The Muslims and Sri Lanka

By Kamalika Pieris
.
The first wave of Muslims to arrive in Sri Lanka came from West Asia. Therefore let us briefly look
at the Muslim achievements in West Asia. Islam originated in the Arab Peninsula, where the
Prophet Mohammed preached in 622 AD. Islamic religious teachings are held in the Koran and the
Islamic social life is guided by the Islamic Sharia Law. The Arabs, once converted to Islam, went
on an expansionist spree which eventually swallowed up Egypt, Syria, Persia, Iraq and finally, in
711 AD, Spain. Virtually all those countries had their own civilisations prior to Islamisation. Persia
had developed the Persian script and had the Zoroastrian religion. But they all converted to Islam
and accepted the Arabic language. By the end of the 8th century, the Islamic empire extended
from Persia to Spain and included parts of Northern Africa as well. There were two political
centres. Firstly, Damascus (660-750 AD) and thereafter Baghdad (750-1258 AD).

Between the 8th and 12th centuries, there developed a great Islamic civilisation, intellectually
brilliant, wealthy and enterprising. This Islamic civilisation developed an urban civilisation well
before Europe, which got there several centuries later. Cairo in Egypt, Damascus in Syria and
Baghdad in Iraq were very advanced cities with paved streets, tiled floors, public baths,
bookshops, libraries, and universities. There developed a distinct Islamic art and architecture,
which is visible even today. There were great scholars, best known of whom is Avicenna, of
Persian origin, (980-1037 AD). His medical writings were used in medical schools in France, Spain
and Italy as late as 1650.

Western Europe owes much of its knowledge of mathematics, medicine, astronomy and
philosophy to Arabic writings. These writings preserved Greek thought as well. The Arabic writers
also functioned as a conduct for the transmission of ideas from India and China. The Arabic
scholars formulated the oldest known trignometric tables, introduced Indian numerals, known
Arabic numerals, and compiled astronomical tables. They established obsrvatories to study the
heavens. In the field of optics and physics, they explained phenomena such as refraction of light,
and the principle of gravity. They made significant advances in chemistry. They discovered potash,
alcohol, silver nitrate, nitric acid, sulphuric acid and mercury chloride. They originated processes
such as distillation and sublimation.

Arabic scholars made significant advances in medicine. Many drugs now in use are of Arab origin.
They established hospitals with a system of internees. Discovered causes of certain diseases and
developed correct diagnoses of them, proposed new concepts of hygiene, made use of
anesthetics in surgery with newly innovated surgical tools and introduced the science of dissection
in anatomy. They furthered the scientific breeding of horses and cattle, and improved upon the
science of navigation. They also developed a high degree of perfection in art of textiles, ceramics
and metallurgy. (Most of this information has been taken from references in Encyclopedia
Britannica, 15 ed. 1995).

Christian scholars were greatly impressed by Arabic scholarship. There was considerable cultural
interaction between the two groups, with much of it taking place in the Mediterranean shoes,
particularly Spain and Sicily. It is not generally known that Arabic culture influenced French culture
as well. There are words of Arabic origin in the French language. More importantly, voluminous
Latin translations were made in the 12th century, of major Arabic writings. These were studied
successively at the major emerging intellectual centres of Europe, such as Italy, France and later
England and Germany. It should also be noted that during this time, Arabic had become, not only
a religious language, but also the main international language of the region. (lingua franca). It was
also the main language for scholarship.

The Arabs also expanded eastwards, towards India and China, in search of trade. In the 9th and
10th centuries, an assortment of Persians, Arabs, Abyssinians, all Muslims, speaking Arabic and
therefore conveniently called 'Arabs' dominated the overseas trade from Baghdad to China. The
Muslims of Sri Lanka were a part of this trade operation. There is evidence that there were Muslim
merchant settlements in Sri Lanka as early as the 7th century. M. A. M. Shukri has used the
Arabic (Kufi) inscriptions in Sri Lanka to throw light on the origins of Sri Lanka's Muslims. He says
that the Sri Lanka Moors originally came from Aleppo, a city in Syria. ('Sri Lanka and the Silk Road
of the Sea' p181). Apparently there is an Arabic document in the possession of one of the oldest
Moor families in Beruwela. It said that in 604 AD two sons of the Royal family of Yemen came to
Lanka, one settled in Mannar the other in Beruwela (Daily News 25.9. 98. p 16).

