force of the plantation sector.<sup id="cite_ref-SN_11-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SN-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-VSS_16-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-VSS-16"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>16<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Community_development">Community development</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Community development"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:A_boy_from_Sri_Lanka_(Rule_of_thirds).jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/A_boy_from_Sri_Lanka_%28Rule_of_thirds%29.jpg/220px-A_boy_from_Sri_Lanka_%28Rule_of_thirds%29.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="303" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/A_boy_from_Sri_Lanka_%28Rule_of_thirds%29.jpg/330px-A_boy_from_Sri_Lanka_%28Rule_of_thirds%29.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/A_boy_from_Sri_Lanka_%28Rule_of_thirds%29.jpg/440px-A_boy_from_Sri_Lanka_%28Rule_of_thirds%29.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2080" data-file-height="2860" /></a><figcaption> A boy goes out from home through a newly paved concrete road near a tea plantation in <a href="/wiki/Walapane" title="Walapane">Walapane</a>.</figcaption></figure> <p>The community was a closed community confining themselves to the plantations, while actively contributed and contributes to the economic well-being of Sri Lanka but the socio-economic indicators of the community was among the worst in the country. The community in general was isolated, living in <a href="/wiki/Ghetto" title="Ghetto">ghettos</a> within the central region as well as linguistically isolated from the majority <a href="/wiki/Sinhalese_people" title="Sinhalese people">Sinhalese</a> villagers who live in the valleys. They were captive labour whose life in its entirety was decided by their employers. Any social relationships or cultural ties were only among themselves or with <a href="/wiki/South_India" title="South India">South India</a>. In the 1940s the <a href="/wiki/Trade_union" title="Trade union">trade union</a> movement had galvanized the plantation workers into a militant working class. They joined hands with the <a href="/wiki/Lanka_Sama_Samaja_Party" title="Lanka Sama Samaja Party">Lanka Sama Samaja</a> (or <a href="/wiki/Trotskyism" title="Trotskyism">Trotskyist</a>) Party, which carried the message of a working-class struggle for liberation from the exploitation by the mainly-British plantation companies. </p><p>Sri Lanka became independent in 1948 and the community believes that it became the first community marked out for discrimination by the new state of Ceylon in 1948. In the <a href="/wiki/1947_Sri_Lankan_parliamentary_election" class="mw-redirect" title="1947 Sri Lankan parliamentary election">elections to the first parliament</a> of Ceylon, seven Indian Tamil representatives were returned to Parliament. The plantation workers voted either for Indian Tamil candidates or for <a href="/wiki/Lanka_Sama_Samaja_Party" title="Lanka Sama Samaja Party">Lanka Sama Samaja Party</a> candidates. Dr. <a href="/wiki/N.M._Perera" class="mw-redirect" title="N.M. Perera">N.M. Perera</a> was the leader of the opposition in the first parliament and the Lanka Sama Samaja Party was the second largest party after the <a href="/wiki/United_National_Party" title="United National Party">United National Party</a> (UNP).<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Disenfranchisement">Disenfranchisement</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Disenfranchisement"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-03.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-03.jpg/220px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-03.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="147" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-03.jpg/330px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-03.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ec/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-03.jpg/440px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-03.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1536" data-file-height="1024" /></a><figcaption>Tea is one of the highest earners of <a href="/wiki/GNP" class="mw-redirect" title="GNP">GNP</a> of Sri Lanka</figcaption></figure> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">Main article: <a href="/wiki/Ceylon_Citizenship_Act" title="Ceylon Citizenship Act">Ceylon Citizenship Act</a></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/Soulbury_Commission" title="Soulbury Commission">Soulbury Commission</a> and <a href="/wiki/Donoughmore_Commission" title="Donoughmore Commission">Donoughmore Commission</a></div> <p>The first <a href="/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Prime Minister of Sri Lanka">prime minister</a>, <a href="/wiki/D.S._Senanayake" class="mw-redirect" title="D.S. Senanayake">D.S. Senanayake</a> of the conservative UNP, reacting to the possibilities of losing power to <a href="/wiki/Leftist" class="mw-redirect" title="Leftist">leftist</a> political parties, commenced the task of weakening the leftist parties and their associate organizations. Indian Tamil labour had overwhelmingly supported these organizations. According to opposition parties he was also influenced by segments of the majority <a href="/wiki/Sinhalese_people" title="Sinhalese people">Sinhalese</a> population who felt their voting strength was diluted due to Indian Tamils. He introduced the <i>Ceylon Citizenship Act of 1948</i>, the <i>Indian-Pakistani Citizenship Act of 1949</i> and amended the <i>Parliamentary Elections Act</i> and <a href="/wiki/Disfranchisement" title="Disfranchisement">disfranchised</a> the Indian Tamils along with many persons of Indian and <a href="/wiki/Pakistan" title="Pakistan">Pakistani</a> ancestry. As they had no means of electing anyone to the Parliament they ceased to be a concern of parliamentary politicians. The plantation workers were thus forgotten from 1948 to 1964. They were unable to profit by any progressive legislation. The housing, health and education of the plantation workers was neglected. <a href="/wiki/Infant_mortality" title="Infant mortality">Infant mortality</a> was highest in the country. Although since the introduction of <a href="/wiki/Universal_franchise" class="mw-redirect" title="Universal franchise">universal franchise</a> in 1931, strong traditions of social welfare in Sri Lanka have given the island very high indicators of physical well-being. Impressive national statistics tended to hide the existence of deprived pockets within the population and the most deprived population group has been the plantation labour, which had been economically, politically and socially deprived.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Donoughmore_Commission">Donoughmore Commission</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Donoughmore Commission"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div><p> The <a href="/wiki/Donoughmore_Commission" title="Donoughmore Commission">Donoughmore Commission</a> of 1928 recommended universal franchise, and this was also meant to include the plantation workers as well. Page 57 of the report proposed: <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1244412712">.mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 32px}.mw-parser-output .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;margin-top:0}@media(min-width:500px){.mw-parser-output .templatequotecite{padding-left:1.6em}}</style></p><blockquote class="templatequote"><p>In the first place we consider it very desirable that a qualification of five years residence in the Island (allowing the temporary absence not exceeding eight months in all during the five years period) should be introduced in order that the privilege of voting should be confined to those who have an abiding interest in the country or who may be regarded as permanently settled in the Island... this condition will be of particular importance in its application to the Indian immigrant population. Secondly, we consider that the registration of voters should not be compulsory or automatic but should be restricted to those who apply for it.</p></blockquote><p> However, the very concept of universal franchise was anathema to most of the political leaders of that era. <a href="/wiki/Ponnambalam_Ramanathan" title="Ponnambalam Ramanathan">Ponnambalam Ramanathan</a>, a highly respected leader, opposed universal franchise as he felt that the caste system was an integral part of the Hindu way of life,<sup id="cite_ref-jane_17-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-jane-17"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>17<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and led a delegation to <a href="/wiki/London" title="London">London</a> seeking to legally enshrine the caste hierarchy, and dethrone universal franchise. The Kandyan Sinhalese also objected to the enfranchisement of the Indian estate workers as they feared that their electoral base would be diluted by a large influx of Indian Tamil votes. They also argued that the tea estates were built on land confiscated by the British colonial government, and that the Kandyan peasants had been driven from their traditional lands and those injustices would be compounded if the Indian workers were legitimized. Governor Stanley, by an order in council introduced restrictions on the citizenship of Indian workers to make the Donoughmore proposals acceptable to the Ceylonese leaders. Thus the first state council of 1931, which consisted of many Tamil and Sinhalese members, agreed to not to enfranchise the majority of the Indian estate workers.<sup id="cite_ref-jane_17-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-jane-17"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>17<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup class="reference nowrap"><span title="Page / location: 36">: 36 </span></sup> </p><div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Soulbury_Commission">Soulbury Commission</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: Soulbury Commission"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>A decade later, the <a href="/wiki/Soulbury_Commission" title="Soulbury Commission">Soulbury Commission</a>, which paved the way for the independence of <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lanka" title="Sri Lanka">Ceylon</a> recognized the "anxieties arising out of the likelihood of large-scale enfranchisement of the Indian immigrants", The Commission, therefore, left the existing basis of franchise in Sri Lanka undisturbed.