Kurunegala ( si, කුරුණෑගල, ta, குருணாகல்) is a major city in

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 ...

. It is the capital city of the North Western Province and the

Kurunegala District Kurunegala is a district in North Western Province, Sri Lanka. Consists of and consists 30 Divisional Secretariats, 1610 Grama Niladari Divisions and 4476 total Villages. It consists of 14 Electorate Divisions, 02 Municipal Council, 19 Urban C ...

. Kurunegala was an ancient royal capital for 50 years, from the end of the 13th century to the start of the 14th century. It is at the junction of several main roads linking to other important parts of the country. It is about from

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 ...

, from

Kandy Kandy ( si, මහනුවර ''Mahanuwara'', ; ta, கண்டி Kandy, ) is a major city in Sri Lanka located in the Central Province. It was the last capital of the ancient kings' era of Sri Lanka. The city lies in the midst of hills ...

and from

Matale Matale ( Sinhala: මාතලේ, ta, மாத்தளை, translit=Māttaḷai) is the administrative capital city of the Matale District. It is the most urbanised and populated centre in the district. Matale is also the second largest muni ...

. Located at an altitude of above sea level, Kurunegala is surrounded by coconut plantations and rubber estates. There are eight very noticeable large rocks that encircle and dominate the city. Kurunegala's rocks rise from the plain below and have characteristic names, six of which come from the animals that they are imagined to represent. The largest among them is Ethagala or the "

Elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...

Rock" (though the translation is actually tusker), reaches . The shape of Ethagala resembles an

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae an ...

Etymology

Kurunegala has been named after the Elephant rock (ඇතුගල). "Kurune" means tusker or an elephant with protruding teeth and ''gala'' in Sinhala means rock. ''Kurunai'' means tusker or an Elephant and ''gal'' in

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nati ...

means rock or hill. Kurunegala's old name was Hasthishaila-pura, which can be translated as 'The City of the Elephant Rock' in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

. In some ancient literature, the word Athugal-pura (ඇතුගල්පුර) is employed to describe the city of Kurunegala. Nearby are three archeological cities — Parakramapura (Panduvasnuwara, පඬුවස්නුවර) (northwest) with remains of a moated palace and monasteries from the 12th century, Dambadeniya (දඹ‍‍‍‍දෙනිය) (southwest, mid-13th century) and Yapahuwa (north). Kurunegala enjoys a pleasant location with huge rocky outcrops some of which have been given names of the animals they resemble: elephant rock, tortoise rock etc. According to folklore legend, a long time back the city had a severe drought. To exacerbate matters for humans, animals had threatened the city's storage capabilities by consuming huge amounts of water. A witch volunteered to alleviate the problem, transforming some of the animals magically into stone figures.

History

Kurunegala had a citadel in the 13th century. Its ascendancy as an ancient capital of Sri Lanka began with a series of events that took place during the late 12th century at Yapahuwa. The sacred tooth relic which was in the Yapahuwa Kingdom was taken by an Aryacakravarti from the

Jaffna Kingdom The Jaffna Kingdom ( ta, யாழ்ப்பாண அரசு, si, යාපනය රාජධානිය; 1215–1624 CE), also known as Kingdom of Aryachakravarti, was a historical kingdom of what today is northern Sri Lanka. It came i ...

to the Pandyan country during the rule of Buwaneka Bahu I from 1272 to 1284. The relic was brought back by King Parakrama Bahu III who ruled from Kurunegala between 1287 and 1293. Over the next half a century Kurunegala was the capital and the governing centre for three other kings of Sri Lanka. After the death of King Parakrama Bahu III, kings Buvanekabahu II (1293–1302) who was followed by Parakramabahu IV (1302–1326) ruled from Kurunegala. The ruler in Kurunegala from 1326 to 1335 was Buwaneka Bahu III alias Wanni Buwaneka Bahu. He was the son of Pandith Parakrama Bahu II and is believed to be the last king to rule the country from Kurunegala. After the reign of Buwaneka Bahu III, the newly throned king Vijayabahu V ruled from Dambadeniya and Yapahuwa from 1335 to 1341 before once again the kingdom of Sri Lanka shifted to Gampola. Few remains of the Palace of the Tooth relic that housed the tooth of the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...

have avoided natural destruction, including few stone steps and a part of a doorway.