Muslim settlements started in Mantai, and thereafter spread systematically in the trading ports.
Archaeological evidence, such as tomb stones, indicate that there were Muslim settlements in
10th century, in Anuradhapura, Trincomalee and Colombo. Thereafter, there were Muslim
settlements in the port towns along the southwestern seaboard, such as Beruwela and Galle.

Lorna Dewaraja, in her book "The Muslims of Sri Lanka, 1000 years of ethnic harmony 900-1915
AD" (Lanka Islamic Foundation, 1994) has studied the situation of the Muslims in Sri Lanka, with
particular reference to the Kandyan Period. She makes several important points.

Firstly, she makes a comparison between the way Muslim settlers were treated in Sri Lanka and
the way they were treated in Burma, China and Thailand. In Burma, Thailand and China, Muslim
traders established trading posts which eventually became permanent settlements. Every
Burmese Muslim had two names, one, Burmese and the other Arabic. For all practical purposes,
only the Burmese name was used. Further the Burmese king forbade the slaughter of goats and
fowl and forced the Muslims to listen to Buddhist sermons. In China too, the Muslims had two
names. They used the Chinese name and spoke Chinese and used their Arabic names only with
fellow Muslims. In Thailand too, the Muslims were obliged to camouflage their Muslim identity from
hostile eyes. (Dewaraja. p 6, 13, 15). In Sri Lanka, the Muslims had no such problems. As we all
know, the Muslims use their Arabic or Persian names very openly and proudly. Even today, the
Muslims in Kandyan areas have 2 names, a traditional Sinhala family name denoting the person's
ancestry and profession and an Arabic name. For all practical purposes, only the Arabic name is
known and used. The Sinhala name is used only in legal documents and is useful in proving long
residence in the island and ownership of land. (Dewaraja. p 12-13).

In the latter half of the 13th century, with the decline of the Caliphate of Baghdad, Arab
commercial activity in the Indian Ocean decreased. This trade was taken over by the Indian
Muslims of Gujerat and other Indian centres. Hindu merchants did not travel. They were based in
India. They exported their marchandise in Muslim owned vessels. Thus colonies of Islamised
Indians came up in the ports in India's south western (Malabar) and south eastern (Coromandel)
coasts right up to Bengal. Thus thriving centres of Muslim commercial activity studded the Indian
coastline. Subsequently, colonies of such Indo-Arabs emerged along the coasts of Sri Lanka.
These settlements were described by the Dutch and British as 'Coast Moors'. (Dewaraja p 41, 43).

The second wave of Muslims came to Sri Lanka from South India. They were the descendants of
earlier Arab traders who had settled in South Indian ports and married local women. Thus Tamil
and Malayalam came to be written in Arabic script, and was known as Arabic Tamil. The Koran
was translated into Arabic Tamil. It was translated into Sinhala only recently. Since it was
compulsory for Muslim children to read the Koran, they had to know Arabic Tamil. This partly
explains why Muslims who have lived for centuries in wholly Sinhala speaking areas retained
Arabic Tamil as their 'mother tongue'. Generations of Sri Lankan Tamils went to theological
institutions in Vellore to study Islamic learning. It has also been suggested that Muslims speak
Tamil because Tamil was widely used in maritime commerce in the Indian Ocean (Dewaraja p 17).

Lorna Dewaraja points out that during the time of the Sinhala kings, from the ancient period, right
upto the Kandyan Period, there was racial amity between the Sinhalese and the Muslims. The
reason was that the Muslim traders were economically and politically an asset to the Sri Lankan
king. The King therefore provided protection and permission for the traders to settle in Sri Lanka
(Dewaraja p 4).

"Right through from the Anuradhapura period to Kandyan times there was a Muslim lobby
operating in the Sri Lankan court. It advised the king on overseas trade policy. They also kept the
king informed of developments abroad. The Muslim trader with his navigational skills and overseas
contacts became the secret channel of communication between the court and the outside world"
(Dewaraja p 8). The Sri Lankan kings encouraged the Muslims to maintain their links with the
Islamic world as this was mutually beneficial. In the 13th century, Al Haj Aby Uthman was sent by
the Sri Lankan king, Bhuvanekabahu I to the Mamluk Court of Egypt to negotiate direct trade.
They were sent on important and confidential missions to South India right up to Kandyan times.
The Muslims of Sri Lanka spoke Tamil and other South Indian languages and some even spoke
Portuguese (p 8, 16).