<sup id="cite_ref-18" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-18"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>18<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/D._S._Senanayake" title="D. S. Senanayake">D. S. Senanayake</a> had led the 1941 talks with Sir G. S. Bajpai of India and had reached agreement on modalities of repatriation and citizenship, although they were finally not ratified by Indian Prime Minister <a href="/wiki/Jawaharlal_Nehru" title="Jawaharlal Nehru">Jawaharlal Nehru</a>. D. S. Senanayake had expressed the wish to "embrace all Indian workers who integrate into the country as members of the Ceylonese nation", and had been relatively sympathetic, as early as 1928, and as late as 1941, to the granting of citizenship to Indian workers who wished to become permanent residents of the island. </p><p>The Soulbury constitution came into effect in 1946. In trying to cobble an all-party cabinet inclusive of the Tamils, led by <a href="/wiki/G._G._Ponnambalam" title="G. G. Ponnambalam">G. G. Ponnambalam</a>, the Sinhalese nationalist groups led by <a href="/wiki/Solomon_Bandaranaike" class="mw-redirect" title="Solomon Bandaranaike">S. W. R. D Bandaranaike</a>, the Kandyan Sinhalese, Senanayake had to find a compromise formula. The 1947 elections had returned six representatives from the Ceylon Indian Congress (CIC), based on the votes of the franchised Indian workers and Hill Country Tamils. Although this worried the Kandyans, the main reason for Senanayake and others to review their attitude to Indian workers was the growing threat of Marxist infiltration into estate trade unions. In this he had won the concurrence of G. G. Ponnambalam for the second citizenship act, which required ten years of residence in the island as a condition for becoming citizens of the new nation. Senanayake, who had been very favourable to easy citizenship for Indian workers had increasingly modified his views in the face of Marxist trade union activity. The Bracegirdle affair <sup id="cite_ref-kms_19-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-kms-19"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>19<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> was regarded as the harbinger of such dangers. The fear of left-wing politics began to grow in the minds of Sri Lankan politicians of the era. The colonial government responded to the agitation of the leftists by imprisoning <a href="/wiki/N._M._Perera" title="N. M. Perera">N. M. Perera</a>, <a href="/wiki/Colvin_R._de_Silva" title="Colvin R. de Silva">Colvin R. de Silva</a> and other left leaders. Anti Marxist feelings were shared by the mainstream Sinhalese and Tamil leaders alike. (,<sup id="cite_ref-kms_19-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-kms-19"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>19<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Ch. 36). The criticism in the house was levelled by Tamil members of the upper chamber (senate), like Senator Natesan, who pointed out that Senanayake had supported the franchise of the Indian Tamils till recently, and had "caved in" more recently. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Parliamentary_acts">Parliamentary acts</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Parliamentary acts"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>As the first <a href="/wiki/Prime_Minister_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Prime Minister of Sri Lanka">prime minister</a>, <a href="/wiki/D.S._Senanayake" class="mw-redirect" title="D.S. Senanayake">D.S. Senanayake</a>, leader of the UNP, feared the strong possibilities of <a href="/wiki/Marxist" class="mw-redirect" title="Marxist">Marxist</a> disruption of government and commenced the task of weakening the Marxist parties and their associate organizations. Thus the newly independent first cabinet introduced the Ceylon Citizenship Act of 1948, the Indian-Pakistani Citizenship act of 1949 and amended the parliamentary elections act. The requirements of "ten years of residence for married persons, and seven years for unmarried persons", stipulations in the 1949 act were in line with the legislation used by European nations at the time. It also allowed citizenship to “a person born in Ceylon prior to the date of the Act coming into force, of a father born in Ceylon”. However, this was in effect a continuation of the older, somewhat harsher <i>status quo</i> of the Indian workers in the 1930s, prior to the Donoughmore constitution, which called for only five years' residence. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Opposition_views">Opposition views</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Opposition views"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>However, Ponnambalam and Senanayake were strongly criticized by the Marxist groups as well as by the pro-Sri Lankan Tamil <a href="/wiki/Federal_Party_(Sri_Lanka)" class="mw-redirect" title="Federal Party (Sri Lanka)">Federal Party</a>, it branded Ponnambalam a "traitor", and Senanayake a "Sinhalese extremist". <a href="/wiki/S._J._V._Chelvanayakam" title="S. J. V. Chelvanayakam">S. J. V. Chelvanayakam</a>, the leader of the Tamil Arasu Katchi, contested the citizenship act before the Supreme Court, and then in the <a href="/wiki/Privy_Council" class="mw-redirect" title="Privy Council">Privy Council</a> in England, on grounds of discrimination towards minorities but the decision concluded that the citizenship act stipulated conditions well in line with those of European states.<sup id="cite_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-20"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>20<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> As the president of the Ceylon Indian Congress (CIC), <a href="/wiki/S._Thondaman" class="mw-redirect" title="S. Thondaman">S. Thondaman</a> had contested the Nuwara Eliya seat in the 1947 general election and won. His party put forward seven candidates in the plantation electorates and six of them were returned. Thus Thondaman became the spokesperson of the plantation workers. The CIC sat with the opposition, which included the Marxist parties. He opposed the 1948 citizenship act. Thondaman supported the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) in the 1960 elections; after the victory of the SLFP he was appointed to the House of Representatives as a nominated member of Parliament. However, he opposed the 1964 Sirima-Shastri Indo-Ceylon citizenship act. After the victory of the UNP in 1965, S. Thondaman was named as appointed member of Parliament by the UNP. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Final_rectification">Final rectification</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Final rectification"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The <a href="/wiki/Junius_Richard_Jayawardene" class="mw-redirect" title="Junius Richard Jayawardene">J.R.Jayawardene</a> government that came to power in 1977 rectified the existing shortcomings of the Indian citizenship act and granted citizenship to all Indian estate workers (see below). Even at that time, Thondaman was the leader of the <a href="/wiki/Ceylon_Workers_Congress" class="mw-redirect" title="Ceylon Workers Congress">Ceylon Workers Congress</a>, the party of the Hill Country Tamils, and had become a skilful player of minority-party politics. He had avoided joining with the <a href="/wiki/Tamil_United_Liberation_Front" title="Tamil United Liberation Front">Tamil United Liberation Front</a> (TULF) resolutions of 1974, which had continued with the policies of the ITAK. Thus the Hill Country Tamils had successfully charted a course of cooperating with successive Sri Lankan governments. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-09.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-09.jpg/220px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-09.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="147" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-09.jpg/330px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-09.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-09.jpg/440px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-09.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1536" data-file-height="1024" /></a><figcaption>Inside a Tea processing factory</figcaption></figure> <p>The <a href="/wiki/Sirima-Shastri_Pact" class="mw-redirect" title="Sirima-Shastri Pact">Sirima-Shastri Pact</a> of 1964 and Indira-Sirimavo supplementary agreement of 1974 paved the way for the repatriation of 600,000 persons of Indian origin to India. Another 375,000 persons were accepted as citizens of Sri Lanka, which made them enter the polity. These repatriation agreements were the harbingers of the destruction of this community, which had evolved into a composite group with a distinct culture of its own. In the 1950s and 1960s this community was clamouring for education and recognition of its distinctive culture. This brought in the emergence of a community consciousness and the artisan of a distinct community. An educated middle class made up of teachers, trade unionists and other professional began to make its appearance. There was a vigorous campaign for social amelioration and increased educational facilities.<sup class="noprint Inline-Template Template-Fact" style="white-space:nowrap;">[<i><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed"><span title="This claim needs references to reliable sources. (March 2016)">citation needed</span></a></i>]</sup> There was a growing spirit of resistance. People destroyed Indian passports and refused to go to India. Repatriation was resisted. International opinion was canvassed against deprivation of citizenship rights. The plantation people who were not prepared to leave, destitute, the land whose property they had built. They were prepared to fraternize within the Sinhalese and accept Sri Lankan leadership in the trade union movement. In the <a href="/wiki/1977_Sri_Lankan_parliamentary_election" title="1977 Sri Lankan parliamentary election">general election of 1977</a> they were able to elect 11 candidates. This helped the emergence of the plantation people as a political force, but they were faced with <a href="/wiki/Communal_violence" title="Communal violence">communal violence</a> in <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_riots_of_1977" class="mw-redirect" title="Sri Lankan riots of 1977">1977</a>, <a href="/wiki/Black_July" title="Black July">1983</a> and in 2000.<sup id="cite_ref-SN_11-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SN-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> In 1984–85, to stop India's intervention in Sri Lankan affairs, the UNP government granted citizenship right to all stateless persons. The late <a href="/wiki/Savumiamoorthy_Thondaman" title="Savumiamoorthy Thondaman">Savumiamoorthy Thondaman</a> was instrumental in using this electoral strength in improvement of the socioeconomic conditions of Hill Country Tamils.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The plight of the repatriated persons in India has not been good.<sup id="cite_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-21"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>21<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Society">Society</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: Society"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Demographics">Demographics</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: Demographics"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236656977">.mw-parser-output .abbr-header{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .caption-purple{border:1px #a2a9b1 solid;border-bottom:none;background-color:lavender}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .caption-purple{background:inherit!important}}.mw-parser-output .table-pale{border:1px #a2a9b1 solid;border-top:none;background-color:var(--background-color-neutral-subtle,#f8f9fa);padding:5px}@media screen and (max-width:640px){.mw-parser-output .table-pale{border-top:1px #a2a9b1 solid!important}.mw-parser-output .caption-purple{border:none}}</style><table class="table-pale" style="width:15em;border-top-width:0;border-spacing: 0;float:right;clear:right;margin:0.5em 0 1em 0.5em;"><caption class="caption-purple" style="padding:0.25em;font-weight:bold">Historical population</caption><tbody><tr style="font-size:95%"><th style="border-bottom:1px solid var(--color-base, #000000);padding:1px;width:3em">Year</th><th style="border-bottom:1px solid var(--color-base, #000000);padding:1px 2px;text-align:right"><abbr title="Population" class="abbr-header">Pop.