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Tissamaharama ( , ) is a town in
Hambantota District Hambantota District ( ''hambantoṭa distrikkaya''; ''Ampāntōṭṭai māvaṭṭam'') is a Districts of Sri Lanka, district in Southern Province, Sri Lanka. It is one of 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of t ...
, Southern Province,
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
.


History

It was the capital of the
Kingdom of Ruhuna The Principality of Ruhuna ( Sinhala: , ), also referred to as the Kingdom of Ruhuna, is a region of present-day Southern and Eastern Sri Lanka. It was the center of a flourishing civilisation and the cultural and economic centres of ancient Sri L ...
as early as the 3rd century B.C. Few buildings from that period survived. The presence of early
Tamils The Tamils ( ), also known by their endonym Tamilar, are a Dravidian peoples, Dravidian ethnic group who natively speak the Tamil language and trace their ancestry mainly to the southern part of the Indian subcontinent. The Tamil language is o ...
in Tissamaharama was confirmed following archaeological excavations in 2010. The Tissamaharama Tamil Brahmi inscription, a fragment of black and red ware flat dish inscribed in Tamil in the Tamil Brahmi script was excavated at the earliest layer in the town. The large, artificial
Tissa Wewa Tissa Wewa may refer to any of the following: * Tissa Wewa (Anuradhapura), the artificial lake near Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka * Tissa Wewa (Tissamaharama), the artificial lake near Tissamaharama in Sri Lanka {{geodis ...
lake, which was a part of an
irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering of plants) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has bee ...
system, dates from that time. The five main nearby lakes are Tissa Wewa; Yoda Wewa; Weerawila Wewa; Pannegamuwa Wewa; and Debarawewa Wewa. The town mainly serves as a starting point for visits to
Yala National Park Yala National Park is the most visited and second largest national park in Sri Lanka, bordering the Indian Ocean. The park consists of five blocks, three of which are now open to the public. There are also two adjoining parks, Kumana National Pa ...
and
Kataragama Kataragama ( , ) is a pilgrimage town sacred to Buddhist, Hindu and indigenous Vedda people of Sri Lanka. People from South India also go there to worship. The town has the Kataragama temple, a shrine dedicated to Skanda Kumara also known as ...
.


Archaeology

The archaeological excavations brought to light earliest urban phase in the 4th century BC. Fired bricks, Buddhist saddle querns, a potsherd with triangular sail (excavated from the layer of 1st century BC but on stylistic grounds were assigned to 3rd century BC), a hospital from 1st century AD-2nd century AD, (the earliest in south Asia), stone paved streets with drains and water channels dated before the
Common Era Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the ...
, roof tiles, houses with plastered exterior etc. A Tissamaharama potsherd with alleged Tamil Brahmi inscription was unearthed, however the scripts revealed a unique language.


See also

* Tissamaharama Raja Maha Vihara * Tissa Wewa lake * Yatala Vehera


References


External links

Populated places in Hambantota District {{SouthernLK-geo-stub