Sites with archaeological significance

Royal complex

Archaeological remains of this site are few but give a glimpse of its past glory and comprise the handsome stone entrance, steps, rock pillars and ruined walls of the royal palace and the palace of the tooth relic.

Kurunegala lake

A large man-made water reservoir constructed by ancient kings. The lake is in the outskirts of the central business district accessible by the Kurunegala- Dambulla and Kurunegala- Puttlam roads. The tank is used as a water supply source for the city.

Kurunegala clock tower

The Kurunegala clock tower was built in 1922 as a tribute to the officers, who were from Wayamba province and sacrificed their lives in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Geography and climate

Geography

Topographically Kurunegala town is based on a plain area with the exception of the surrounding rock outcrops. The northern part of the town is slightly higher than the south. Kurunegala Lake is the primary geographical feature of Kurunegala and adorns the town. The region comprising the Kurunegala town is well above the sea level compared to the coastal areas of Sri Lanka. However, the region is not as high as the central hill country. The nearest beaches to Kurunegala are to the west and include Negombo and Chilaw. Kurunegala is surrounded by several major rock outcrops, a distinctive geological feature of the Wayamba province. * Ethagala (

Rock) * Ibbagala (

Tortoise Tortoises () are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin: ''tortoise''). Like other turtles, tortoises have a turtle shell, shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, ...

Rock) * Andagala (

Eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...

Rock) * Elugala (

Goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...

Rock) * Kuruminiyagala (

Beetle Beetles are insects that form the order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Endopterygota. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 describ ...

Rock) * Wanduragala (

Monkey Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, which constitutes an incomple ...

Rock) * Yakdessagala (

Witch Witchcraft traditionally means the use of Magic (supernatural), magic or supernatural powers to harm others. A practitioner is a witch. In Middle Ages, medieval and early modern Europe, where the term originated, accused witches were usually ...

Rock) * Gonigala (Sack Rock) * Adhagala

Climate

Kurunegala features a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southea ...

under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

. The city's climate is tropical and hot all throughout the year. The surrounding rocks play a major role in determining Kurunegala's weather since these rocks increase and retain the heat of the day. During the month of April the temperature can rise up to about . The only major change in the Kurunegala weather occurs during the monsoons from May to August and October to January when heavy rains can be expected. While the city does experience noticeably drier weather during January and February, it does not qualify as a true

dry season The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The te ...

as average precipitation in both months are above . In general, temperatures from late November to mid February period are lower than the rest of the year. The average annual rainfall in Kurunegala is about .

Demographics

Kurunegala is a

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 ...

majority city; there are sizable communities belonging to other ethnic groups, such as

Moors The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or ...

, Tamils, Burghers and

Malays Malays may refer to: * Malay race, a racial category encompassing peoples of Southeast Asia and sometimes the Pacific Islands ** Overseas Malays, people of Malay race ancestry living outside Malay archipelago home areas ** Cape Malays, a communit ...

. Residents from ethnic minorities live in all parts of the city, however, sizeable communities of Moors and Tamils live in the areas of Teliyagonna and Wilgoda.

Ethnicity according to Kurunegala urban area (2015)

''Source:'' 2015 Census Data

Language

The common languages of Kurunegala, depending on social classes, social circles, and ethnic backgrounds are Sinhalese, Tamil and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Religion

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

is the main and the most widely practiced religion in Kurunegala. The town is also home to a wide range of other religious faiths and sects including

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

and

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 ...

. Prominent Buddhist temples in Kurunegala include Athkanda Raja Maha Viharaya. It is said that the fabled Jathaka stories were composed at this historic temple. The temple is located on the left hand side of the Kandy-Kurunegala main road in the vicinity of the Kurunegala town, Ibbagala Raja Maha Viharaya, Angangala cave temple, Wilbawa Purana Viharaya and Bauddhaloka Viharaya. An ancient replica of Buddha's footprint that is found on the summit of

Sri Pada Adam's Peak is a tall conical mountain located in central Sri Lanka. It is well known for the Sri Pada ( si, ශ්‍රී පාද), i.e., "sacred footprint", a rock formation near the summit, which in Buddhist tradition is held to be ...

