cities and population

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is the administrative capital and seat of the national legislature and Colombo is the commercial center of Sri Lanka. Faced with the problem of congestion in the capital city of Colombo the government of Sri Lanka designated Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte as the country’s administrative capital. Sri Lanka is one of the Asian countries with two capitals alongside South Korea.

Colombo is a port city located in the southwestern part of the country. The city derives its principal significance due to its port, which is one of the largest human-made harbors in the world. It is also a major world port for both passenger and cargo ships.Colombo has a rich history as witnessed in its Dutch and British colonial style buildings. It has been an important port for traders throughout time, from Arab, Chinese, and Portuguese to Dutch. The city became the capital of the British Crown Colony of Ceylon in 1802 and capital of an independent Sri Lanka in 1948.

Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte is the official capital city of Sri Lanka. Founded in the 14^th Century, Sri Jayawardenepura served as the official capital of the Sinhalese Kingdom of Kotte up to the 16^th century. The city was then occupied by the Portuguese who fortified the city and later moved to Colombo once overwhelmed by the continuous attacks from the neighboring Sitawaka Kingdom. The city was designated as the new capital in 1977, after the government outgrew the independence capital, Colombo. In 1982, the new parliament was inaugurated in the city and other ministries began filing in. Sri Jayawardenepura is the administrative capital of Sri Lanka, and more government institutions continue to be relocated to the city from Colombo. The city is also home to the University of Sri Jayawardenepura, one of the leading higher institutions in the country.

The current population of Sri Lanka is 21,595,147 as of Thursday, July 14, 2022, based on Worldometer elaboration of the latest United Nations data.