Mudaliyar was a Ceylonese colonial title during Portuguese and British rule of the island. Stemming from the native headman system, the title was usually hereditary, made to wealthy influential families loyal to the British Crown.
Kalutara or Kalutota is a major city in Kalutara District, Western Province, Sri Lanka. It is also the administrative capital of Kalutara District. It is located approximately 43 km (27 mi) south of the capital Colombo. The city holds a unique position for one of the four major rivers in Sri Lanka, the Kalu Ganga, which joins the sea at the centre of the city. Kaluthara is known for making rope, baskets, and other articles from the fibre of the coconut palm. The area also produces the Mangosteens, a fruit introduced from Malaysia in the 19th century.
Sir Solomon Dias Abeywickrema Jayatilleke Senewiratna Rajakumaruna Kadukeralu Bandaranaike, was a Ceylonese colonial-era headmen. He was appointed as Head Mudaliyar and the aide-de-camp to the British Governor of Ceylon, therefore he was one of the most powerful personalities in British colonial Ceylon.
Charles Henry de Soysa Dharmagunawardana Vipula Jayasuriya Karunaratna Disanayaka popularly known as Charles Henry de Soysa, JP was a Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was a pioneering planter, industrialist and was the wealthiest Ceylonese of the 19th century. He was instrumental in the establishment of the first Ceylonese bank, the Moratuwa carpenters guild, the Ceylon Agricultural and National Associations. He is widely regarded as the greatest philanthropist of the island for contributions which includes the De Soysa Maternity Hospital, the Prince and Princess of Wales Colleges, the Model Farm Experimental Station and many other institutions and acts of charity, establishing infant-maternal healthcare and secular education for girls in the country. He would have been the island's first Knight Bachelor, but having died prior, his widow was given the rare honor of the use of the style and dignity of wife of the Knight Bachelor and was known as Catherine, Lady de Soysa.
Sir James Peiris was a prominent leader in the Sri Lankan independence movement, the first elected Vice-President of the Legislative Council of Ceylon and the first native Governor of Ceylon (Acting).
Sir Nicholas Attygalle was a Ceylonese academic, surgeon and a Senator. He was the President of the Senate of Ceylon from 1953 to 1960 and the first Ceylonese Vice-Chancellor of the University of Ceylon, where he was known as the "Iron Vice Chancellor".
Sir Susantha de Fonseka KBE was a Ceylonese statesman and diplomat. He was the Deputy Speaker of the State Council of Ceylon and following Ceylon's independence from Britain his first Ambassador to Burma and first Ambassador to Japan. De Fonseka took an active part in the country's struggle for universal suffrage and self-determination.
Sir Henry Lawson De Mel, was a Ceylonese industrialist, lawyer, philanthropist and politician. He was a member of the Legislative Council and founder of the H.L. De Mel & Co.
Sir Richard Aluwihare, was a Sri Lankan civil servant. He was the first Ceylonese Inspector General of Police and Ceylon's High Commissioner to India.
Gate Mudaliyar James Edward Corea was a Ceylonese colonial-era headman.
Justice Sir Harry Dias Bandaranaike was a Ceylonese barrister and judge. He was the first Sinhalese and native acting Chief Justice and Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. He was an Unofficial Member of Legislative Council of Ceylon.
Gate Mudaliyar Jeronis de Soysa was a pioneering Ceylonese entrepreneur and philanthropist. He was a pioneer coffee planter and an industrialist who became the wealthiest Ceylonese of the 19th century by establishing the largest native commercial enterprise of the era. He was instrumental in the establishment of the first Ceylonese bank and is often referred to as a father of private enterprise in British Ceylon. He was the first Mudaliyar to be elevated in recognition of his philanthropy.
Rajakaruna Senanayaka Panditha Herath Wasala Kuruppu Mudiyanse Ralahamillage Punchi Banda John Henry Meedeniya was a Ceylonese legislator and a headmen. He was the Kandyan Sinhalese member of the Legislative Council of Ceylon and elected member of the State Council of Ceylon for Ruwanwella. He was awarded the title of Adigar by the British Government of Ceylon.
Mahapitiyage Velin Peter Peiris, OBE, LRCP, FRCS, was a Ceylonese orthopaedic surgeon and politician.
Muhandiram was a post in the native headmen system in the lower-country of Ceylon during the colonial era. It was awarded as a title of honor until suspension of Ceylonese honours in 1956.
Edmund Rowland Jayathilake Gooneratne, Gate Mudaliyar, JP, was a Ceylonese British colonial-era administrator and a literary figure. He was also a scholar, intellectual, social worker, planter and a Buddhist revivalist. A resident of Atapattu Walawwa in Galle, E. R. Gooneratne served as the Atapattu Mudaliyar of Galle and as the Mudaliyar of the Governor’s Gate Later he was appointed as the acting Maha Mudaliyar. E. R. Gooneratne was the most influential native official of Southern Ceylon during the British colonial rule in the country.
Gate Mudaliyar Arunachalam Ponnambalam, JP, UM was a Ceylonese colonial-era government functionary, businessman and philanthropist. He was the cashier at the Colombo Kachcheri and was appointed to the titular rank of Gate Mudaliyar.
Simon Casie Chetty was a Ceylonese civil servant, author and member of the Legislative Council of Ceylon.
The Jayewardene family is a Sri Lankan family that is prominent in law and politics. Along with many members who have been successful politician across generations, the family includes Presidents and Prime Ministers of Sri Lanka.
Gate Mudaliyar Abraham Christopher Gregory Sooriyarachchi Amarasekara was a Sri Lankan painter. He is considered one the important Sri Lanka artists of the Ceylon Society of Arts of the mid 20th century.