Jaffna Peninsula

The Jaffna Peninsula (Yāḻppāṇa kuṭānāṭu, or Yāḻ kuṭānāṭu) is a region in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is home to the capital city of the province, Jaffna, and comprises much of the former land mass of the medieval Jaffna Kingdom. The peninsula was historically divided into the three regions of Vadamarachchi, Thenmarachchi and Valikamam, which today make up three regions of the Jaffna District. The Naga people were one of the ancient tribes of Sri Lanka, who were mainly concentrated in the Jaffna Peninsula. The peninsula was also known in pre-mediaeval era as Naga Nadu, which means "Land of the Nagas" as mentioned in the twin epics of ancient Tamilakam, the Silappatikaram and Manimekalai. The Pali chronicle Mahavamsa also refers to the peninsula with the corresponding name as Nagadipa, meaning "island of Nagas", where it is described as a Chiefdom with rulers named as Diparaja, meaning "King of Island". Ptolemy, the Greek writer from 100 AD refers to Nagadipoi as one of the coastal towns of Taprobana. Naga identity was visible through personal names which observed in Pali chronicles and the Tamil Sangam literature. Some scholars postulate that the Naga people were the ancestors of Tamil-speaking Dravidians. Jaffna Kingdom In the 13th century, the Northern part of Sri Lanka including the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa was under the rule of Pandyan dynasty. Kulasekara Cinkaiariyan, a minister of the Pandyan dynasty, was installed as the king of peninsula. He was the first king of the Aryacakravarti dynasty. Under the rule of the Aryacakravarti kings, the Vannimai chieftains paid tribute to the Jaffna kings. The dynasty ruled the peninsula until 1619, after the last king Cankili II was killed under the Portuguese conquest of the Jaffna kingdom. Northern and Eastern coast of the peninsula were badly affected by tsunamis, especially of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake; this includes the villages in the Northern coast from Thondaimanaru to Thumpalai and Eastern coast from Vallipuram to Kuddarappu.