</abbr></th><th style="border-bottom:1px solid var(--color-base, #000000);padding:1px;text-align:right"><abbr title="Percent change" class="abbr-header">±%</abbr></th></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">1911 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">531,000</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">—    </td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">1921 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">602,700</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">+13.5%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">1931 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">818,500</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">+35.8%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">1946 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">780,600</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">−4.6%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px;border-bottom:1px solid #bbbbbb">1953 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px;border-bottom:1px solid #bbbbbb">974,100</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px;border-bottom:1px solid #bbbbbb">+24.8%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">1963 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">1,123,000</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">+15.3%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">1971 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">1,174,900</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">+4.6%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">1981 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">818,700</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">−30.3%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">1989 (est.) </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">873,000</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">+6.6%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px;border-bottom:1px solid #bbbbbb">2001 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px;border-bottom:1px solid #bbbbbb">855,000</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px;border-bottom:1px solid #bbbbbb">−2.1%</td></tr><tr><th style="text-align:center;padding:1px">2011 </th><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">842,323</td><td style="text-align:right;padding:1px">−1.5%</td></tr><tr><td colspan="3" style="border-top:1px solid var(--color-base, #000000);font-size:85%;text-align:left">Source:<a href="/w/index.php?title=Department_of_Census_%26_Statistics,_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka (page does not exist)">Department of Census<br />& Statistics</a><sup id="cite_ref-22" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-22"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>22<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><br />Data is based on <br /><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Government" class="mw-redirect" title="Sri Lankan Government">Sri Lankan Government</a> Census.</td></tr></tbody></table> <p><a href="/wiki/Census" title="Census">Census</a> operations started in Sri Lanka in 1871. The Census of 1871, 1881, 1891 and 1901 had lumped together Sri Lankan Tamils and Indian Tamils. Since 1911, Indian Tamils have been shown as a separate category. The population statistics are revealing. In 1911, Indian Tamils constituted 12.9 per cent of the population, whereas Sri Lankan Tamils formed 12.8 per cent; in 1921, 13.4 per cent and 11.5 per cent; in 1931, 15.2 and 11.3; in 1946, 11.7 and 11.0; in 1953, 12.0 and 10.9; in 1963, 10.6 and 11.0; in 1971, 11.6 and 11.2; and in 1981, 5.5 per cent and 12.7 per cent respectively.<sup id="cite_ref-SN_11-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SN-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The statistics reveal a more than 50 per cent fall in the Indian Tamil population between 1971 and 1981. The main reason for the fall was the repatriation of Indian citizens to India. Another fact is that many Indian Tamils, after acquiring Sri Lankan citizenship, declared themselves as Sri Lankan Tamils. Some Tamils who migrated to urban areas and also to the north and the east also followed this same example.<sup id="cite_ref-SN_11-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-SN-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Language">Language</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=12" title="Edit section: Language"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/Languages_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Languages of Sri Lanka">Languages of Sri Lanka</a></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Distribution_of_Languages_and_Religious_groups_of_Sri_Lanka_1981.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Distribution_of_Languages_and_Religious_groups_of_Sri_Lanka_1981.jpg/220px-Distribution_of_Languages_and_Religious_groups_of_Sri_Lanka_1981.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="377" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Distribution_of_Languages_and_Religious_groups_of_Sri_Lanka_1981.jpg/330px-Distribution_of_Languages_and_Religious_groups_of_Sri_Lanka_1981.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c4/Distribution_of_Languages_and_Religious_groups_of_Sri_Lanka_1981.jpg/440px-Distribution_of_Languages_and_Religious_groups_of_Sri_Lanka_1981.jpg 2x" data-file-width="3500" data-file-height="6000" /></a><figcaption>Distribution of languages and religious groups of Sri Lanka on D.S. division and sector level according to the 1981 Census of Population and Housing</figcaption></figure> <p>Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka predominantly speak <a href="/wiki/Tamil_language" title="Tamil language">Tamil</a>, however depending on where they live in the country, they may also additionally speak <a href="/wiki/Sinhala_language" title="Sinhala language">Sinhala</a> and or <a href="/wiki/English_language" title="English language">English</a>. According to the 2012 Census 61.5% or 412,685 Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka also spoke Sinhala and 13.0% or 87,435 Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka also spoke English.<sup id="cite_ref-Census2012_23-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Census2012-23"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>23<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Social_structure">Social structure</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=13" title="Edit section: Social structure"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/Caste_system_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Caste system in Sri Lanka">Caste system in Sri Lanka</a></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-05.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-05.jpg/220px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-05.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="147" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-05.jpg/330px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-05.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-05.jpg/440px-Sri_Lanka-Tea_plantation-05.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1536" data-file-height="1024" /></a><figcaption>Typical line housing of estate workers</figcaption></figure> <p>The social structure of the <a href="/wiki/Plantation" title="Plantation">plantations</a> resembles the South Indian rural social structure. The community is generally bound by the <a href="/wiki/Caste" title="Caste">caste</a> system. In a plantation, the tea factory is the centre of activities and it stands in the central part of the plantation. The office adjoins this and these are surrounded by the quarters of the staff members such as clerks, tea makers, conductors, petty accountants or <i>kanakkupillais</i>, and supervisors. The <a href="/wiki/Bungalow" title="Bungalow">bungalows</a> of the planter and his assistants are in an isolated areas. These will be in close proximity to the office. The dwellings of the workers called <i>line rooms</i> are situated a little further away from the factories.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Those who are considered to be of higher castes occupy the first row of line rooms. They perform respectable jobs such as factory work and grinding of tea as minor labour work. Even though they belong to the labour category they are influential among conductors, tea makers, <i>kanganies</i> (or supervisors) and other officials. The workers considered low caste live in the dwellings that are away from the centre and these dwellings are called <i>distant</i> or <i>lower lines</i>. This group consists of <a href="/wiki/Pallar" title="Pallar">Pallar</a>, <a href="/wiki/Paraiyar" title="Paraiyar">Paraiyars</a>, <a href="/wiki/Sakkiliar" class="mw-redirect" title="Sakkiliar">Sakkiliar</a>, washers and barbers. The yard sweepers and changers of clothes are in the lowest rank.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Customs">Customs</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=14" title="Edit section: Customs"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>These groups follow the customs, traditions, and festivities of their South Indian Tamil <a href="/wiki/Ancestor" title="Ancestor">ancestors</a>. The traditional musical instruments such as <i><a href="/wiki/Thappu" class="mw-redirect" title="Thappu">thappu</a></i> and <i>parai</i> are used and folk dances such as the <i><a href="/wiki/Kavadi" class="mw-redirect" title="Kavadi">kavadi</a></i>, <i><a href="/wiki/Kummi" title="Kummi">kummi</a></i> and <i><a href="/w/index.php?title=Karaga_attam&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Karaga attam (page does not exist)">karaga attam</a></i> are performed. Folk dramas called <i><a href="/wiki/Koothu" title="Koothu">koothu</a></i> in their various forms such as <i>ponnar koothu</i>, <i>sangaran koothu</i>, <i>arujunan thabas</i> and <i>kaman koothu</i> are still prevalent among them along with <i>silambadi</i> as an important feature.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="Religion">Religion</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=15" title="Edit section: Religion"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236090951"><div role="note" class="hatnote navigation-not-searchable">See also: <a href="/wiki/Hinduism_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Hinduism in Sri Lanka">Hinduism in Sri Lanka</a> and <a href="/wiki/Village_deities_of_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka" class="mw-redirect" title="Village deities of Tamils of Sri Lanka">Village deities of Tamils of Sri Lanka</a></div> <figure class="mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Hanuman_temple_Nurawa_Eliya.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Hanuman_temple_Nurawa_Eliya.jpg/250px-Hanuman_temple_Nurawa_Eliya.jpg" decoding="async" width="250" height="164" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Hanuman_temple_Nurawa_Eliya.jpg/375px-Hanuman_temple_Nurawa_Eliya.