Dewaraja says that when the Portuguese first appeared off the shores of Sri Lanka, the Muslims
warned the king, sangha, nobles and the people of the potential threat to the country's
soveriegnty. When the Portuguese tried to gain a foothold in Colombo, the Muslims provided
firearms, fought side by side with the Sinhalese and even used their influence with South Indian
powers to get military asistance to Sinhalese rulers. Through the intervention of the Muslims, the
Zamorin of Calicut sent three distinguished Moors of Cochin with forces to help Mayadunne (p 50).

When the Dutch appeared and persecuted the Muslims in their coastal settlements, the Muslims
ran to the Kandyan Kingdom. Senerat (1604-1635) and Rajasimha II (1635-1687) settled these
Muslims in the Eastern coast. Senerat settled large numbers of Tamils and Muslims in Dighavapi
area of Batticaloa to revive the paddy cultivation. There were roads leading from Kandy to
Batticaloa passing through Minipe and Vellassa (p 127).

Dewaraja points out that it is clear from the writings of Pybus that even in 1762 the authority of the
King of Kandy was strongly felt in areas around Trincomalee even among his Muslim and Tamil
subjects. It is necessary for us to bear in mind that the Kandyan Kings saw themselves as kings of
the whole country. Through Kottiyar in Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Kalpitiya and Puttalam they traded
with India, and the Muslims and Chetties acted as the middlemen. From Kottiyar (Trincomalee) to
Kandy there was a land route following the Mahaweli. Muslims had pack oxen and caravans and
travelled this rout. The resting places on this route became the nucleus of later Muslim settlements
(Dewaraja p 91, 125, 126).

Muslims were made welcome in the Kandyan Kingdom. They were integrated into Kandyan
society primarily by giving them duties which related to the King's administration. They were made
a part of the Madige Badda or Transport Department. They were allowed to trade in arecanut,
which was a royal monopoly. The Muslims from Uva, which was near the salterns, had to bring
salt as part of their obligatory service (Dewaraja p 100-101). In addition to this, select Muslims
were involved in the Maligawa rituals and were given Maligagam lands. Their duties included salt,
hevisi, silversmith (acari) also the higher function of kariya karavanarala. Therefore the Muslims
were involved however minimally in the administrative and ritual aspects of the Dalada Maligawa
as well (Dewaraja. p 107-8, 110). In addition, Muslims also functioned as weavers, tailors, barbers,
and lapidarists (p 137-138).

Muslims also functioned as physicians, and presumably they practised Unani medicine. Dewaraja
states that at this time, Unani had been practised in its pure form in towns like Colombo, Galle and
Beruwela (p 128). A Muslim physician named Sulaiman Kuttiya who was practising in Galle was
invited to the Kandyan court, taken into royal service and given land near Gampola. His
descendants who lived till 1874 carried the prefix "Galle Vedaralala" (p 91). The most renowned of
these Muslim physicians were the Gopala Moors of Gataberiya in the Kegalle District. The family
traces its pedigree to a physician from Islamic Spain, whose descendants migrated to the Sind in
Northern India, from where they were ordered to come to Sri Lanka to attend on King
Parakramabahu II of Dambadeniya (1236-1270) (p 128). The Gopala descendants continued to
function as physicians to the king, during reigns of Rajadirajasinghe (1782-1798) and Srivickrama
Rajasinghe. (1798-1815). The Dutch also appointed two Muslims as local physicians in their
hospitals, and one of them, Mira Lebbe Mestriar was thereafter appointed as Native
Superintendent of the Medical Department in 1806 by the British (p 133).

Another important function of he Muslims in the Kandyan Court, was that they acted as envoys to
the King. One Muslim envoy had been sent to the Nawab of Carnatic. Another had been sent to
Pondicherry soliciting French assistance against the Dutch, in 1765. The King also made use of
his Muslim subjects to keep abreast of developments outside his kingdom. The Muslims were
useful in this respect because of their trade links and knowledge of languages (p 135-136).

