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Masjid Al Abrar, Beruwala
Al Abrar Mosque ( ar, سجد الأبرار), or Masjidul Abrar Jumma Mosque, is a mosque in Beruwala, Sri Lanka, which is claimed to be the first and the oldest mosque in the country. The mosque purportedly dates back to 920 AD, built by Arab merchants who arrived here to trade with locals in spices, ginger and steel en route to China. The mosque, fronted by a large pond, has undergone several extensive reconstructions since it was first built, with little attention paid to preserve any historical aspects of the structure. In 1893 the roof was supported by large round pillars, which were demolished in 1986 when the mosque went through a significant refurbishment and expansion, under the guidance and supervision of Abdul Bakeer Markar, the local member of parliament, representing Beruwala, who later went on to become the Speaker of the Parliament and the first Governor of the Southern Province. The renovated building was designed by W. J. Neil Alles of Surti and Alles Chartered ...
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Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ''Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the Muhammad in Islam, main and final Islamic prophet.Peters, F. E. 2009. "Allāh." In , edited by J. L. Esposito. Oxford: Oxford University Press. . (See alsoquick reference) "[T]he Muslims' understanding of Allāh is based...on the Qurʿān's public witness. Allāh is Unique, the Creator, Sovereign, and Judge of mankind. It is Allāh who directs the universe through his direct action on nature and who has guided human history through his prophets, Abraham, with whom he made his covenant, Moses/Moosa, Jesus/Eesa, and Muḥammad, through all of whom he founded his chosen communities, the 'Peoples of the Book.'" It is the Major religious groups, world's second-largest religion behind Christianity, w ...
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Mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, including outdoor courtyards. The first mosques were simple places of prayer for Muslims, and may have been open spaces rather than buildings. In the first stage of Islamic architecture, 650-750 CE, early mosques comprised open and closed covered spaces enclosed by walls, often with minarets from which calls to prayer were issued. Mosque buildings typically contain an ornamental niche ('' mihrab'') set into the wall that indicates the direction of Mecca (''qiblah''), Wudu, ablution facilities. The pulpit (''minbar''), from which the Friday (jumu'ah) sermon (''khutba'') is delivered, was in earlier times characteristic of the central city mosque, but has since become common in smaller mosques. Mosques typically have Islam and gender se ...
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Beruwala
Beruwala ( Sinhala:බේරුවල Tamil: பேருவளை) is a large town in Kalutara District, Western Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. The town covers a total area of approximately and is located on the south-west coast of Sri Lanka, south of Colombo. Etymology The name Beruwala is derived from the Sinhalese word for the place where the sail is lowered. It marks the spot for the first Muslim settlement on the island, established by a Somali Sheikh Yusuf bin Ahmad al-Kawneyn. The town was originally named Berbereen in honour and respect of the Somali Shaikh. The Chinese also traded here and Beruwala was known to them as Piehlo-li. History The first Muslim settlement of Sri Lanka was in Beruwala which is situated in the Western coastal area of the Island. Beruwala was named "Berbereen" in the past in honor of Yusuf bin Ahmad al-Kawneyn who is also known as Shaykh Abu Barakat al Barbari, a Somali Muslim scholar and a traveler who founded the city ...
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Abdul Bakeer Markar
Deshamanya Marhoom Al Haj Mohammed Abdul Bakeer Markar (12 May 1917 – 10 September 1997) was a Sri Lankan politician and civil servant. He was the Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka and Governor of the Southern Province. Personal life He was born on 12 May 1917 in Beruwala, Maradana, Sri Lanka. Bakeer Markar's ancestry is traced to Sheik Jamaluddeen-Al-Maghdoomi, an Arab settler who settled down in the sea board town of Beruwala. His father Hakeem Alia Marikkar Mohomed Marikkar belonged to a family of physicians, whose ancestors too were physicians. He started his education at Sri Lanka's first Muslim girls' school in Beruwala and entered St. Sebastian's College, Colombo at the age of 7 to complete his primary education. He completed his secondary education at Zahira College, Colombo and entered law college in 1939 as a law student and graduated in 1949. He was married to Sithy Kadija Muhammad Raffai, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Omer Lebbe Marikar Muhammed Raffai of Ch ...
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Beruwala Electoral District
Beruwala electoral district was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between March 1960 and February 1989. The district was named after the town of Beruwala in Kalutara District, Western Province. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...s. Beruwala electoral district was replaced by the Kalutara multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections. Members of Parliament Key Elections 1960 (March) Parliamentary General Election Results of the 4th parliamentary election held on 19 March 1960: 1960 (July) Parli ...