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Hanuman_temple_Nurawa_Eliya.jpg 2x" data-file-width="400" data-file-height="263" /></a><figcaption>A temple to <a href="/wiki/Hanuman" title="Hanuman">Hanuman</a> near <a href="/wiki/Nuwara_Eliya" title="Nuwara Eliya">Nuwara Eliya</a></figcaption></figure> <p>In general they use <a href="/wiki/Hindu" class="mw-redirect" title="Hindu">Hindu</a> beliefs to guide their day-to-day lives. There are number of temples and places of worship for <a href="/wiki/Deities" class="mw-redirect" title="Deities">deities</a> on estates and in villages, towns and other places within Sri Lanka to which they have migrated. When a place is decided to be settled, the settlers would institute, under a <a href="/wiki/Banyan" title="Banyan">banyan</a> or <a href="/wiki/Sacred_fig" class="mw-redirect" title="Sacred fig">bo</a> tree, a triangular shaped stone or figure of a deity, plant a weapon of a popularly worshipped god such as a spear, trident or sword and worshipped these. The main deities worshipped are, in order of popularity, the goddess <a href="/wiki/Mariamman" title="Mariamman">Mariamman</a>, <a href="/wiki/Murugan" class="mw-redirect" title="Murugan">Murugan</a> and his consorts, <a href="/wiki/Valli" title="Valli">Valli</a> and Theivanai, <a href="/wiki/Pillayar" class="mw-redirect" title="Pillayar">Pillayar</a>, <a href="/wiki/Shiva" title="Shiva">Siva</a>, <a href="/wiki/Parvathi" class="mw-redirect" title="Parvathi">Parvathi</a>, <a href="/wiki/Vishnu" title="Vishnu">Vishnu</a> and <a href="/wiki/Laxmi" class="mw-redirect" title="Laxmi">Laxmi</a>, and the goddess of wisdom <a href="/wiki/Saraswati" title="Saraswati">Saraswati</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In 1981 about 90 percent of the Indian Tamils were Hindus.<sup id="cite_ref-RR_24-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-RR-24"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>24<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> They have little contact with <a href="/wiki/Buddhism" title="Buddhism">Buddhism</a>, and they worship the Hindu pantheon of gods. Their religious myths, stories of <a href="/wiki/Saints" class="mw-redirect" title="Saints">saints</a>, literature, and <a href="/wiki/Rituals" class="mw-redirect" title="Rituals">rituals</a> are distinct from the cultural sources of the Sinhalese. Furthermore, a minority of the Indian Tamils- 7.6 percent are converts to <a href="/wiki/Christianity" title="Christianity">Christianity</a>, with their own places of worship and separate cultural lives. In this way, the large Tamil minority in Sri Lanka is effectively separated from the mainstream Sinhalese culture and is fragmented into two major groups with their own Christian minorities.<sup id="cite_ref-RR_24-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-RR-24"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>24<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The first known temple was built in Matale. It began as a stone an icon of the goddess <a href="/wiki/Mariamman" title="Mariamman">Mariamman</a>. At this very location where the worship of her began in 1820, the now-famous Matale Sri Muthumariamman Temple was built in 1852. The trading community of the <a href="/wiki/Nagarathar" title="Nagarathar">Nattukotai Chettiars</a> introduced the worship of Murugan in his form as Lord Kathiresan at Matale and was to subsequently build the Kathiresan temple at Matale. The annual festival of this temple is celebrated in the month of July. Devotees of the plantation sector walk from the tea estates and hometowns they live in to <a href="/wiki/Katirkamam_(Hindu_temple)" class="mw-redirect" title="Katirkamam (Hindu temple)">Kathirkamam</a>, a place considered sacred by both Buddhists and Hindus, in the South of Sri Lanka, where Murugan is worshipped in the form of Skanda.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> <a href="/wiki/Deepavali" class="mw-redirect" title="Deepavali">Deepavali</a>, <a href="/wiki/Pongal_(festival)" title="Pongal (festival)">Pongal</a> and <a href="/wiki/Tamil_calendar" title="Tamil calendar">Tamil New Year</a> are commonly celebrated as festivals. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Folk_deities">Folk deities</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=16" title="Edit section: Folk deities"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Each caste has its own deity based on caste predecessors and are worshipped as guardian angels, such as the <a href="/wiki/Kallar_(caste)" title="Kallar (caste)">Kallar</a> caste had Nallananpillai Perumal as their guardian angel to whom vows and sacrifices are made. Deities such as Madasamy, <a href="/wiki/Muniandi" title="Muniandi">Muniandi</a>, <a href="/wiki/Kali" title="Kali">Kali</a>, <a href="/wiki/Madurai_Veeran_(Hinduism)" class="mw-redirect" title="Madurai Veeran (Hinduism)">Madurai Veeran</a>, Sangili Karuppan, Vaalraja, <a href="/wiki/Bhairava" title="Bhairava">Vairavar</a>, Veerabathran, <a href="/wiki/Sudalai_Madan" title="Sudalai Madan">Sudalai Madan</a>, and Roda Mini are also worshipped.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading4"><h4 id="Temple_societies">Temple societies</h4><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=17" title="Edit section: Temple societies"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>There were 104 registered Hindu temples in the <a href="/wiki/Nuwara_Eliya" title="Nuwara Eliya">Nuwara Eliya</a> District, 153 in Kandy region and 62 in Matale in 2001. Religious schools or <i>araa nerri padasaligal</i> are conducted throughout the <a href="/wiki/Central_Province,_Sri_Lanka" title="Central Province, Sri Lanka">Central Province</a> and registered schools of such nature are, Nuwara Eliya 22, Kandy 54 and Matale 11. A considerable number of Hindu associations and institutions have been established and are functioning actively. There is a serious effort at conversions to other religions as well. Many have converted to <a href="/wiki/Christianity" title="Christianity">Christianity</a> and <a href="/wiki/Islam" title="Islam">Islam</a>. Hindu organizations such as the <a href="/wiki/Vishva_Hindu_Parishad" title="Vishva Hindu Parishad">Vishva Hindu Parishad</a> try to stem the tide of conversions.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Labour_practices">Labour practices</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=18" title="Edit section: Labour practices"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Recolectores_de_te3.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Recolectores_de_te3.jpg/220px-Recolectores_de_te3.jpg" decoding="async" width="220" height="165" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Recolectores_de_te3.jpg/330px-Recolectores_de_te3.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/64/Recolectores_de_te3.jpg/440px-Recolectores_de_te3.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1600" data-file-height="1200" /></a><figcaption>Manual tea plucking in Sri Lanka.</figcaption></figure> <p>Based on the cultivation of cash crops, labour is the dominant sector in the country's economy. It is a major earner of foreign exchange and the largest employer. Cheap labour is one of the essential ingredients of its success. Hence these immigrants were bonded and underpaid. In 1921 workers were empowered to break these bonds of indebtedness tying them to the estates. The minimum wages ordinance was extended to plantation labour in 1927 marginally raising the wages that had not changed since the 19th century. This daily wages was 41 Cts. in 1933. Owing to trade union activities it was raised to Rs 17/83 in 1983, Rs 72/24 in 1993 and became Rs 101 in 1998. The wages of female workers was less than males but has been equalized since 1984. Even though there was an increase in wages, the living wages are not sufficient to meet their day-to-day needs. The plantations were nationalized under the 1972 land reform law and its 1975 amendment. The state owned plantations are managed by the Sri Lanka Plantation Corporation and the Janatha Estate Development Board. The nationalization did not result in any basic change on the plantation sector. The state has been forced to take a greater interest in the health, housing and general well-being of the labourers. Hence estate schools were nationalized and brought into the general educational system. With the grant of the <a href="/wiki/Swedish_International_Development_Agency" class="mw-redirect" title="Swedish International Development Agency">Swedish International Development Agency</a> (SIDA), many schools were built. This helped the slight growth of <a href="/wiki/Literacy_rates" class="mw-redirect" title="Literacy rates">literacy rates</a>. With the increased unemployment, plantation sector youths looked for other avenues. A considerable number of Indian Tamil girls are employed in garment factories. Some work in the <a href="/wiki/Middle_East" title="Middle East">Middle East</a> as housemaids. There is net migration towards urban areas as well as foreign countries. Prior to the commencement of the <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_civil_war" title="Sri Lankan civil war">Sri Lankan civil war</a> many had migrated to the Northern Province.<sup id="cite_ref-R_14-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-R-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-25" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-25"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>25<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> Now the plantation communities have the Plantation Human Development Trust, developed to protect their rights and ensure adequate facilities are provided such as crèches and toilets. Other NGOs work towards the development of the plantation communities such as <a href="/wiki/Shining_Life_Children%27s_Trust" title="Shining Life Children's Trust">Shining Life Children's Trust</a> and Hanguranketha Women's Foundation. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Prominent_people">Prominent people</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=19" title="Edit section: Prominent people"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-right" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Murali.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Murali.jpg" decoding="async" width="192" height="210" class="mw-file-element" data-file-width="192" data-file-height="210" /></a><figcaption><a href="/wiki/Muttiah_Muralitharan" title="Muttiah Muralitharan">Muttiah Muralitharan</a>, greatest spin bowler in history, is of Indian Tamil descent</figcaption></figure> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Muttiah_Muralitharan" title="Muttiah Muralitharan">Muttiah Muralitharan</a> – <a href="/wiki/Sri_Lanka_national_cricket_team" title="Sri Lanka national cricket team">Sri Lanka international</a> <a href="/wiki/Spin_bowling#Techniques" title="Spin bowling">spin bowler</a>; world record holder for most <a href="/wiki/Wicket_(dismisal)" class="mw-redirect" title="Wicket (dismisal)">wickets</a> taken in both <a href="/wiki/Test_cricket" title="Test cricket">Test cricket</a> and <a href="/wiki/One_Day_International" title="One Day International">ODI's</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Savumiamoorthy_Thondaman" title="Savumiamoorthy Thondaman">Savumiamoorthy Thondaman</a> – Post-independence politician</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mano_Ganesan" title="Mano Ganesan">Mano Ganesan</a> – Prominent <a href="/wiki/Human_rights" title="Human rights">human rights</a> activist, trade unionist and politician</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Arumugan_Thondaman" class="mw-redirect" title="Arumugan Thondaman">Arumugan Thondaman</a> – Sri Lankan politician</li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=20" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Tamils_in_India" title="Sri Lankan Tamils in India">Sri Lankan Tamils in India</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Colombo_Chetties" class="mw-redirect" title="Colombo Chetties">Colombo Chetties</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bharatakula" class="mw-redirect" title="Bharatakula">Bharatakula</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/South_Indian_Immigration_towards_Sri_Lanka" class="mw-redirect" title="South Indian Immigration towards Sri Lanka">South Indian Immigration towards Sri Lanka</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=21" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap mw-references-columns"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-1">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output 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Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-03-05</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=V.