Knowra Sinhala language Sinhala language Sinhala is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly by the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka. It is one of Sri Lanka’s official languages and has a distinctive script and literary tradition.
Sinhala script : An abugida used to write Sinhala, with rounded letter forms and symbols for consonants and vowels. Its distinctive letters represent the language in writing.
Old Sinhala : The earliest documented stage of Sinhala, represented in inscriptions and texts from ancient Sri Lanka. Its inscriptions preserve early evidence of the language’s development.
Sri Lankan literature : Literary works produced in Sri Lanka across its languages, traditions, and historical periods. Sinhala has a long literary tradition within this multilingual body of writing.
Tamil language : A Dravidian language spoken chiefly in southern India and Sri Lanka. Tamil is Sri Lanka’s other official language and belongs to a different language family.
Indo-Aryan languages : A branch of the Indo-Iranian languages, including Sinhala, Bengali, Hindi, and Marathi. Sinhala belongs to this wider language family.
Middle Sinhala : The historical stage of Sinhala between its earliest documented form and modern Sinhala. Its texts show changes linking Old Sinhala to the modern language.
Theravada Buddhism : A major Buddhist tradition whose canonical scriptures are preserved in Pali. Sinhala serves Buddhist teaching, ritual, and commentary in Sri Lanka.
Sanskrit : An ancient Indo-Aryan language of South Asia, used in classical literature and Hindu and Buddhist traditions. Unlike Sinhala, Sanskrit is a classical language rather than a community’s principal everyday language.
Sinhala phonology : The sound system of Sinhala, including its vowels, consonants, and patterns of pronunciation. Its sound patterns help distinguish spoken Sinhala from related languages.
Prakrit : A group of Middle Indo-Aryan languages used in ancient South Asia, distinct from classical Sanskrit. Sinhala developed from an Indo-Aryan vernacular related to the Prakrit languages.
Show all 20