Second largest city in Sri Lanka
About Kandy
Kandy is a major city located in the Central Province of Sri Lanka. It was the last capital of the Sinhalese monarchy from 1469 to 1818, under the Kingdom of Kandy. The city is situated in the midst of hills in the Kandy plateau. Kandy is the administrative capital of the Central Province, and considered as the cultural capital of Sri Lanka, due to its architectural heritage. Kandy is the home of the Temple of the Tooth Relic, one of the most important places of the Buddhist world. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1988. Historically the local Buddhist rulers resisted Portuguese, Dutch, and British colonial expansion and occupation.
Etymology
The city and the region have been known by many different names and versions of those names. Some scholars suggest that the original name of Kandy was Katubulu Nuwara located near the present Watapuluwa. However, the more popular historical name is Senkadagala or Senkadagalapura, officially Senkadagala Siriwardhana Maha Nuwara (meaning 'great city of Senkadagala of growing resplendence'), generally shortened to 'Maha Nuwara'. According to folklore, this name originated from one of the several possible sources. One being the city was named after a brahmin with the name Senkanda who lived in a cave nearby, and another being a queen of Vikramabahu III was named Senkanda, and after a coloured stone named Senkadagala. In addition, there is another idea that the ancient name Senkadagala was born from the name of Lord Vishnu, who was also known as Chenkatan. …
History
Historical records suggest that Kandy was first established by the Parakramabahu III (1357–1374 AD), who was the monarch of the Kingdom of Kurunegala, southeast of the present city, and named Senkadagalapura at the time. Minister and General Siriwardhana built the Asgiri Maha Viharaya in Kandy, which is the oldest establishment in Kandy. Sena Sammatha Wickramabahu (1473–1511) was the first king of the Kingdom of Kandy. He was a royal from the Kotte Royal Bloodline and ruled Kandy as a semi-independent kingdom under the Kingdom of Kotte, making it the new capital of the Kandyan Kingdom. Sena Sammatha Wickramabahu was followed by his son Jayaweera Astana (1511–1551) and then by Karaliyadde Bandara (1551–1581) who was succeeded by his daughter Dona Catherina of Kandy (1581–1581). Dona Catherina was succeeded by Rajasinha I. …
Geography and climate
Kandy is located in the mountainous and thickly forested interior of the island. The city is located in between multiple mountain ranges including the Knuckles Mountain Range and the Hanthana Mountain Range, giving the city an elevation of 500 metres (1,600 ft) above sea level. Kandy Lake, a human-made lake lies in the middle of the city, adjacent to the Central Business District (CBD). Udawattakele forest reserve located east of the CBD, make it the only city in Sri Lanka with a forest reserve located adjacent to the CBD. In Köppen-Geiger climate classification system, its climate is tropical rainforest (Af). With Kandy located in the centre of the island and in a high elevation, the city has a relatively wetter and cooler temperatures than that of the tropical climate of the rest of the country, especially the coastal regions. …
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