The Muslims were received favourably in the Kandyan Kingdom, as far as can be seen. Robert
Knox says that charitable Sinhala people giftd land to Muslims to live (Dewaraja p 115). Muslims
adopted the outward appearance and dress and manners of the Sinhalese. Even James Cordiner
couldnot see the difference (p 120). In Galagedara there are yet two villages occupied only by
Muslims, surrounded by Sinhala villages. These two villages had Masjids (p 104). Masjids were
built on lands donated by the king. Present Katupalliya and Meera Makkam Masjid in Kandy were
built on land gifted by the king. The architcture of the Katupalliya is Kandyan. (p114-115). Ridi
Vihare in Kurunegala gave part of its land for a Masjid and allocated a portion of land for the
maintenance of a Muslim priest (p 113).

In 1930, in Rambukkana many Muslim boys had received their education in Buddhist monasteries.
Many of them studied Sinhala and idigenous medicine. Facilities were provided for the Muslim
boys to say their prayers and attend Koranic classes, while living in the temple. In this remote
village in Rambukkana, Muslims made voluntary contributions towards the vihara and they
participated in the Esala Perahera. The drumers voluntarily stopped the music when they passed
Masjid (Dewaraja p 113).

Between Hammer and Anvil: Sri Lanka's Muslims

Adam's peak, a symmetrically conical mountain set in the gorgeous hill country of southern Sri
Lanka, is sacred to all of the island's main faiths. There is a strange indentation set in the living
rock of the summit. To the majority Sinhalese Buddhists (69% of the total population) it is the
footprint of the Buddha Gautama. The Tamil Hindus (21%) know better - it is, of course, the sacred
footprint of the God Shiva. Then again, the island's Muslims (7%) insist, it is the footprint left by
Adam when, cast out of the Garden of Eden by a wrathful God, he fell to earth in the place nearest
to that celestial grove in terms of beauty, fertility and climate - Sri Lanka.
In happier times Buddhist, Hindu and Muslim - together with the island's Catholic Christians, who
believe the footprint to be that of St Thomas - were content to disagree amicably, sharing the
pilgrimage season between December and April each year, when every night thousands of people
climb the seemingly endless stairs to the 2,224 metre summit and await the sunrise.

As the whole world knows, those days of inter-racial and inter-denominational harmony are long
gone - though not at Adam's Peak, secure in the government-dominated Sinhala heartland. Rather
the troubles are at the other end of the island, where for twenty years, ever since the simmering
hostility between Buddhist Sinhalese and Tamil Hindu exploded into open warfare, the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have pursued their struggle for a separate Tamil state.

As the third, and smallest, of the island's racial-religious communities, the Sri Lankan Muslims -
generally if confusingly known as "Moors" - have become the forgotten losers in this vicious
struggle. The Tamils, evidently misclassified by the British during their long hegemony in South
Asia as a "non-martial race", have fought with an extraordinary fanaticism under the cold
command of the LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakharan. From the earliest days of the war they did
not hesitate to employ "ethnic cleansing" - that late 20th century euphemism for genocide - against
Sinhalese villagers living in the north. Subsequently, and with the same ruthlessness, the same
tactic has been used against Muslims.

To understand why this should be so, it is necessary to examine the anomalous situation of the Sri
Lankan Moors - Tamil speakers who yet, for the most part, support the Sinhalese-dominated
government of Chandrika Kumaratunga.

There have been Muslims in Sri Lanka for well over a thousand years. Trading dhows plied the
waters between the Middle East and the island known to Arab sailors - like the legendary Sinbad -
as Serendib even in pre-Islamic times. The first Muslim merchants and sailors may have landed
on its shores during the Prophrt Muhammad's life time. By the 10th century this predominantly
Arab community had grown influential enough to control the trade of the south-western ports,
whilst the Sinhalese kings generally employed Muslim ministers to direct the state's commercial
affairs. In 1157 the king of the neighbouring Maldive Islands was converted to Islam, and in 1238
an embassy to Egypt sent by King Bhuvaneka Bahu I was headed by Sri Lankan Muslims.