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Speaker Of The Parliament Of Sri Lanka
The Speaker of the Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the presiding officer of the chamber. The current Speaker of the Parliament is Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, in office since 20 August 2020. The Speaker fulfills a number of important functions in relation to the operation of the House, which is based upon the British Westminster Parliamentary system. The Speaker is second in the Sri Lankan presidential line of succession, after the Prime Minister. Origins In 1931 under the Donoughmore Constitution the State Council of Ceylon was established and in it the first office of a Speaker of a legislative body was created as the Speaker of the State Council. In 1947, according to the recommendations of the Soulbury Commission the State Council was dissolved and a Parliament was established in the Westminster model with an upper house, the Senate and the House of Representatives. While the head of the President of the Senate became the head of the Sen ...
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Southern Province, Sri Lanka
The Southern Province ( si, දකුණු පළාත ''Dakuṇu Paḷāta'', ta, தென் மாகாணம் ''Theṉ Mākāṇam'') of Sri Lanka is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrative division of the country. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. It is the 7th largest province by area and is home to 2.5 million people, the 3rd most populated province. The province is bordered by Sabaragamuwa Province and Uva Province to the North, Eastern Province to the Northeast, Western Province to the Northwest and the Indian Ocean to the South, West and East. The Province's capital is Galle. The Southern Province is a geographic area consisting of the districts of Galle, Matara and Hambantota. Subsistence farming and fishing is the main source of income for the vast majority of the people of this ...
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The Daily News (Sri Lanka)
The ''Daily News'' is an English-language newspaper in Sri Lanka. It is now published by the Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited (Lake House), a government-owned corporation. The newspaper commenced publishing on 3 January 1918. D. R. Wijewardena was its founder. The present-day newspaper is written as a broadsheet A broadsheet is the largest newspaper format and is characterized by long Vertical and horizontal, vertical pages, typically of . Other common newspaper formats include the smaller Berliner (format), Berliner and Tabloid (newspaper format), ta ..., with photographs printed both in color and black and white. Weekday printings include the main section, containing news on national affairs, international affairs, business, political analysis, sports, editorials and opinions. Every Thursday issue a free supplement in a Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid paper called "Wisdom". In addition, the ''Daily News'' also provides ''The Sri Lanka Gazette'' as a supplement ...
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Sri Lankan Rupee
The Sri Lankan Rupee ( si, රුපියල්, ta, ரூபாய்; Currency symbol, symbol: Re and Rs (plural) in English, රු in Sinhala, ௹ in Tamil; ISO 4217, ISO code: LKR) is the currency of Sri Lanka. It is subdivided into 100 cent (currency), cents, but cents are rarely seen in circulation due to its low value. It is issued by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. The abbreviation ''Re'' (singular) and ''Rs'' (plural) is generally used, the World Bank suggests SL Rs as a fully disambiguating abbreviation for distinction from other currencies named "rupee". History pound sterling, Sterling became Ceylon's official currency in 1825, replacing the Ceylonese rixdollar at a rate of £1Pound sterling,  stg = rixdollars, and British silver coin was made legal tender. Treasury notes denominated in sterling were issued in 1827, replacing the earlier rixdollar notes. Rixdollar notes not presented for exchange were demonetized in June 1831. The Indian rupee was made ...
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Sri Lanka Post
The Department of Posts, functioning under the brand name Sri Lanka Post ( Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකා තැපැල් ''Shri Lanka Tæpæl''), is a government operated postal system in Sri Lanka. The postal headquarters is the General Post Office which is located in Colombo. The department itself comes under the purview of the Ministry of Information and Mass Media. It was formerly known as the ''Ceylon Post and Telecommunications Department'' and is one of the oldest Government departments in existence today. The head of the Sri Lanka Post is the Postmaster General, currently Ranjith Ariyaratne. Assisting in administration there is a deputy Postmaster General in every province. Sri Lanka Post employs more than 22,000 employees in various positions to staff and support the 4738 post offices across the country. History Sri Lanka Post has a long history of 222 years, dating back to 1798, when the colonial Dutch rulers started five post offices in the Maritime Distr ...
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Imthiaz Bakeer Markar
Imthiaz Bakeer Markar ( si, ඉම්තියාස් බාකීර් මාකාර් (born 8 August 1953) is a Sri Lankan lawyer and politician. He is a Member of Parliament from the National List of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, he was a former Cabinet Minister of Media, Postal and Telecommunications from 2001 to 2004; State Minister of Housing from 1989 to 1993 and member of the parliament from the Kalutara District from 1989 to 2004. Bakeer Markar had served as the former Chairman of the National Media Centre and the former Vice President of the United National Party (UNP). Personal life Imthiaz was born on 8 August 1953 in Beruwala, Sri Lanka as the only child of the family. His father Mohammed Abdul Bakeer Markar, was a politician who later served as the 12th Parliamentary Speaker from 1978 to 1983 and the Governor of the Southern Province from 1988 to 1993. His mother Sithy Kadija Muhammad Raffai was a housewife. His ancestry can be traced to Sheik Jamaluddeen-A ...
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