Anuradhapura

Anuradhapura (, ; , ) is a major city located in the north central plain of Sri Lanka. It is the capital city of North Central Province and the capital of Anuradhapura District. The city lies north of the current capital of Colombo in the North Central Province, on the banks of the historic Malwathu Oya. The city is now a World Heritage Site famous for its well-preserved ruins of the ancient Sinhalese civilisation.

AI overview

Anuradhapura is an ancient city in Sri Lanka's north central region that now serves as the capital of the North Central Province and Anuradhapura District. It is recognized as a World Heritage Site for its well-preserved ruins, which represent an important period of early Sinhalese civilization.

AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.

Key facts

Settlement.official_name: Anuradhapura
Settlement.settlement_type: City
Settlement.pushpin_map: Sri Lanka
Settlement.pushpin_label_position: bottom
Settlement.pushpin_map_caption: Location in Sri Lanka
Settlement.subdivision_type: Country
Settlement.subdivision_name: Sri Lanka
Settlement.subdivision_type1: Province
Settlement.subdivision_name1: North Central Province
Settlement.subdivision_type2: District
Settlement.subdivision_name2: Anuradhapura
Settlement.government_type: Municipal Council
Settlement.leader_title: Mayor
Settlement.established_title: Established
Settlement.established_date: 5th century BC
Settlement.area_total_km2: 7179
Settlement.area_urban_km2: 36
Settlement.population_as_of: 2012

via Wikipedia infobox

Wikidata facts

Instance of: archaeological site
Country: Sri Lanka
Located in: Anuradhapura District
Population: 63208
Area: 7179
Elevation: 81
Time zone: UTC+05:30
Capital of: Anuradhapura District
Image: Anuradhapura 02.jpg

Show 6 more facts

postal code: 50000
Commons category: Anuradhapura
topic's main category: Category:Anuradhapura
heritage designation: World Heritage Site
member of: Organization of World Heritage Cities
P12749: Greek alphabet

Sources (5)

via Wikidata · CC0

~17 min read

Encyclopedic overview

20 sections

Contents

Etymology
History
Prehistoric and Early Settlement (before 4th century BCE)
Anuradhapura as the Ancient Capital (4th century BCE – 11th century CE)
Medieval Period and Decline
Colonial Restoration and Archaeological Work (10th – early 20th centuries)
Modern Era and Heritage Conservation (20th century – present)
Sacred City and Colonial-Era Urban Development (Late 19th – mid-20th centuries)
Modern Era and Heritage Conservation (Mid-20th century – present)
Buddhism and Cultural Heritage
Sacred city and new town
Places of veneration
Other structures
Demographics
Climate
Transportation
See also
Further reading
References
External links

While Mahāvaṃsa places the founding of the city in 437 BCE, the site has been inhabited for much longer, making it a major human settlement on the island for almost three millennia and one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in Asia. It is the cradle of the Hydraulic Sinhalese civilisation, Theravada Buddhism, and the longest-serving ancient capital of Sri Lanka that has survived for 1500 years. Moreover, it was the first capital of the Sinhala Kingdom of Rajarata, following the kingdoms of Tambapanni and Upatissa Nuwara. Anuradhapura was also the centre of Theravada Buddhism for many centuries and has been a major Buddhist pilgrimage site with ruins of many ancient Buddhist temples, including the famous Anuradhapura Maha Viharaya and the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi, the oldest still-living, documented, planted tree in the world believed to have originated from the original Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya (Bihar, India) under which the Buddha attained enlightenment. These vast networks of ancient temples and monasteries now cover over of area of the city today.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Anuradhapura” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.