From about 1350 onwards the predominantly Arab strain in Sri Lankan Islam began to change as
Tamil Muslims from neighbouring South India moved to the island in increasing numbers. By the
late 15th century, when Portuguese vessels first arrived in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lanka's Muslims
were truly indigenous to the island, representing a mixture of Sinhalese, Arab and Tamil blood,
and speaking Tamil with Arabic overtones, sometimes known as "Tamil-Arabic". None of this
made any difference to the newly-arrived Portuguese, for whom all Muslims were "Moors" - the
name given to their traditional enemies in Morocco and southern Spain. The name Moro -
employed as a derogatory designation by the Portuguese - stuck, and is today "worn with pride" by
Sri Lankan Muslims, in much the same way as the "Moros" of the southern Philippines.

In Sri Lanka, as everywhere they went, the Portuguese made a special point of persecuting the
Muslims. As a consequence, many fled the western littoral which had passed under Portuguese
control, and settled in the north and east of the island where their descendants live to the present
day. A hundred years later, in 1656, when the Dutch replaced the Portuguese, a third (and final)
element was added to the island's Muslim population - the Malay. Malay sailors had been visiting
Sri Lanka for centuries using long-distance outrigger canoes; now, with the arrival of the Dutch,
many more were brought from Java to serve their Dutch colonial rulers in Sri Lanka. In time they
were absorbed into the island's ethnically diverse Muslim community, though even today many Sri
Lankan Muslims identifying themselves as "Malays" rather than "Moors" can be found living in
Western Province, and especially in Colombo.
Today Sri Lanka's Muslims live scattered throughout the island, from Galle in the south to the
Tamil-dominated Jaffna peninsula in the north. Generally they are involved in commerce, from
running local dry goods stores to dominating the wealthy gem business associated with Ratnapura
- "Jewel City" and much of the capital's import-export business. In the disputed north and east of
the country, where the LTTE are currently battling the Sri Lankan armed forces, many Muslims are
farmers or fishermen, living in small villages far from the protection of government forces. It is
these people - the poorest of the island's "Moors", descendants of the orginal refugees displaced
by the Portuguese four hundred years ago - that are now caught up in the struggle for "Tamil
Eelam".

Most Moors speak Tamil as their first language, regarding Sinhalese and English as languages of
commerce to be used in their business dealings. Despite this linguistic affinity they do not consider
themselves Tamil, however, and have precious little sympathy for the Tamil Tigers' cause. Rather
they tend to support the government, albeit passively, wishing simply to pursue their business
interests with the full freedom of religion they have long been accustomed too. Unfortunately, this
is no longer possible. In those areas contested by the LTTE with a substantial Muslim population -
for example, Northern Province's Vavuniya District, and Eastern Province's Tricomalee and
Batticaloa Districts - they are under serious pressure.

Initially, it seems, the Tamil separatists hoped to enlist the Tamil-speaking Moors in their struggle
for an independent Tamil state encompassing all of Northern and Eastern Provinces. When the
Moors remained aloof - and even indicated support for the government position - they became
identified as enemies. Worse than that, as Tamil-speakers there seemed, to Tiger minds at least,
an element of treason in their lack of support. Subsequently, as the LTTE struggle for secession
developed into open warfare with the government in Colombo, Prabhakharan, showing
characteristic ruthlessness, targeted the Moors for "ethnic cleansing" - that is, physical expulsion
or elimination - from the lands sought by the Tigers as a Tamil homeland.

The Tigers first began to attack the Moors on a systematic basis over a decade ago. In August,
1990, in two separate incidents, more than 230 Muslims were massacred at prayer at towns near
Pulmoddai, in the north-east of the island. At the same time Prabhakharan gave notice that the
entire Muslim population of Northern Province, including the then rebel-held capital of Jaffna,
should leave contested areas forthwith or face being killed. An estimated one hundred thousand
people were affected by this threat, many of who have since fled to government-controlled areas
in the centre and south of the island. Tens of thousands were made destitute, the majority of
whom still eke out a living in refugee camps. Following this incident, Muslim fishermen became a
favourite target of LTTE maritime patrols, and Muslim businessmen a preferred target for
abduction and ransom.