(Adam's Peak), a little dagoba and some paintings depicting the Buddha and his disciples can be seen at the Ibbagala Raja Maha Viharaya. There are also numbers of Christian/Catholic churches, Mosques and Hindu temples are in the city. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Kurunegala's bishop is headquartered in the town. The Church of Ceylon, which is the Anglican Church in Sri Lanka, operates a

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...

in Kurunegala covering the North-Central Province and Kurunegala,

Kegalle Kegalle ( si, කෑගල්ල; ta, கேகாலை) is a large town in Sabaragamuwa Province of Sri Lanka. It is located on the Colombo–Kandy road, approximately from Colombo and from Kandy. It is the main town in the Kegalle District ...

and

Anuradapura Anuradhapura ( si, අනුරාධපුරය, translit=Anurādhapuraya; ta, அனுராதபுரம், translit=Aṉurātapuram) is a major city located in north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central P ...

districts.

Administration

The Kurunegala Municipality Council is responsible for the overall administration, sanitary, welfare, and other general activities of the city. The Municipality Council headed by a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

with 21 other elected members. The 21 elected members represent the following wards: * Gangoda * Wewa * Central * Yanthampalawa * Illuppugedara * Madamegama * Wehera * Udawalpola * Bazzar * Gettuwana * Polaththapitiya * Teliyagonna (Upper) * Teliyagonna (Lower)

Suburbs

* Wanduragala (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Malkaduwawa (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Mallawapitiya (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Millawa (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Uyandana (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Yaggapitiya (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Maveedalupotha (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Thittawella (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Maspotha (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Gepallawa (Polgahawela Pradeshiya Sabha) * Piduruwella (Polgahawela Pradeshiya Sabha) * Uhumeeya (Polgahawela Pradeshiya Sabha) * Kiralabokka (Polgahawela Pradeshiya Sabha) * Kalugamuwa (Polgahawela Pradeshiya Sabha) * Dambokka (Kurunegala Pradeshiya Sabha) * Hanhamuna (Wariyapola Pradeshiya Sabha)

Transportation

Kurunegala is a central city in Sri Lanka. It is directly connected to a large number of major cities and towns of the island. Kurunegala can be reached by the

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

on the Northern railway line."Sri Lanka Railways Timetable"
By road, it is connected to

, Puttalam, Trincomalee, Negombo,

Anuradhapura Anuradhapura ( si, අනුරාධපුරය, translit=Anurādhapuraya; ta, அனுராதபுரம், translit=Aṉurātapuram) is a major city located in north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central ...

and

. Due to its status as a crossroads city, the city is a good base for exploring important ancient landmarks a short distance away. The Kurunegala central bus stand, opened in 2005, is one of Sri Lanka's most efficient and modern bus stands, with a parking capacity of about 200 buses. Central Expressway Construction

Central Expressway Construction 2020 June

Under the directives of MoHEH, RDA has initiated a study to find out a suitable road corridor to construct the expressway from Kadawatha to Dambulla via Kurunegala under Central Expressway Project. The second stage of the construction of the Central Expressway Project (CEP Project-2) from Meerigama to Kurunegala was launched on 2017 February 1. Subsequently, the expressway will cross Gampaha, Meerigama, Kurunegala while ending at Dambulla. The project has been implemented in four stages; from Kadawatha to Mirigama (37 km), Mirigama to Kurunegala (39.28 km), Pothuhera to Galagedara (32.5 km) and Kurunegala to Dambulla (60.3 km). Expressway to Kurunegala was opened on 15 January 2022. Interchanges from Mirigama are Nakalagamuwa, Dambokka, Kurunegala and Yaggapitiya. Public transport was launched on 20 January 2022 through expressway.

Economy

Many major corporations have large branch offices in Kurunegala and many industries including textiles, Sri Lankan gemstones, furniture, information technology, and jewellery are found there.

Health care

The Teaching Hospital Kurunegala is the only one of that kind in NWP, is situated on the Colombo Kurunegala road about 0.75 k.m. away from the city towards Colombo. Teaching Hospital Kurunegala is one of the largest hospitals in Sri Lanka. The bed count is over 1700 and the staff is over 3500. The hospital spreads over 35 acres land and serves people through more than 100 units. The teaching hospital Kurunegala caters more than 1.2 million patients annually. This number includes the patients from the other districts also, namely

Polonnaruwa Poḷonnaruwa, ( si, පොළොන්නරුව, translit=Poḷonnaruva; ta, பொலன்னறுவை, translit=Polaṉṉaṟuvai) also referred as Pulathisipura and Vijayarajapura in ancient times, is the main town of Polonnaruwa Dis ...