+Suryanarayan&rft.atitle=In+search+of+a+new+identity.&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flonnet.com%2Ffl1816%2F18160950.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-12">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFKingsburyKingsbury2012" class="citation book cs1">Kingsbury, Damien; Kingsbury, Senior Lecturer in International Development Damien (2012-03-12). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=OhupAgAAQBAJ"><i>Sri Lanka and the Responsibility to Protect: Politics, Ethnicity and Genocide</i></a>. 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Retrieved <span class="nowrap">14 November</span> 2018</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=www.statistics.gov.lk&rft.atitle=Census+of+Population+and+Housing+2011&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.statistics.gov.lk%2FPopHouSat%2FCPH2011%2Findex.php%3FfileName%3DFinalPopulation%26gp%3DActivities%26tpl%3D3&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-RR-24"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-RR_24-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-RR_24-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/lktoc.html">"Sri Lanka:Country study"</a>. <i>Russell Ross</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. 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Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-02-20</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Noel+S+Nadesan&rft.atitle=Indian+Tamils+and+Plantation+economy+of+Sri+Lanka&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.uthayam.net%2Farticles%2Findiantamil.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> </ol></div></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Further_reading">Further reading</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=22" title="Edit section: Further reading"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li>de Silva, C.R. (1987, 2nd ed. 1997). <i>Sri Lanka – A History</i>, New Delhi, Vikas Publishing House. <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/81-259-0461-1" title="Special:BookSources/81-259-0461-1">81-259-0461-1</a></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFde_Silva2005" class="citation book cs1">de Silva, K. M. (2005). <i>A History of Sri Lanka</i>. <a href="/wiki/Colombo" title="Colombo">Colombo</a>: Vijitha Yapa. p. 782. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/955-8095-92-3" title="Special:BookSources/955-8095-92-3"><bdi>955-8095-92-3</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=A+History+of+Sri+Lanka&rft.place=Colombo&rft.pages=782&rft.pub=Vijitha+Yapa&rft.date=2005&rft.isbn=955-8095-92-3&rft.aulast=de+Silva&rft.aufirst=K.+M.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFRoss1988" class="citation book cs1">Ross, Russell (1988). <i>Sri Lanka: A Country Study</i>. United States: U.S. Library of Congress.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Sri+Lanka%3A+A+Country+Study&rft.place=United+States&rft.pub=U.S.+Library+of+Congress&rft.date=1988&rft.aulast=Ross&rft.aufirst=Russell&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFKartikecu1995" class="citation book cs1">Kartikecu, Civattampi (1995). <i>Sri Lankan Tamil society and politics</i>. New Century Book House. p. 189. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/81-234-0395-X" title="Special:BookSources/81-234-0395-X"><bdi>81-234-0395-X</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Sri+Lankan+Tamil+society+and+politics&rft.pages=189&rft.pub=New+Century+Book+House&rft.date=1995&rft.isbn=81-234-0395-X&rft.aulast=Kartikecu&rft.aufirst=Civattampi&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFRadhakrishnan" class="citation conference cs1">Radhakrishnan, V. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080320050247/http://www.iccsus.org/IstConf/111.html">"Indian origin in Sri Lanka:Their plight and struggle for survival"</a>. <i>Proceedings of First International Conference & Gathering of Elders</i>. International Center for Cultural Studies, USA. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.iccsus.org/IstConf/111.html">the original</a> on 2008-03-20<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2008-01-23</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=conference&rft.atitle=Indian+origin+in+Sri+Lanka%3ATheir+plight+and+struggle+for+survival&rft.btitle=Proceedings+of+First+International+Conference+%26+Gathering+of+Elders&rft.pub=International+Center+for+Cultural+Studies%2C+USA&rft.aulast=Radhakrishnan&rft.aufirst=V&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.iccsus.org%2FIstConf%2F111.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFSuryanarayan2001" class="citation news cs1">Suryanarayan, V (2001-07-17). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20080529221016/http://www.flonnet.com/fl1816/18160950.htm">"Sri Lanka: In search of a new identity"</a>. Frontline. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.flonnet.com/fl1816/18160950.htm">the original</a> on 2008-05-29<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">2007-01-24</span></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Sri+Lanka%3A+In+search+of+a+new+identity&rft.date=2001-07-17&rft.aulast=Suryanarayan&rft.aufirst=V&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flonnet.com%2Ffl1816%2F18160950.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li>Indrapala, K (2007). <i>The evolution of an ethnic identity: The Tamils of Sri Lanka</i>. Colombo:Vijitha Yapa. <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-955-1266-72-1" title="Special:BookSources/978-955-1266-72-1">978-955-1266-72-1</a>.</li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFNadarajan1999" class="citation book cs1">Nadarajan, Vasantha (1999). <i>History of Ceylon Tamils</i>. <a href="/wiki/Toronto" title="Toronto">Toronto</a>: Vasantham. p. 146.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=History+of+Ceylon+Tamils&rft.place=Toronto&rft.pages=146&rft.pub=Vasantham&rft.date=1999&rft.aulast=Nadarajan&rft.aufirst=Vasantha&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFSpencer1990" class="citation book cs1">Spencer, Jonathan (1990). <i>Sri Lanka: History and the Roots of Conflict</i>. Routledge. p. 253. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-415-04461-8" title="Special:BookSources/0-415-04461-8"><bdi>0-415-04461-8</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Sri+Lanka%3A+History+and+the+Roots+of+Conflict&rft.pages=253&rft.pub=Routledge&rft.date=1990&rft.isbn=0-415-04461-8&rft.aulast=Spencer&rft.aufirst=Jonathan&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></li> <li><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFMuthiah2003" class="citation book cs1">Muthiah, Subbiah. (2003). <i>The Indo-Lankans: Their 200-Year Saga</i>. Indian Heritage Foundation. p. 317. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/955-8790-00-1" title="Special:BookSources/955-8790-00-1"><bdi>955-8790-00-1</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Indo-Lankans%3A+Their+200-Year+Saga&rft.pages=317&rft.pub=Indian+Heritage+Foundation&rft.date=2003&rft.isbn=955-8790-00-1&rft.aulast=Muthiah&rft.aufirst=Subbiah.&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AIndian+Tamils+of+Sri+Lanka" class="Z3988"></span></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Indian_Tamils_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&section=23" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><span 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href="/wiki/Tamil_Seychellois" title="Tamil Seychellois">Tamil</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Tanzania" title="Indians in Tanzania">Tanzania</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Uganda" title="Indians in Uganda">Uganda</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Zambia" title="Indians in Zambia">Zambia</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Elsewhere</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Botswana" title="Indians in Botswana">Botswana</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Egypt" title="Indians in Egypt">Egypt</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ghanaian_Indian" title="Ghanaian Indian">Ghana</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_South_Africans" title="Indian South Africans">South Africa</a> (<a href="/wiki/Tamil_South_Africans" title="Tamil South Africans">Tamil</a>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Zimbabwe" title="Indians in Zimbabwe">Zimbabwe</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Americas</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0;padding:0.30em 0; line-height:1.4em;"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"></div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Indo-Caribbean_people" title="Indo-Caribbean people">Caribbean</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Barbados" title="Indians in Barbados">Barbados</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Belizeans" title="Indo-Belizeans">Belize</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_the_Dominican_Republic" title="Indians in the Dominican Republic">Dominican Republic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Grenadians" title="Indo-Grenadians">Grenada</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Guadeloupeans" title="Indo-Guadeloupeans">Guadeloupe</a><sup><small>2</small></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Guyanese" title="Indo-Guyanese">Guyana</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Haitians" title="Indo-Haitians">Haiti</a> (<a href="/wiki/Marabou_(ethnicity)" title="Marabou (ethnicity)">Marabou</a>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Jamaicans" title="Indo-Jamaicans">Jamaica</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Martiniquais" title="Indo-Martiniquais">Martinique</a><sup><small>2</small></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Saint_Kitts_and_Nevis" title="Indians in Saint Kitts and Nevis">Saint Kitts and Nevis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Saint_Lucian" class="mw-redirect" title="Indo-Saint Lucian">Saint Lucia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Vincentian" title="Indo-Vincentian">Saint Vincent and the Grenadines</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Surinamese" title="Indo-Surinamese">Suriname</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo%E2%80%93Trinidadians_and_Tobagonians" title="Indo–Trinidadians and Tobagonians">Trinidad and Tobago</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_the_United_States_Virgin_Islands" title="Indians in the United States Virgin Islands">U.S. Virgin Islands</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Latin