Muslim leaders in the north and east have responded by voicing their own claims for autonomy in
the region, making it clear that - should the LTTE reach an agreement with Colombo on
autonomous status - they would seek to opt out from Tamil control. Prabhakharan's response has
been as vigorous and ruthless as ever. If the Muslims won't accept Tamil rule, they must be
expelled from Northern Province and Eastern Province en masse.

Caught in the intricate and seemingly endless web of violence between Tamil Hindu and
Sinhalese Buddhist, Sri Lanka's Muslims are increasingly desperate, unsure which way to turn,
and whom to trust. Forgotten victims of a particularly vicious war, they are trapped between
hammer and anvil, a long way indeed from the Garden of Eden.
A brief history of the Muslims of Sri Lanka

Introduction

Sri Lanka, known to the ancients as Ceylon, has been recorded in history books as a country that
has had many visitations from foreign travellers throughout the ages. The people are mainly
Buddhist, with a complex mixture of Hindus, Muslims, Roman Catholics and other Christian
denominations. The main race are the Sinhalese while the Tamils, Muslims and Burghers (Anglo-
Sri Lankans) form the remaining. The Muslims of Sri Lanka are a very small minority amounting to
approximately 10% of a total population of 16 Million people. They claim descendancy from the
Arab traders, who made Sri Lanka their home even before the advent of Islam. The Tamils
comprise around 25% of the population.

Sri Lankan Muslims can be categorized into two distinct sub groups, the Moors and the Malays.
The former is the name given to them by the Portuguese colonial rulers who used the word Moros
to identify Arabs in general. The Malays are a group of Muslims who originated from Java and the
Malaysian Peninsula. They differed from the Moors, both, in their physical appearance as well as
in the language they spoke which was a mixture of Malay and local dialects.

The Muslims of Sri Lanka have a colorful history behind them punctuated by a long spell of
hardship suffered during the Portuguese and Dutch ocupation of the Island. It is much to their
credit that they withstood the onslaught of economic constraints, political intrigues and religious
persecution to stay behind and survive. Most other peoples may have packed their bags and left
for good. They not only saved their religion from the Christian enemies but also rebuilt the
economy, slowly and steadily, by the 18th century when the British took over control of the island
from the Dutch.

Being geographically isolated from the main centers of Islamic culture and civilization the Muslims
of Sri Lanka were forced to interact closely with their neighbours, the Muslims of South India, in
order to preserve their identity. Had they been denied this slender link, it is possible that, they may
have lost their distinct Islamic character completely. However, it must be observed that this link
has also caused many Indian (Hindu) traditions and rituals to creep into their culture and life style,
some of which, even though vehemently anti-Islamic, are still practised to date. Lack of a correct
understanding of the teachings of Islam has been the main cause of this sad situation.

Having adapted to the local conditions in various ways and also contributing largely to the Islands
economic prosperity, the Muslim community of Sri Lanka, unlike the Hindu Tamils of the Northern
Province, has saved itself from any major clash with the indigenous Sinhalese population. They
have also been able to receive a fair share in the countrs Politics and Administration by virtue of
their hard work and also of being an important minority whose support has been vital to all the
political groups in the country. Although it may be said that the Muslim community was not
politically dominant at any stage, yet, it is certainly true that they manouvered their political activity
without much noise, unlike the Tamils.

This work attempts to present a brief history of the Muslims of Sri lanka from their early Arab
trader beginnings to the present day minority community that is fully integrated into the Sri
Lankan society.

Historical Background
Sri Lanka (previously known as Ceylon) lies of the south-east of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu.
The pear shaped island, often referred to as the pearl of the east is separated from mainland India
by a narrow strip of water called the Palk Straits.
Being in such close proximity to and having such easy access from India, it might be expected that
Sri Lanka received a large number of migrants from its neighbour from pre-historic times. The
original inhabitants of the island are believd to be an aboriginal tribe called the Veddahs. The
Sinhalese, presently the majority community, are supposed to be the descendants of the colonists,
led by Vijaya, from the valley of the Ganges who settled in the island around the 6th century B.C.
Sinhala, the language of the Sinhalese, is an Aryan language, closely related to Pali. Buddhism
was introduced to Sri Lanka during the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa during the period 307-
267 B.C.