, Trincomalee, and Mathale. There are some other leading private-sector health care service providers in north western province equipped with cutting-edge technology.

Education

Kurunegala is home to some of the island's oldest and leading schools.

National schools

* Bishop Lakdas de Mel College – Kurunegala * D. B. Welagedara Central College - Kurunegala * Defence Service College - Kurunegala * D. S. Senanayake Central College - Kurunegala * Hindu Tamil Maha Vidyalayam – Kurunegala * Hisbullah Central College - Kurunegala * Holy Family Convent – Kurunegala * Madheena National School - Siyabalagaskotuwa *

Maliyadeva Adarsha Maha Vidyalaya Maliyadeva Adarsha Maha Vidyalaya is a Buddhist mixed school in Sri Lanka, located in the North Western Province, Sri Lanka. The school currently has a student population of over 4,200 and a staff of nearly 200 teachers. The classes are held ...

- Kurunegala *

Maliyadeva Balika Vidyalaya Maliyadeva Girls' College ( Sinhala: මලියදේව බාලිකා විද්‍යාලය) is a national Buddhist school in Sri Lanka situated in Kurunegala. History Maliyadeva Girls' College was founded on 1 July 1946 by two ...

– Kurunegala *

Maliyadeva College ''විද්‍යා භූෂනං පුරුෂ භූෂනම්'' ''Vidya Bhūshanam Purusha Bhūshanam'' , motto_translation = Science is the jewel of man , location = Negombo Rd, Kurunegala , city ...

– Kurunegala * President Girls College - Kurunegala *

Sir John Kotalawala College Sir John Kothalawala College (Sir John Kothalawala Maha Vidyalaya) is a public college in the city of Kurunegala, Sri Lanka. It was established on 16 January 1974 and was formerly known as Bandaranayake Vidyalaya. History Sir John Kothalawala ...

– Kurunegala * Sri Nissanka Maha Vidyalaya – Kurunegala * St. Anne's College – Kurunegala * Vishvoda College - Kurunegala * Wayamba Royal College – Kurunegala * Zahira Central College - Kurunegala * S. W. R. D. Bandaranayaka College - Kurunegala * Athugalpura Prince College - Kurunegala

Private/international schools

* Amana International School * Cardiff International School * Lexicon International School *

Lyceum International School The Lyceum International School, popularly known as LIS and its students as Lyceumers, is a school providing primary and secondary education in Sri Lanka. It is a network of schools in Sri Lanka. History Lyceum International School was founde ...

* Royal International School * Sussex College Kurunegala * Unique International College * Wayamba International School

Tertiary education

The

Wayamba University of Sri Lanka Wayamba University of Sri Lanka ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා වයඹ විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ta, இலங்கை வயம்ப பல்கலைக்கழகம்) is the thirteenth national university in ...

is situated in Kuliyapitiya, while the Open University of Sri Lanka, the

Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology The Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා තොරතුරු තා‌ක්ෂණ ආයතනය; ta, இலங்கை தகவல் தொழில்நுட்ப நிறுவனம� ...

, the National Institute of Business Management, the College of Technology, the National Apprentice Industrial Training Authority, the Wayamba Technical College, the National Youth Council and the Vocational Training Authority have centres in the city. Most of the private-sector higher educational institutions also have branches in Kurunegala.

Sports

Major sporting venues in and around Kurunegala include: *

Welagedara Stadium Welagedara Stadium ( si, වෙලගෙදර ක්‍රීඩාංගණය , ta, வெலகெதர விலையாட்டு அரங்கம்) is a multi-use stadium that has hosted international and local cricket matches a ...

is the top sporting venue in Kurunegala. It regularly hosts First Class

Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

matches that are international and local types. * Maliga Pitiya Stadium *St. Anne's College Sport Complex *Maliyadeva Ground Kurunegala is one of the outstation cities that is popular for cricket and produced a number of cricketers that represented the nation. One of the best known spin bowlers of all time in Sri Lanka, Rangana Herath is an iconic cricketer from Kurunegala.

References

External links

History and Heritage of Kurunegala
{{Authority control Provincial capitals in Sri Lanka Populated places in North Western Province, Sri Lanka Populated places in Kurunegala District