Districts (Sinhala: දිස්ත්රික්ක, romanized: Distrikka, Tamil: மாவட்டம், romanized: Māvaṭṭam) are the second level administrative divisions of Sri Lanka, preceded by provinces. Sri Lanka has 25 districts organized into 9 provinces.[1] Districts are further divided into a number of divisional secretariats (commonly known as D.S. divisions), which are in turn subdivided into 14,022 grama niladhari divisions.[2] There are 331 DS divisions in Sri Lanka.[3]
Each district is administered under a district secretary,[4] who is appointed by the central government.[5] The main tasks of the district secretariat involve coordinating communications and activities of the central government and divisional secretariats. The district secretariat is also responsible for implementing and monitoring development projects at the district level and assisting lower-level subdivisions in their activities,[6] as well as revenue collection and coordination of elections in the district.[7]
The country was first divided into several administrative units during the Anuradhapura Kingdom. The kingdom was divided into three provinces; Rajarata, Ruhuna and Malaya Rata. These were further subdivided into smaller units called rata.[8] Over time, the number of provinces increased, but the second-level administrative division continued to be the rata. However, with the country eventually being divided into more than one kingdom and with foreign colonial missions landing and taking parts of the country under their control, this structure began to change. The territory of the Kotte Kingdom was organized into four disavas, which were further subdivided into forty korales. The korales had their own civil and military officials with a small militia. The Jaffna kingdom appears to have had a similar administrative structure to this with four provinces.[9]
When the Portuguese took over parts of the country after their arrival in 1505,[10] they maintained more or less the same administrative structure followed by Sri Lankan rulers.[11] During the Dutch rule in the country, the terrain under their control was divided into three administrative divisions. These were subdivided into disavas as in earlier systems.[12] The British initially continued this system,[13] but following reforms in 1796 to 1802, the country was divided according to ethnic composition.[14][15] This was abolished by the Colebrook–Cameron reforms in 1833 and a legislative council was created,[16] making the island a politically and administratively single unit. Five provinces were created, later expanded into nine, and these were subdivided into twenty-one districts. These districts were administered by officials known as Government Agents or Assistant Government Agents.[14]
In 1955, the district replaced the province as the country's main administrative unit.[17] The Ampara District was created in April 1961,[18][19] followed by the creation of the Mullaitivu and Gampaha districts in September 1978[20] through a new constitution, which also reintroduced the provinces as the main administrative units.[21] The newest district to be created was the Kilinochchi district in February 1984,[22] and the current constitution states that the territory of Sri Lanka consists of 25 administrative districts. These districts may be subdivided or amalgamated by a resolution of the Parliament of Sri Lanka.[23]
Districts
All population data is from the most recent census of Sri Lanka, in 2012.
^Population density has been calculated using the land area rather than the total area.
Citations
^. Sri Lanka in Brief. Government of Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 7 July 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
^(PDF). World Food Programme. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2011. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
^. Archived from the original on 14 September 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
^. District Secretariats Portal. Ministry of Public Administration & Home Affairs, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 13 May 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
^"Kilinochchi a brief look". Daily News (Sri Lanka). 27 April 2009. Retrieved 1 August 2009.
^. Vavuniya District Secretariat. Archived from the original on 12 November 2010. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
^(PDF). District and Divisional Secretariats Portal—Ministry of Public Administration and Home Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-10-03. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
^Karalliyadda, S. B. (9 June 2013). . The Nation (Sri Lanka). Archived from the original on 2013-12-24.
^. The Constitution of Sri Lanka. Government of Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 31 May 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
^ abc"Table 1.1: Area of Sri Lanka by province and district" (PDF). Statistical Abstract 2014. Department of Census and Statistics, Sri Lanka.
^"Census of Population and Housing of Sri Lanka, 2012 - Table A1: Population by district, sex and sector" (PDF). Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka.
References
. International Centre for Ethnic Studies. Archived from the original on 2009-06-08. Retrieved 2009-07-18.
Siriweera, W. I. (2004). History of Sri Lanka: From Earliest Times Up to the Sixteenth Century. Dayawansa Jayakodi & Company. ISBN955-551-257-4.
Yogasundaram, Nath (2006). A Comprehensive History of Sri Lanka from Prehistory to Tsunami. Vijitha Yapa Publishers. ISBN978-955-665-002-0.
Peebles, Patrick (2006). The History of Sri Lanka. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN0-313-33205-3.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Districts of Sri Lanka.
"Provinces of Sri Lanka". Statoids.
