Ratnapura District

This article is about the district in Sri Lanka. For the town, see Ratnapura.

Ratnapura District
රත්නපුර දිස්ත්‍රික්කය
இரத்தினபுரம் மாவட்டம்
Administrative District
Map of Sri Lanka with Ratnapura District highlighted
Coordinates: 6°35′N 80°35′E / 6.583°N 80.583°E / 6.583; 80.583
CountrySri Lanka
ProvinceSabaragamuwa Province
Largest CityRatnapura
Government
 • District SecretaryMalani Lokupothagama
Area
 • Total
3,275 km2 (1,264 sq mi)
Population
 (2012)[1]
 • Total
1,088,007
 • Density332.2/km2 (860/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+05:30 (Sri Lanka)
ISO 3166 codeLK-91

Ratnapura (Sinhala: රත්නපුර දිස්ත්‍රික්කය, Tamil: இரத்தினபுரம் மாவட்டம்) is a district of Sri Lanka in the Sabaragamuwa Province.

This gem-mining centre of Sri Lanka is also a major crossroadd between southern plains and the hill country to the east. Many of Sri Lanka's prominent gem dealers operate from this market city, which services most of the surrounding towns. There is a route to Sri Pada from the direction of Ratnapura. Local attractions include Sinharaja Forest Reserve and Udawalawe National Park. The surrounding area is popular with trekkers and bird watchers. The district is home to Kukulugala, the 18th tallest mountain in Sri Lanka.[2][3]

Demographics

Ethnicity in Ratnapura District (2024)[4]
  1. Sinhala (87.6%)
  2. Sri Lankan Tamils (7.97%)
  3. Sri Lankan Moors (2.26%)
  4. Hill Tamils (2.09%)
  5. Others (0.07%)
Religion in Ratnapura district (2024)[5]
Religion Percent
Buddhism
 
 87.28%
Hinduism
 
 9.07%
Islam
 
 2.34%
Catholicism
 
 0.75%
Other Christianity
 
 0.56%
Other or not stated
 
 0.00%

The majority of the population are Buddhists. Other religions include Hinduism, Islam and Christianity.[6]

Religion Population(2012)
Buddhism 943,464
Hinduism 101,962
Islam 24,446
Christianity 18,056
Other Religion 79

Major cities

Large towns

Other towns

Administration

For administrative purposes, the district is divided into 18 Divisional Secretariat divisions:

  1. Eheliyagoda
  2. Kuruwita
  3. Kiriella
  4. Rathnapura
  5. Elapatha
  6. Ayagama
  7. Imbulpe
  8. Opanayaka
  9. Pelmadulla
  10. Nivithigala
  11. Kalawana
  12. Balangoda
  13. Weligepola
  14. Godakawela
  15. Kahawaththa
  16. Embilipitiya
  17. Kolonna
  18. Kalthota

Plantation companies

The Ratnapura district includes areas managed by Five Plantation Companies. Namely, Agalawatte Plantations PLC managed by Mackwoods, Balangoda Plantations PLC managed by Stassens, Pussellawa Plantations PLC, managed by Freelanka, Hapugastenne Plantations PLC Managed by Finlays, and Kahawatte Plantations PLC managed by Forbes.

The ownership of these companies lie with the State.

References

  1. ^ "Census of Population and Housing 2011".
  2. ^ "GeoNames.org". www.geonames.org. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
  3. ^ The national atlas of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka (Second ed.), Colombo: Survey Dept., Sri Lanka, 2007, ISBN 978-955-9059-04-2{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  4. ^ "Population by ethnicity according to Divisional Secretariat Divisions, 2024". Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. 2024.
  5. ^ "Population by religion according to Divisional Secretariat Divisions, 2024". Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. 2024.
  6. ^ Department of Census and Statistics,The Census of Population and Housing of Sri Lanka-2011 Archived 26 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine


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