Maradankulama or Maradankulam is a village situated within the North Western Province 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 ...

. It is one of the oldest settlements within the geographic region that formed the medieval divisions of the country called

Demala Pattuva Demala Hatpattu (Tamil Seven Regions) or Demala Pattu or Demala Pattuva was a medieval and pre colonial division of Sri Lanka. It was a regional political division formed by royal land grants. There were number of such Pattus across the country. ...

. Most villagers speak Sinhala language but unlike the majority of Sinhala language speakers who are

Buddhists 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 ...

, they are

Saivite Shaivism (; sa, शैवसम्प्रदायः, Śaivasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu traditions, which worships Shiva as the Supreme Being. One of the largest Hindu denominations, it incorporates many sub-traditions rangi ...

Hindus Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

like the minority

Sri Lankan Tamils 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 Pro ...

.Bastin, '' The Domain of Constant Excess: Plural Worship at the Munnesvaram Temples in Sri Lanka Short history of Ceylon'', p.152 The village hosts an important festival dedicated to

Ayyanar Ayyanar (IAST: Aiyaṉār, ta, ஐயனார்) is a Hindu deity venerated in South India and Sri Lanka. His worship is prevalent among the Dravidian peoples, Dravidian peoples. Some studies suggest that Ayyanar may have also been worshippe ...

who is a popular village guardian deity. The village along with another predominantly Hindu village

Udappu Udappu or Udappuwa ( ta, உடப்பு) is a traditional Tamil fishing and shrimp farming village. situated north of Colombo the capital of Sri Lanka in the North Western Province. (English) It is situated few miles north of Chilaw city and ...

also sponsors a day in the annual chariot festival of the

Munneswaram temple Munneswaram temple ( ta, முன்னேசுவரம் கோயில், si, මුන්නේශ්වරම් කෝවිල) is an important regional Hindu temple complex in Sri Lanka. It has been in existence at least since 1000 ...

situated nearby.

Notes

3. Mr Bastin has given some wrong information about the village.

References

* {{coord, 7, 33, N, 79, 50, E, display=title, region:LK_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki Populated places in North Western Province, Sri Lanka Populated places in Puttalam District