April 11, 2023
districts, lanka, districts, sinhala, romanized, distrikka, tamil, வட, டம, romanized, māvaṭṭam, second, level, administrative, divisions, lanka, preceded, provinces, lanka, districts, organized, into, provinces, districts, further, divided, into, number, divis. Districts Sinhala ද ස ත ර ක ක romanized Distrikka Tamil ம வட டம romanized Mavaṭṭam are the second level administrative divisions of Sri Lanka preceded by provinces Sri Lanka has 25 districts organized into 9 provinces 1 Districts are further divided into a number of divisional secretariats commonly known as D S divisions which are in turn subdivided into 14 022 grama niladhari divisions 2 There are 331 DS divisions in Sri Lanka 3 Districts of Sri LankaCategorySecond level administrative divisionLocationSri LankaNumber25Populations92 238 2 324 349Areas699 7 179 km GovernmentDistrict secretariatSubdivisionsD S divisionsThis article contains Indic text Without proper rendering support you may see question marks or boxes misplaced vowels or missing conjuncts instead of Indic text Each district is administered under a district secretary 4 who is appointed by the central government 5 The main tasks of the district secretariat involve coordinating communications and activities of the central government and divisional secretariats The district secretariat is also responsible for implementing and monitoring development projects at the district level and assisting lower level subdivisions in their activities 6 as well as revenue collection and coordination of elections in the district 7 Contents 1 History 2 Districts 3 See also 4 Notes 5 Citations 6 References 7 External linksHistory EditThe country was first divided into several administrative units during the Anuradhapura Kingdom The kingdom was divided into three provinces Rajarata Ruhuna and Malaya Rata These were further subdivided into smaller units called rata 8 Over time the number of provinces increased but the second level administrative division continued to be the rata However with the country eventually being divided into more than one kingdom and with foreign colonial missions landing and taking parts of the country under their control this structure began to change The territory of the Kotte Kingdom was organized into four disavas which were further subdivided into forty korales The korales had their own civil and military officials with a small militia The Jaffna kingdom appears to have had a similar administrative structure to this with four provinces 9 When the Portuguese took over parts of the country after their arrival in 1505 10 they maintained more or less the same administrative structure followed by Sri Lankan rulers 11 During the Dutch rule in the country the terrain under their control was divided into three administrative divisions These were subdivided into disavas as in earlier systems 12 The British initially continued this system 13 but following reforms in 1796 to 1802 the country was divided according to ethnic composition 14 15 This was abolished by the Colebrook Cameron reforms in 1833 and a legislative council was created 16 making the island a politically and administratively single unit Five provinces were created later expanded into nine and these were subdivided into twenty one districts These districts were administered by officials known as Government Agents or Assistant Government Agents 14 In 1955 the district replaced the province as the country s main administrative unit 17 The Ampara District was created in April 1961 18 19 followed by the creation of the Mullaitivu and Gampaha districts in September 1978 20 through a new constitution which also reintroduced the provinces as the main administrative units 21 The newest district to be created was the Kilinochchi district in February 1984 22 and the current constitution states that the territory of Sri Lanka consists of 25 administrative districts These districts may be subdivided or amalgamated by a resolution of the Parliament of Sri Lanka 23 Districts EditAll population data is from the most recent census of Sri Lanka in 2012 District Area map Province Districtcapital Landareain km2 mi2 24 Inlandwaterareain km2 mi2 24 Totalareain km2 mi2 24 Population 2012 25 Populationdensityper km2 per mi2 a Ampara Eastern Ampara 4 222 1 630 193 75 4 415 1 705 649 402 154 400 Anuradhapura North Central Anuradhapura 6 664 2 573 515 199 7 179 2 772 860 575 129 330 Badulla Uva Badulla 2 827 1 092 34 13 2 861 1 105 815 405 288 750 Batticaloa Eastern Batticaloa 2 610 1 010 244 94 2 854 1 102 526 567 202 520 Colombo Western Colombo 676 261 23 8 9 699 270 2 324 349 3 438 8 900 Galle Southern Galle 1 617 624 35 14 1 652 638 1 063 334 658 1 700 Gampaha Western Gampaha 