Hambantota District ( si, හම්බන්තොට දිස්ත්‍රික්කය ''hambantoṭa distrikkaya''; ta, அம்பாந்தோட்டை மாவட்டம் ''Ampāntōṭṭai māvaṭṭam'') is a

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

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 t ...

. It is one of 25 districts 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 ...

, the second level

administrative division Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary (previously known as a Government Agent) appointed by the central government of Sri Lanka. Hambantota District is located on the southeastern coast of

. It has an area of 2,593 km² and a very dry climate. The district capital is

Hambantota Hambantota ( si, හම්බන්තොට, ta, அம்பாந்தோட்டை) is the main town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri LankaThe prominent Malays (මැලේ) most part of the population is to be partly des ...

town; the administrative headquarters are there as well as the center of salt production. Other prominent towns include

Tangalle Tangalle ( Sinhala තංගල්ල , ta, தங்கல்லை) (also known as Tangalla) is a large town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. It is one of the largest towns in southern provinc ...

Ambalantota Ambalantota is a coastal town in southern Sri Lanka. It is located in Southern Province in Hambantota District between Matara and Hambantota. The Valave River meets the sea near Ambalantota. The Ambalantota is famous for its ancient ruins of ...

Tissamaharama Tissamaharama ( si, තිස්සමහාරාමය , ta, திஸ்ஸமஹாராம) is a town in Hambantota District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka. History It was the capital of the Sinhalese Kingdom of Ruhuna as early as the 3 ...

, and

Beliatta Beliatta is a town located in the Hambantota District of Sri Lanka. Geography It is an inland town, approximately, from the coastal town of Tangalle. Beliatta has the second highest mountain range located in the Beliatta Divisional Secretari ...

. Before modern development took place after the country gained independence in 1948, the agriculture in the district was characterised by swidden cultivation (chena or

slash-and-burn Slash-and-burn agriculture is a farming method that involves the cutting and burning of plants in a forest or woodland to create a field called a swidden. The method begins by cutting down the trees and woody plants in an area. The downed vegeta ...

) and, to some extent, paddy cultivation on non-irrigated land. In the highlands, kurakkan — a grain used to make an eatable paste — was cultivated with other grains such as corn.

Leonard Woolf Leonard Sidney Woolf (; – ) was a British political theorist, author, publisher, and civil servant. He was married to author Virginia Woolf. As a member of the Labour Party and the Fabian Society, Woolf was an avid publisher of his own work ...

's ''Village in the Jungle'' provides a highly interesting and insightful account of the people, the land and issues of concern during the British Colonial period as he worked as an assistant government agent for Hambantota. The area has traditionally been home to

Sinhalese Sinhala may refer to: * Something of or related to the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka * Sinhalese people * Sinhala language, one of the three official languages used in Sri Lanka * Sinhala script, a writing system for the Sinhala language ** Sinha ...

and Sri Lankan Malay people, who collectively make up 98% of the district's population. The long history of Malay settlement in the district has impacted the local culture of Hambantota, with Sri Lankan Malay being a shared language between the Sri Lankan Malays and some members of the Sinhalese community.

Demographics

Hambantota District has a population of 596,617 (2011) of whom 96% are considered rural residents. Some 13.4% of the labor force of 244,847 is unemployed — in comparison to the national average of 8.3%. Of those employed, 42.2% are in the agricultural sector, 23.3% in industry with the remaining 34.5% working in the services sector.Source: Department of Census & Statistics - Sri Lanka

Politics and government

Local government

Hambantota District has 12

local authorities Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

of which one is a Municipal Council, one is an Urban Council and the remaining 10 are Divisional Councils (Pradeshiya Sabha).

Towns

(Municipal Council) *

(Urban Council) *

* Middeniya * Angunukolapelessa * Walasmulla *

Weeraketiya Weeraketiya is a small town in Hambantota District, Southern Province in southern Sri Lanka, about by road north of Tangalle. It is known for being the birthplace of Mahinda Rajapaksa. The town belongs to Weeraketiya Divisional Secretariat. Hi ...

References

External links

{{Authority control Districts of Sri Lanka