America</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Argentina" title="Indians in Argentina">Argentina</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_immigration_to_Brazil" title="Indian immigration to Brazil">Brazil</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Chile" title="Indians in Chile">Chile</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_French_Guiana" title="Indians in French Guiana">French Guiana</a><sup><small>2</small></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Mexicans" title="Indian Mexicans">Mexico</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Panama" title="Indians in Panama">Panama</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Peru" title="Indians in Peru">Peru</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Uruguayans" title="Indian Uruguayans">Uruguay</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Venezuela" title="Indians in Venezuela">Venezuela</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Anglo-America</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Canadians" class="mw-redirect" title="Indo-Canadians">Canada</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Anglo-Indian_Canadians" title="Anglo-Indian Canadians">Anglo-Indian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Punjabi_Canadians" title="Punjabi Canadians">Punjabi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sindhi_Canadians" title="Sindhi Canadians">Sindhi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tamil_Canadians" title="Tamil Canadians">Tamil</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/South_Asian_Canadians_in_British_Columbia" title="South Asian Canadians in British Columbia">British Columbia</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/South_Asian_Canadians_in_Greater_Vancouver" title="South Asian Canadians in Greater Vancouver">Vancouver</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/South_Asian_Canadians_in_the_Greater_Toronto_Area" title="South Asian Canadians in the Greater Toronto Area">Toronto</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Americans" title="Indian Americans">United States</a> <ul><li><i><a href="/wiki/Template:Indian_Americans_by_location" title="Template:Indian Americans by location">by location</a></i></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bengali_Americans" title="Bengali Americans">Bengali</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Caribbean_Americans" title="Indo-Caribbean Americans">Indo-Caribbean</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gujarati_Americans" title="Gujarati Americans">Gujarati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Punjabi_Americans" title="Punjabi Americans">Punjabi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Punjabi_Mexican_Americans" title="Punjabi Mexican Americans">Punjabi Mexican</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sindhi_Americans" title="Sindhi Americans">Sindhi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tamil_Americans" title="Tamil Americans">Tamil</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Telugu_Americans" title="Telugu Americans">Telugu</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Asia</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0;padding:0.30em 0; line-height:1.4em;"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"></div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">South</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Afghanistan" title="Indians in Afghanistan">Afghanistan</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Punjabis_in_Afghanistan" title="Punjabis in Afghanistan">Punjabi</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Bangladesh" title="Indians in Bangladesh">Bangladesh</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_the_Maldives" title="Indians in the Maldives">Maldives</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Nepalis" title="Indian Nepalis">Nepal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Pakistan" title="Indians in Pakistan">Pakistan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Indians in Sri Lanka">Sri Lanka</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Bharatha_people" title="Bharatha people">Bharatha</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Chetties" title="Sri Lankan Chetties">Chetty</a></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Tamil</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Telugus" title="Sri Lankan Telugus">Telugu</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Southeast</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Brunei" title="Indians in Brunei">Brunei</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Cambodia" title="Indians in Cambodia">Cambodia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Indonesians" title="Indian Indonesians">Indonesia</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Klingalese" title="Klingalese">Klingalese</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mardijker_people" title="Mardijker people">Mardijker</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tamil_Indonesians" title="Tamil Indonesians">Tamil</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Malaysian_Indians" title="Malaysian Indians">Malaysia</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Chitty" title="Chitty">Chitty</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Malaysian_Gujaratis" title="Malaysian Gujaratis">Gujarati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jawi_Peranakan" title="Jawi Peranakan">Jawi Peranakan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Malaysian_Malayalees" title="Malaysian Malayalees">Malayali</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Punjabi_Malaysians" title="Punjabi Malaysians">Punjabi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tamil_Malaysians" title="Tamil Malaysians">Tamil</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Malaysian_Telugus" title="Malaysian Telugus">Telugu</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Malaysians_of_Indian_descent_in_Penang" title="Malaysians of Indian descent in Penang">Penang</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Malaysians_of_Indian_descent_in_Sabah" title="Malaysians of Indian descent in Sabah">Sabah</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Malaysians_of_Indian_descent_in_Sarawak" title="Malaysians of Indian descent in Sarawak">Sarawak</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Burmese_Indians" title="Burmese Indians">Myanmar</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Mizo_people_in_Myanmar" title="Mizo people in Myanmar">Mizo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Myanmar_Tamils" title="Myanmar Tamils">Tamil</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Filipino" title="Indian Filipino">Philippines</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Singaporeans" title="Indian Singaporeans">Singapore</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Chitty" title="Chitty">Chitty</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Singapore_Tamils" title="Singapore Tamils">Tamil</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Thailand" title="Indians in Thailand">Thailand</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Vietnam" title="Indians in Vietnam">Vietnam</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">East</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_China" title="Indians in China">China</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/South_Asians_in_Hong_Kong" title="South Asians in Hong Kong">Hong Kong</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Japan" title="Indians in Japan">Japan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Korea" title="Indians in Korea">Korea</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Taiwan" title="Indians in Taiwan">Taiwan</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">West</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Bahrain" title="Indians in Bahrain">Bahrain</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Iran" title="Indians in Iran">Iran</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Israel" title="Indians in Israel">Israel</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Jews_in_Israel" title="Indian Jews in Israel">Jews</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Kuwait" title="Indians in Kuwait">Kuwait</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Lebanon" title="Indians in Lebanon">Lebanon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Oman" title="Indians in Oman">Oman</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Qatar" title="Indians in Qatar">Qatar</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Non-Resident_Indians_in_Saudi_Arabia" title="Non-Resident Indians in Saudi Arabia">Saudi Arabia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Turkey" title="Indians in Turkey">Turkey</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_the_United_Arab_Emirates" title="Indians in the United Arab Emirates">United Arab Emirates</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Europe</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0;padding:0.30em 0; line-height:1.4em;"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"></div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Eastern</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Poland" title="Indians in Poland">Poland</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Russia" title="Indians in Russia">Russia</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Northern</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Finland" title="Indians in Finland">Finland</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Sweden" title="Indians in Sweden">Sweden</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Southern</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Cyprus" title="Indians in Cyprus">Cyprus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Italy" title="Indians in Italy">Italy</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Tamils_in_Italy" title="Tamils in Italy">Tamil</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Maltese" title="Indian Maltese">Malta</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Portugal" title="Indians in Portugal">Portugal</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Spain" title="Indians in Spain">Spain</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Western</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_France" title="Indians in France">France</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Tamils_in_France" title="Tamils in France">Tamil</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Germany" title="Indians in Germany">Germany</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Tamil_Germans" title="Tamil Germans">Tamil</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_the_Netherlands" class="mw-redirect" title="Indians in the Netherlands">Netherlands</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indians_in_Switzerland" title="Indians in Switzerland">Switzerland</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Swiss_Tamils" title="Swiss Tamils">Tamil</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/British_Indians" title="British Indians">United Kingdom</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indian_community_of_London" title="Indian community of London">London</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/British_Indo-Caribbean_people" title="British Indo-Caribbean