Arugam Bay
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Arugam Bay ( ta, அறுகம் குடா), known locally as "Arugam Kudah", is situated on the
Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by th ...
in the dry zone of
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...
's southeast coast, and a historic settlement of the ancient
Batticaloa Territory Batticaloa region ( ta, மட்டக்களப்புத் தேசம் ''Maṭṭakkaḷapput tēcam''; also known as ''Matecalo''; ''Baticalo''; in Colonial records, was the ancient region of Tamil Settlements in Sri Lanka. The fore ...
(Mattakallappu Desam). The bay is located south of
Batticaloa Batticaloa ( ta, மட்டக்களப்பு, ''Maṭṭakkaḷappu''; si, මඩකලපුව, ''Maḍakalapuwa'') is a major city in the Eastern Province, Sri Lanka, and its former capital. It is the administrative capital of the B ...
, due east of
Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...
, and approximately south of the market town of
Pottuvil Pottuvil ( ta, பொத்துவில், translit=Pottuvil; si, පොතුවිල, translit=Potuvil) is a town in the Ampara District of Sri Lanka, located in the Eastern Province on the eastern coast of the Island. It is situated ...
. The main settlement in the area, known locally as Ullae, is predominantly
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
, however there is a significant
Sri Lankan Tamil Sri Lankan Tamils ( or ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, live in significant numbers in the Eastern Pr ...
and Sinhala population to the south of the village, as well as a number of international expatriates, largely from Europe and Australia. While traditionally fishing has dominated the local economy, tourism has grown rapidly in the area in recent years. Arugam Kudah's literal Tamil translation is "Bay of
Cynodon dactylon ''Cynodon dactylon'', commonly known as Bermuda grass, is a grass found worldwide. It is native to Europe, Africa, Australia and much of Asia. It has been introduced to the Americas. Although it is not native to Bermuda, it is an abundant invasi ...
". Tourism in Arugam Bay is dominated by surf tourism, thanks to several quality breaks in the area, however tourists are also attracted by the local beaches, lagoons, historic temples and the nearby
Kumana National Park Kumana National Park in Sri Lanka is renowned for its avifauna, particularly its large flocks of migratory waterfowl and wading birds. The park is southeast of Colombo on Sri Lanka's southeastern coast. Kumana is contiguous with Yala National P ...
.


Conflict between fishing and tourism

During the period of fighting between the central government and Tamil separatists tourism was fairly low key and the hotels often bought the catch of the fishermen. As a result of the peace, tourism expanded and many fishing people who had moved to areas less touched by the conflict returned. Hotel owners began to complain about the smell of drying fish and how the fishing huts blocked their view. In the aftermath of the Tsunami fishing people were forbidden to return, officially on the grounds of safety but allegedly as a result of pressure from the hotel owners.


Surrounding areas

The nearby () Muslim village of
Pottuvil Pottuvil ( ta, பொத்துவில், translit=Pottuvil; si, පොතුවිල, translit=Potuvil) is a town in the Ampara District of Sri Lanka, located in the Eastern Province on the eastern coast of the Island. It is situated ...
is the center of commerce and transportation while tourist accommodations lie along the beach to the south of Pottuvil Arugam Bay () is also the gateway and the only road access to the Yala East National Park. In distance there is Pasarichenai Beach. This area is known as Kumana (), to be reached via the Tamil/Sinhalese settlement of
Panama (Sri Lanka) Panama ( ta, பாணமை, si, පාණම) is a coastal village in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka, located south of Batticaloa and south of Arugam Bay. It is the last populated settlement in the southernmost part of the province, wit ...
() and the Tamil shires at
Okanda Okanda ( ta, உகந்தை) is a small hamlet in the eastern coast of Sri Lanka within the Ampara District. It is known for its shrine dedicated to Hindu deity Murugan known as Ukanthamalai Murugan Kovil and for surfing. Pilgrims from the Eas ...
(). The local area is home to a number of elephants, often travelling between
Lahugala Lahugala ( si, ලාහුගල, Tamil: லகுகலை) is a small town in Ampara District, Eastern Province of Sri Lanka. The town is located on Colombo-Batticaloa main road approximately away from Pothuvil town. History Lahugala area wa ...
and Kumana national parks.


Surfing

Arugam Bay is the most popular surf spot and is also the only international surf competition venue in Sri Lanka. It is also rated as one of the top ten surf destinations in the world. It has also hosted most of the international surfing competitions in Sri Lanka since 2004. It also hosted the
So Sri Lanka Pro 2019 The So Sri Lanka Pro 2019 was a surfing competition which was held as a part of the World Surfing League Qualifying Series 3000. This was the second edition of the Sri Lanka Pro League and it was also the first such event to be conducted since 201 ...
.


References


External links

{{Wikivoyage, Arugam Bay Bodies of water of Ampara District Seaside resorts in Sri Lanka