The Sinhalese are the main ethnic group of Sri Lanka, constituting 74% of the population. They speak Sinhala an Indo-Aryan language, and number approximately 14 million.
The Sinhalese are also known as "Hela" or "Sinhala". These synonyms find their origins in the two words Sinha (meaning "lion") and Hela (meaning "pristine"). The name Sinhala translates to "lion people" and refers to the myths regarding the descent of the legendary founder of the...
more
Read article at Wikipedia
Sinhalese people
Similar topics in Freebase
-
Indian South Africans
Indian South African is a term which refers to people from India living in South Africa. Most Indians in South Africa migrated from colonial India during late 19th-century through early 20th-century. Therefore, the term "Indian" is also used to refer to people who originally hailed from the... -
Indo-Mauritian
Indo-Mauritians are people of Indian descent living on the island of Mauritius, where they represent a majority comprising 68% of the population according to the July 2007 statistics. There is also a significant migrant population of Bhumihar Brahmins in Mauritius who have made a mark for... -
Indo-Seychellois
Indo-Seychellois are people of Indian Origin who live in the Seychelles. They were brought in as indentured labourers. The majority were Hindus from North India; Tamil and Telugus from South India and Muslims (of all Indian origins) form the remainder of the population. While Indians represent a... -
Indian-Germans
The community of Indians in Germany includes Indian expatriates in Germany, as well as German citizens of Indian origin or descent. In the beginning of 2000, there were nearly 40,000 persons of Indian origin holding German citizenship, and just as many Indian citizens living in Germany. In the... -
Sri Lankan Australian
Sri Lankan Australian refers to people of Sri Lankan heritage living in Australia. This includes at least three Sri Lankan ethnic groups in Australia the Sinhalese, Tamils and Burghers. According to Australian Bureau of Statistics data, there is no self-identifying "Sri Lankan Australian" group.... -
Indians in Zambia
There is a small community of Indians in Zambia. Unlike the better-known Indian communities of East Africa, they were little-studied by historians until the 2000s. Indians from Gujarat arrived in what was then the British territory of North-Eastern Rhodesia (later part of Northern Rhodesia and then...