people">Indo-Caribbean</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/British_Gujaratis" title="British Gujaratis">Gujarati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/British_Punjabis" title="British Punjabis">Punjabi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/British_Sindhis" title="British Sindhis">Sindhi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/British_Tamil" class="mw-redirect" title="British Tamil">Tamil</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Oceania</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0;padding:0.30em 0; line-height:1.4em;"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Australians" title="Indian Australians">Australia</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Malayali_Australians" title="Malayali Australians">Malayali</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Punjabi_Australians" title="Punjabi Australians">Punjabi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tamil_Australians" title="Tamil Australians">Tamil</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sindhi_Australians" title="Sindhi Australians">Sindhi</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indo-Fijians" title="Indo-Fijians">Fiji</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Gujaratis_in_Fiji" title="Gujaratis in Fiji">Gujarati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/South_Indians_in_Fiji" title="South Indians in Fiji">South Indian</a></li></ul></li> <li>New Caledonia<sup><small>3</small></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_New_Zealanders" title="Indian New Zealanders">New Zealand</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/M%C4%81ori_Indians" title="Māori Indians">Maori-Indian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Punjabi_New_Zealanders" title="Punjabi New Zealanders">Punjabi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tamil_New_Zealanders" title="Tamil New Zealanders">Tamil</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">See also</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd hlist" style="width:100%;padding:0;padding:0.30em 0; line-height:1.4em;"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"></div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Indian_diaspora#Diaspora_by_state_and_ethnolinguistic_regions_of_India" title="Indian diaspora">Ethnic diasporas</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Bengali_Hindu_diaspora" title="Bengali Hindu diaspora">Bengali Hindu</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gujarati_diaspora" title="Gujarati diaspora">Gujarati</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kashmiri_diaspora" title="Kashmiri diaspora">Kashmiri</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mirpuri_diaspora" title="Mirpuri diaspora">Mirpuri</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mizo_diaspora" title="Mizo diaspora">Mizo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Odia_diaspora" title="Odia diaspora">Odia</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Punjabi_diaspora" title="Punjabi diaspora">Punjabi</a> (<a href="/wiki/Sikh_diaspora" title="Sikh diaspora">Sikhs</a>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Romani_people" title="Romani people">Romani</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sindhi_diaspora" title="Sindhi diaspora">Sindhi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/South_Indian_diaspora" title="South Indian diaspora">South Indians</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Malayali_diaspora" title="Malayali diaspora">Malayalis</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Kerala_Gulf_diaspora" title="Kerala Gulf diaspora">In the Gulf</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tamil_diaspora" title="Tamil diaspora">Tamils</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Telugu_diaspora" title="Telugu diaspora">Telugus</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Anglo-Indian_people" title="Anglo-Indian people">Anglo-Indian</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chindians" title="Chindians">Chindians</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Other related articles</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/South_Asian_diaspora" title="South Asian diaspora">South Asian diaspora</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Desi" title="Desi">Desi</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Little_India" title="Little India">Little India</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pravasi_Bharatiya_Samman" title="Pravasi Bharatiya Samman">Non-Resident Indian Award</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pravasi_Bharatiya_Divas" title="Pravasi Bharatiya Divas">Non-Resident Indian Day</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><td class="navbox-abovebelow hlist" colspan="2"><div> <ul><li><sup><small>1</small></sup> An <a href="/wiki/Overseas_departments_and_regions_of_France" title="Overseas departments and regions of France">overseas department</a> of France in the southwest Indian Ocean</li> <li><sup><small>2</small></sup><a href="/wiki/Overseas_departments_and_regions_of_France" title="Overseas departments and regions of France">Overseas departments</a> of France in the Americas</li> <li><sup><small>3</small></sup>A <a href="/wiki/Overseas_France#Sui_generis_collectivity" title="Overseas France">sui generis collectivity</a> of France in the southwest Pacific Ocean</li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1236075235"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="←_British_Ceylon_period_topics_→" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks hlist mw-collapsible mw-collapsed navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="2"><link 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href="/wiki/British_Ceylon_period" class="mw-redirect" title="British Ceylon period">British Ceylon period</a> topics <a href="/wiki/Template:Sri_Lanka_topics" title="Template:Sri Lanka topics">→</a></li></ul></div></div></th></tr><tr><td class="navbox-abovebelow" colspan="2"><div><a href="/wiki/British_Ceylon" title="British Ceylon">British Ceylon</a> 1815 – 1948</div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Background</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Outline_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Outline of Sri Lanka">Outline</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bibliography_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Bibliography of Sri Lanka">Bibliography</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Timeline_of_Sri_Lankan_history" title="Timeline of Sri Lankan history">Timeline</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_years_in_Sri_Lanka" title="List of years in Sri Lanka">Years</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kandyan_period" title="Kandyan period">Kandyan period</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/British_Ceylon_period" class="mw-redirect" title="British Ceylon period">History</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Invasion_of_Ceylon_(1795)" class="mw-redirect" title="Invasion of Ceylon (1795)">Invasion of Ceylon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kandyan_Wars" title="Kandyan Wars">Kandyan Wars</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Great_Rebellion_of_1817%E2%80%9318" class="mw-redirect" title="Great Rebellion of 1817–18">Great Rebellion of 1817–18</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kandyan_Convention" title="Kandyan Convention">Kandyan Convention</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Matale_Rebellion" class="mw-redirect" title="Matale Rebellion">Matale Rebellion</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kandyan_Convention" title="Kandyan Convention">Kandyan Convention</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_independence_movement" title="Sri Lankan independence movement">Sri Lankan independence movement</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Temperance_movement_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Temperance movement in Sri Lanka">Temperance movement</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1906_malaria_outbreak_in_Ceylon" title="1906 malaria outbreak in Ceylon">1906 malaria outbreak</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/1915_Ceylonese_riots" class="mw-redirect" title="1915 Ceylonese riots">1915 Ceylonese riots</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Suriya-Mal_Movement" title="Suriya-Mal Movement">Suriya-Mal Movement</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ceylon_in_World_War_II" title="Ceylon in World War II">Ceylon in World War II</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Cocos_Islands_mutiny" title="Cocos Islands mutiny">Cocos Islands mutiny</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/South_East_Asia_Command" title="South East Asia Command">South East Asia Command</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Government</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"></div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Law</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Colebrooke%E2%80%93Cameron_Commission" title="Colebrooke–Cameron Commission">Colebrooke–Cameron Commission</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Donoughmore_Commission" title="Donoughmore Commission">Donoughmore Commission</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Donoughmore_Constitution" title="Donoughmore Constitution">Donoughmore Constitution</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Soulbury_Commission" title="Soulbury Commission">Soulbury Commission</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Soulbury_Constitution" class="mw-redirect" title="Soulbury Constitution">Soulbury Constitution</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Capital_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Capital of Sri Lanka">Capital city</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Legislature</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Legislative_Council_of_Ceylon" title="Legislative Council of Ceylon">Legislative Council of Ceylon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/State_Council_of_Ceylon" title="State Council of Ceylon">State Council of Ceylon</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Judiciary_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Judiciary of Sri Lanka">Judiciary</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Supreme Court of Sri Lanka">Supreme Court</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Chief_Justice_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Chief Justice of Sri Lanka">Chief Justice</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_Justices_of_the_Supreme_Court_of_Sri_Lanka" class="mw-redirect" title="List of Justices of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka">Justices</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Attorney_General_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Attorney General of Sri Lanka">Attorney General</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Solicitor_General_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Solicitor General of Sri Lanka">Solicitor General</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Executive</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Governor-General_of_Ceylon" title="Governor-General of Ceylon">Governor-General</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ceylon_Civil_Service" title="Ceylon Civil Service">Ceylon Civil