Kanagasabapathy Kailasapathy (5 April 1933 – 6 December 1982) was a

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 ...

n journalist and academic. He was the first president of the Jaffna Campus of the

University of Sri Lanka The University of Sri Lanka ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ta, இலங்கைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம்) was the public university system of Sri Lanka from 1972 to 1978. Est ...

Early life and family

Kailasapathy was born on 5 April 1933 in

Kuala Lumpur , anthem = '' Maju dan Sejahtera'' , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Malaysia#Southeast Asia#Asia , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , su ...

Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...

. His family moved from Malaya to

Ceylon 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 ...

. He was then educated at the Jaffna Hindu College and

Royal College, Colombo Royal College, Colombo is a selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started as a private school by Rev Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Sir Robert Wilmot-Horton in Janua ...

. After school he joined the

University of Ceylon The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka (earlier Ceylon) from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the Univer ...

, Peradeniya. Whilst at Peradeniya Kailasapathy wrote for '' Virakesari'' and ''Tholkappiyam''. He then went to

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

from where he obtained a

Phd PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

after producing a

thesis A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...

on Tamil heroic poetry in 1968. Kailasapathy married Sarvamangalam, daughter of N. Manicka Idaikaddar. They had two daughters.

Career

After university Kailasapathy joined

Lake House Lake House is an Elizabethan architecture, Elizabethan English country house, country house dating from 1578, in Wilsford cum Lake in Wiltshire, England, about seven miles north of Salisbury. It is a Grade I listed building. The gardens are Gra ...

as a journalist. He became editor of the weekly edition of '' Thinakaran'' and then served as its editor-in-chief of between 1959 and 1961. Kailasapathy then left journalism to take up a career in academia. He served as president of the Jaffna Campus of the

between August 1974 and July 1977. Kailasapathy wrote numerous articles and more than ten books during his life.

Death

Kailasapathy died on 6 December 1982 at the

Colombo General Hospital The National Hospital of Sri Lanka (sometimes General Hospital) is a government hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Founded in 1864 as the General Hospital, it is the leading hospital in Sri Lanka and is controlled by the central government. The hospi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kailasapathy, K. 1933 births 1982 deaths Alumni of Jaffna Hindu College Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Alumni of the University of Birmingham Alumni of the University of Ceylon People associated with the University of Sri Lanka Sri Lankan academics Sri Lankan Tamil people Sri Lankan editors Sri Lankan journalists Sri Lankan Tamil writers Sri Lankan people of Malaysian descent