Kilinochchi is the main town of Kilinochchi District, Northern Province of Sri Lanka. Kilinochchi is situated at the A9 road some 100 km (62 mi) south-east of Jaffna. It was the administrative center and de facto capital of the LTTE until 2 January 2009, when troops of the Sri Lankan Army recaptured the city.
Sri Lankan Tamils, also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils in Tamil, are members of the Tamil ethnic group native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. According to anthropological and archaeological evidence, Sri Lankan Tamils have a very long history in Sri Lanka and have lived on the island since at least around the 2nd century BCE. Most modern Sri Lankan Tamils claim descent from residents of Jaffna Kingdom, a former kingdom in the north of the island and Vannimai chieftaincies from the east. They constitute a majority in the Northern Province, live in significant numbers in the Eastern Province and are in the minority throughout the rest of the country. 70% of Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka live in the Northern and Eastern provinces.
Kankesanthurai, colloquially known as KKS, is a port suburb, fishing division and resort hub of the Jaffna District, Northern Province, Sri Lanka. Formerly an electoral district, Kankesanthurai is home to the Kankesanthurai beach, Keerimalai Naguleswaram temple and the Maviddapuram Kandaswamy Temple. The port's harbour has served as an arrival and departure point for pilgrims since classical antiquity and is named after the Sri Lankan Tamil god Murukan. Kankesanthurai suburb has many fishing villages and Grama Niladhari and is a northern part of Valikamam, one of the three regions of ancient habitation on the Jaffna peninsula, located on the peninsula's northern coast, 12 miles from Jaffna city, 85 miles from Mannar and 155 miles from Trincomalee.
Kilinochchi District is one of the 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary appointed by the central government of Sri Lanka. The capital of the district is the town of Kilinochchi.
The Vanni Nadu were feudal land divisions ruled by chiefs south of the Jaffna peninsula in northern Sri Lanka. These chieftaincies arose in the 12th century, with the rise of the medieval Tamil kingdom's golden age and the collapse of the Rajarata kingdom. The chieftaincies developed in sparsely settled areas, and were ruled by Vanniars. An extension of the Jaffna kingdom's territory, the chiefs of the Vanni Nadu were, for most of their existence, tribute-paying subordinates to Jaffna. At 1621, the Jaffna Kingdom was conquered by the Portuguese and the Vanni chiefs became tributaries of the Portuguese Ceylon. The Portuguese colony in Sri Lanka was later taken over by the Dutch. During the Dutch rule it came to Vannian resistances against the colonial rule, one of these was the rebellion of Pandara Vanniyan. Allied with the Kingdom of Kandy, Pandara Vanniyan fought with guerrilla tactics against the Dutch and British. At 1803, he was defeated by Lt. von Driberg and Vanni fell into hands of the British. Vanni had been reincorporated with Jaffna Peninsula to form the Malabar Coylot Vanni country which later became the Northern Province of Sri Lanka.
The Portuguese conquest of the Jaffna kingdom occurred after Portuguese traders arrived at the rival Kotte Kingdom in the southwest of modern Sri Lanka in 1505. Many kings of Jaffna, such as Cankili I, initially confronted the Portuguese in their attempts at converting the locals to Roman Catholicism, but eventually made peace with them.
The Church of Ceylon is the Anglican Church in Sri Lanka, as an extra-provincial diocese of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It was established with the appointment of its first Bishop, James Chapman in 1845 as the Bishop of Colombo. Until 1950 it consisted only of the Diocese of Colombo but a second diocese was established at Kurunegala in that year.
The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka provides for the election of members of Parliament from 22 multi-member electoral districts through the proportional representation electoral system.
Chavakachcheri Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between August 1947 and February 1989. The district was named after the town of Chavakachcheri in Jaffna District, Northern Province. Kilinochchi Electoral District was carved out of the southern part of the district in March 1960. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Chavakachcheri electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Chavakachcheri continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
Jaffna Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between August 1947 and February 1989. The district was named after the city of Jaffna in Jaffna District, Northern Province. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Jaffna electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Jaffna continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
Kankesanthurai Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between August 1947 and February 1989. The district was named after the town of Kankesanthurai in Jaffna District, Northern Province. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Kankesanthurai electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Kankesanthurai continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
Kayts Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between August 1947 and February 1989. The district was named after the island of Kayts in Jaffna District, Northern Province. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Kayts electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Kayts continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
Kilinochchi Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between March 1960 and February 1989. The district was named after the town of Kilinochchi in Kilinochchi District, Northern Province. The district was carved out of the southern part of Chavakacheri Electoral District in March 1960. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Kilinochchi electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Kilinochchi continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
Nallur Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between March 1960 and February 1989. The district was named after the town of Nallur in Jaffna District, Northern Province. The district was carved out of the eastern part of Jaffna Electoral District in March 1960. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Nallur electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Nallur continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
Point Pedro Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between August 1947 and February 1989. The district was named after the town of Point Pedro in Jaffna District, Northern Province. Udupiddy Electoral District was carved out of the western part of the district in March 1960. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Point Pedro electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Point Pedro continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
Udupiddy Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between March 1960 and February 1989. The district was named after the town of Udupiddy in Jaffna District, Northern Province. The district was carved out of the western part of Point Pedro Electoral District in March 1960. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Udupiddy electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Udupiddy continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
Uduvil Electoral District was an electoral district of Sri Lanka between March 1960 and February 1989. The district was renamed Manipay Electoral District in July 1977. The district was named after the towns of Uduvil and Manipay in Jaffna District, Northern Province. The 1978 Constitution of Sri Lanka introduced the proportional representation electoral system for electing members of Parliament. The existing 160 mainly single-member electoral districts were replaced with 22 multi-member electoral districts. Manipay electoral district was replaced by the Jaffna multi-member electoral district at the 1989 general elections, the first under the PR system, though Manipay continues to be a polling division of the multi-member electoral district.
The Northern Province is one of the nine provinces of Sri Lanka, the first level administrative division of the country. The provinces have existed since the 19th century but did not have any legal status until 1987 when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka established provincial councils. Between 1988 and 2006 the province was temporarily merged with the Eastern Province to form the North Eastern Province. The capital of the province is Jaffna. The majority of the Sri Lankan Civil War was played out in this province.