Service</a></li></ul> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Executive_Council_of_Ceylon" title="Executive Council of Ceylon">Executive Council</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_Ceylonese_executive_councils" title="List of Ceylonese executive councils">List</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Governors_of_British_Ceylon" title="Governors of British Ceylon">Governor</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chief_Secretary_of_Ceylon" title="Chief Secretary of Ceylon">Colonial Secretary</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Attorney_General_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Attorney General of Sri Lanka">Attorney General</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Auditor_General_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Auditor General of Sri Lanka">Colonial Auditor</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Treasurer_of_Ceylon" class="mw-redirect" title="Treasurer of Ceylon">Treasurer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/General_Officer_Commanding,_Ceylon" title="General Officer Commanding, Ceylon">General Officer Commanding, Ceylon</a></li></ul></li></ul> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Board_of_Ministers_of_Ceylon" class="mw-redirect" title="Board of Ministers of Ceylon">Board of Ministers</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_Ceylonese_executive_councils" title="List of Ceylonese executive councils">List</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Governors_of_British_Ceylon" title="Governors of British Ceylon">Governor</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Chief_Secretary_of_Ceylon" title="Chief Secretary of Ceylon">Chief Secretary</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Legal_Secretary_of_Ceylon" title="Legal Secretary of Ceylon">Legal Secretary</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Financial_Secretary_of_Ceylon" title="Financial Secretary of Ceylon">Financial Secretary</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Military</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Ceylon_Defence_Force" title="Ceylon Defence Force">Ceylon Defence Force</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Commander_of_the_Ceylon_Defence_Force" title="Commander of the Ceylon Defence Force">Commanders</a></li></ul></li> <li>British Military in Ceylon <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Commander-in-Chief,_Ceylon" title="Commander-in-Chief, Ceylon">Commander-in-Chief, Ceylon</a> (Unified)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/General_Officer_Commanding,_Ceylon" title="General Officer Commanding, Ceylon">General Officer Commanding, Ceylon</a> (Army)</li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Politics</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Treaty_of_Amiens" title="Treaty of Amiens">Treaty of Amiens</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kandyan_Convention" title="Kandyan Convention">Kandyan Convention</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ceylon_National_Congress" title="Ceylon National Congress">Ceylon National Congress</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Native_headmen_of_Ceylon" title="Native headmen of Ceylon">Native headmen system</a></li> <li><a href="/w/index.php?title=Sri_Lankan_nationalism&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Sri Lankan nationalism (page does not exist)">Sri Lankan nationalism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Women%27s_suffrage_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Women's suffrage in Sri Lanka">Women's suffrage</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Youth_Leagues_(Ceylon)" title="Youth Leagues (Ceylon)">Youth Leagues</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Jaffna_Youth_Congress" title="Jaffna Youth Congress">Jaffna Youth Congress</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Economy</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Board_of_Commissioners_of_Currency_of_Ceylon" title="Board of Commissioners of Currency of Ceylon">Board of Commissioners of Currency of Ceylon</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_rupee" title="Sri Lankan rupee">Rupee</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pound_sterling" title="Pound sterling">British pound</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_rupee" title="Indian rupee">Indian rupee</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cinnamon_production_in_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Cinnamon production in Sri Lanka (page does not exist)">Cinnamon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cocoa_production_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Cocoa production in Sri Lanka">Cocoa</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Coconut_production_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Coconut production in Sri Lanka">Coconut</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Coffee_production_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Coffee production in Sri Lanka">Coffee</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rubber_production_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Rubber production in Sri Lanka">Rubber</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tea_production_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Tea production in Sri Lanka">Tea production</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Ocean_slave_trade" title="Indian Ocean slave trade">Indian Ocean slave trade</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kangani_system" title="Kangani system">Kangani system</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Society</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"></div><table class="nowraplinks navbox-subgroup" style="border-spacing:0"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Culture</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/w/index.php?title=Colonial_architecture_of_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Colonial architecture of Sri Lanka (page does not exist)">Architecture</a> <ul><li><a href="/w/index.php?title=List_of_British_colonial_buildings_in_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="List of British colonial buildings in Sri Lanka (page does not exist)">British buildings</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_place_name_etymology" title="Sri Lankan place name etymology">Place names</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_locations_in_Sri_Lanka_with_an_English_name" title="List of locations in Sri Lanka with an English name">English</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Locations_in_Sri_Lanka_with_a_Scottish_name" title="Locations in Sri Lanka with a Scottish name">Scottish</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/w/index.php?title=Western_music_in_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Western music in Sri Lanka (page does not exist)">Music</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sinhalese_porcupine_quill_boxes" title="Sinhalese porcupine quill boxes">Sinhalese porcupine quill boxes</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Social_class_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Social class in Sri Lanka">Social class</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Related peoples</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/w/index.php?title=British_people_in_Sri_Lanka&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="British people in Sri Lanka (page does not exist)">British</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Moors" title="Indian Moors">Indian Moors</a></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">Indian Tamils</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Malays" title="Sri Lankan Malays">Malays</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Languages_of_Sri_Lanka" title="Languages of Sri Lanka">Languages</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_English" title="Sri Lankan English">Sri Lankan English</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Creole_Malay" class="mw-redirect" title="Sri Lankan Creole Malay">Sri Lankan Creole Malay</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/List_of_Sinhala_words_of_English_origin" title="List of Sinhala words of English origin">Sinhala words of English origin</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Christianity_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Christianity in Sri Lanka">Religion</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Protestantism_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Protestantism in Sri Lanka">Protestantism</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Church_of_Ceylon" title="Church of Ceylon">Church of Ceylon</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Anglican_Bishop_of_Colombo" title="Anglican Bishop of Colombo">Bishop of Colombo</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Methodist_Church_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Methodist Church in Sri Lanka">Methodist Church in Sri Lanka</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/American_Ceylon_Mission" title="American Ceylon Mission">American Ceylon Mission</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Batticotta_Seminary" title="Batticotta Seminary">Batticotta Seminary</a></li></ul></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wesleyan_Methodist_Mission,_North_Ceylon" title="Wesleyan Methodist Mission, North Ceylon">Wesleyan Methodist Mission, North Ceylon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lanka_Lutheran_Church" class="mw-redirect" title="Lanka Lutheran Church">Lanka Lutheran Church</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/The_Pentecostal_Mission" title="The Pentecostal Mission">The Pentecostal Mission</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sri_Lanka_Baptist_Sangamaya" title="Sri Lanka Baptist Sangamaya">Sri Lanka Baptist Sangamaya</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/The_Church_of_Jesus_Christ_of_Latter-day_Saints_in_Sri_Lanka" title="The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sri Lanka">The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sri Lanka</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bible_translations_into_Sinhala" title="Bible translations into Sinhala">Bible translations into Sinhala</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table><div></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Other</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/List_of_the_oldest_schools_in_Sri_Lanka" title="List of the oldest schools in Sri Lanka">Schools</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Maldivian_Annual_Tribute" title="Maldivian Annual Tribute">Maldivian Annual Tribute</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ceylonese_recipients_of_British_titles" title="Ceylonese recipients of British titles">Ceylonese recipients of British titles</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Military_awards_and_decorations_of_Sri_Lanka#Former_decorations_&_medals" class="mw-redirect" title="Military awards and decorations of Sri Lanka">Military awards and decorations</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Monarchy_of_Ceylon_(1948%E2%80%931972)" title="Monarchy of Ceylon (1948–1972)">Monarchy of Ceylon (1948–1972)</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td class="navbox-abovebelow" colspan="2" 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