1 341 518 46 18 1 387 536 2 304 833 1 719 4 450 Hambantota Southern Hambantota 2 496 964 113 44 2 609 1 007 599 903 240 620 Jaffna Northern Jaffna 929 359 96 37 1 025 396 583 882 629 1 630 Kalutara Western Kalutara 1 576 608 22 8 5 1 598 617 1 221 948 775 2 010 Kandy Central Kandy 1 917 740 23 8 9 1 940 750 1 375 382 716 1 850 Kegalle Sabaragamuwa Kegalle 1 685 651 8 3 1 1 693 654 840 648 499 1 290 Kilinochchi Northern Kilinochchi 1 205 465 74 29 1 279 494 113 510 94 240 Kurunegala North Western Kurunegala 4 624 1 785 192 74 4 816 1 859 1 618 465 350 910 Mannar Northern Mannar 1 880 730 116 45 1 996 771 99 570 53 140 Matale Central Matale 1 952 754 41 16 1 993 770 484 531 248 640 Matara Southern Matara 1 270 490 13 5 0 1 283 495 814 048 641 1 660 Monaragala Uva Monaragala 5 508 2 127 131 51 5 639 2 177 451 058 82 210 Mullaitivu Northern Mullaitivu 2 415 932 202 78 2 617 1 010 92 238 38 98 Nuwara Eliya Central Nuwara Eliya 1 706 659 35 14 1 741 672 711 644 417 1 080 Polonnaruwa North Central Polonnaruwa 3 077 1 188 216 83 3 293 1 271 406 088 132 340 Puttalam North Western Puttalam 2 882 1 113 190 73 3 072 1 186 762 396 265 690 Ratnapura Sabaragamuwa Ratnapura 3 236 1 249 39 15 3 275 1 264 1 088 007 336 870 Trincomalee Eastern Trincomalee 2 529 976 198 76 2 727 1 053 379 541 150 390 Vavuniya Northern Vavuniya 1 861 719 106 41 1 967 759 172 115 92 240 Total 62 705 24 211 2 905 1 122 65 610 25 330 20 359 439 325 840 See also EditISO 3166 2 LKNotes Edit Population density has been calculated using the land area rather than the total area Citations Edit At a Glance Sri Lanka in Brief Government of Sri Lanka Archived from the original on 7 July 2009 Retrieved 21 July 2009 Identification of DS Divisions of Sri Lanka Vulnerable for food insecurity PDF World Food Programme Archived from the original PDF on 4 March 2011 Retrieved 21 July 2009 Grama Niladhari Administration Division Archived from the original on 14 September 2016 Retrieved 23 June 2016 Vision amp Mission District Secretariats Portal Ministry of Public Administration amp Home Affairs Sri Lanka Archived from the original on 13 May 2009 Retrieved 21 July 2009 Kilinochchi a brief look Daily News Sri Lanka 27 April 2009 Retrieved 1 August 2009 About Us Vavuniya District Secretariat Archived from the original on 12 November 2010 Retrieved 29 July 2009 Performs Report and Accounts 2008 PDF District and Divisional Secretariats Portal Ministry of Public Administration and Home Affairs Archived from the original PDF on 2011 10 03 Retrieved 2009 07 29 Siriweera 2004 p 91 Yogasundaram 2006 p 170 Hewavissenti Panchamee 3 February 2008 Episodes of colonised history Sunday Observer Sri Lanka Archived from the original on 7 February 2008 Retrieved 21 July 2009 Yogasundaram 2006 p 168 Yogasundaram 2006 p 195 Yogasundaram 2006 p 214 a b Yogasundaram 2006 p 258 Peebles 2006 p 48 Peebles 2006 p 52 Peebles 2006 p 110 Overview Ampara District Secretariat Archived from the original on 2013 12 24 Retrieved 2013 12 22 Mohideen M I M 27 December 2007 Sinhalisation of East A reply to Minister Champika Ranawaka The Island Sri Lanka Population by sex and district census years PDF Statistical Abstract 2011 Department of Census amp Statistics Sri Lanka Archived from the original PDF on 2012 11 13 Schmiegelow Michele 1997 Democracy in Asia Palgrave Macmillan p 425 ISBN 0 312 16495 5 Karalliyadda S B 9 June 2013 Awakening Jaffna Uthuru Wasanthaya The Nation Sri Lanka Archived from the original on 2013 12 24 Chapter 1 The People The State and Sovereignty The Constitution of Sri Lanka Government of Sri Lanka Archived from the original on 31 May 2014 Retrieved 21 July 2009 a b c Table 1 1 Area of Sri Lanka by province and district PDF Statistical Abstract 2014 Department of Census and Statistics Sri Lanka Census of Population and Housing of Sri Lanka 2012 Table A1 Population by district sex and sector PDF Department of Census amp Statistics Sri Lanka References Edit Administrative Districts and Main Towns of Sri Lanka International Centre for Ethnic Studies Archived from the original on 2009 06 08 Retrieved 2009 07 18 Siriweera W I 2004 History of Sri Lanka From Earliest Times Up to the Sixteenth Century Dayawansa Jayakodi amp Company ISBN 955 551 257 4 Yogasundaram Nath 2006 A Comprehensive History of Sri Lanka from Prehistory to Tsunami Vijitha Yapa Publishers ISBN 978 955 665 002 0 Peebles Patrick 2006 The History of Sri Lanka Greenwood Publishing Group ISBN 0 313 33205 3 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Districts of Sri Lanka Provinces of Sri Lanka Statoids Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Districts of Sri Lanka amp oldid 1129813495, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
