Knowra Anuradhapura Kingdom Anuradhapura Kingdom An ancient Sinhalese kingdom in Sri Lanka, centered on Anuradhapura and lasting from the fourth century BCE to the early eleventh century CE. Its rulers built an enduring irrigation system and made Buddhism central to political and religious life.
Anuradhapura : A historic city in north-central Sri Lanka that served as the island’s ancient capital. Its reservoirs, monasteries, and royal precincts formed the kingdom’s political and religious center.
Pandukabhaya : A king of early Sri Lanka traditionally credited with establishing Anuradhapura as a capital. Chronicles place his reign near the city’s emergence as a planned royal center.
Ruwanwelisaya : A large Buddhist stupa in Anuradhapura, traditionally commissioned by King Dutugemunu in the second century BCE. Its scale made royal devotion visible in the kingdom’s capital.
Polonnaruwa Kingdom : A medieval Sinhalese kingdom in Sri Lanka, centered at Polonnaruwa after Anuradhapura’s decline. It inherited political and religious traditions after Anuradhapura ceased to be the island’s principal capital.
Ancient Sri Lankan irrigation : A system of reservoirs, canals, and water-management works developed to support agriculture in Sri Lanka’s dry zone. Reservoirs stored monsoon water for rice cultivation and helped sustain the capital’s population.
Mahavamsa : A Pali chronicle of Sri Lankan kings and Buddhist history, compiled by monks in the fifth or sixth century CE. It preserves the kingdom’s foundation narratives and dynastic chronology.
Abhayagiri Vihara : A major Buddhist monastery complex in Anuradhapura, founded under King Vattagamani Abhaya. It illustrates the scale and institutional diversity of monastic life under Anuradhapura’s rulers.
Sri Lankan Buddhism : The forms of Buddhist practice and institutions that developed in Sri Lanka, especially within the Theravada tradition. Anuradhapura’s monasteries and royal sponsorship shaped Buddhism’s lasting place on the island.
Sinhalese monarchy : A succession of hereditary and dynastic kingships that governed Sinhalese polities in Sri Lanka. Kings organized defense, irrigation, and Buddhist patronage across the kingdom.
Dipavamsa : An early Pali chronicle of Sri Lanka, probably composed by Buddhist monks in the fourth century CE. Its account offers an earlier monastic version of the kingdom’s beginnings.
Show all 22