Trade relations between India and Sri Lanka are traced to the 3rd century B.C. Historians have not
been able to pin-point the actual date of establishment of Tamil settlements in Sri Lanka. However,
during the 3rd century B.C. a Tamil General, Elara, set up a Tamil Kingdom at Anuradhapura, in
the North Central Province, and ruled there for 44 years. He earned a reputation for his just and
impartial administration among the Sinhalese and Tamils and was thus called Elara the Just.

The strategic location of the island, in the Indian Ocean, together with some of the coveted goods
it produced, resulted in a fair degree of foreign trade even from ancient times. The Romans
discovered the commercial value of Sri Lanka in the first century A.D. and the island was visited by
Greeks, Romans, Persians, Arabs, and Chinese traders. Sri Lankas trade offering included
Cinnamon, which grew wild in the forests of the wet zone, precious stones, pearls, elephants and
ivory.
While most of the traders were only visitors to the island, who made their fortunes and left, it was
the Arabs who settled down, making Ceylon their home. Furthermore as the Muslims of Sri lanka
claim their desecndancy from the Arabs it is imprtant to look at the information available on the
advent of the Arabs to the island.

The Arabs:
The Tamils of Sri Lanka, throughout history, have attempted to categorize the Sri Lankan Muslims
as belonging to the Tamil race. This has been mainly for selfish reasons in a bid to eliminate the
minority Muslim community from having its own unique identity. The Government of Sri Lanka,
however, treats the Muslims as of Arab origin and as a distinct ethnic group from the Tamils.

Fr. S.G. Perera in his book -History of Ceylon for Schools- Vol. 1. The Portuguese and Dutch
Periods, (1505-1796), Colombo (1955), The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd., p 16, writes,

-The first mention of Arabs in Ceylon appears to be in the Mahavansa (Ancient Sri Lankan history)
account of the reign of the King Pandukabhaya, where it is stated that this king set apart land for
the Yonas (Muslims) at Anuradhapura-

With the decline of the Roman Empire in the 3rd century A.D., Roman trade also died out and the
Arabs and Persians filled up the vacuum; engaging in a rapidly growing inter-coastal trade. After
the conquest of Persia (Iran), Syria and Egypt, the Arabs controlled all the important ports and
trading stations between East and West. It is estimated that the Arabs had settled in Sri Lanka and
Sumatra by the 1st century A.D. K.M. De Silvas, Historical Survey, Sri Lanka - A Survey, London
(1977), C. Hurst & Co. Ltd., p 50, states,

-by about the 8th century A.D., the Arabs had formed colonies at the important ports of India,
Ceylon and the East Indies. The presence of the Arabs at the ports of Ceylon is attested to by at
least three inscriptions discovered at Colombo, Trincomalee and the island of Puliantivu-

The manner in which Islam developed in Sri lanka is very closely similar to that on the Malabar
coast of India. Tradition has recorded that Arabs who had settled down on the Malabar coast used
to travel from the port of Cranganore to Sri lanka on piligrimage to pay homage to what they
believed to be the foot-print of Adam on the top of a montain, which, until today, is called Adams
Peak.

Ibn Batuta, the famous 14th. century Arab traveller, has recorded many facets about early Arab
influence in Sri lanka in his travelogues.
Before the end of the 7th. century, a colony of Muslim merchants had established themselves in
Ceylon. Fascinated by the scenic splendour and captivated by the traditions associated with
Adams Peak, Muslim merchants arrived in large numbers and some of them decided to settle in
the island encouraged by the cordial treatement they received by the local rulers. Most of them
lived along the coastal areas in peace and prosperity, maintaining contacts, both cultural and
commercial, with Baghdad and other Islamic cities.

According to Tikiri Abeyasinghe in his Portuguese Rule in Ceylon, 1594-1612, Colombo (1966),
Lake House Investments Ltd., p 192, tradition has it that,

-the first Mohammadans of Ceylon were a portion of those Arabs of the House of Hashim, who
were driven from Arabia in the early part of the 8th. century by the tyranny of the Caliph, Abdel
Malik bin Marwan, and who proceeding from the Euphrates southwards made settlements in the
concan in the southern parts of the peninsula of India, on the island of Ceylon and Malacca. The
division of them which came to Ceylon formed eight considerable settlements along the Nort-East,
North and Western coast of that island; viz., one at Trincomalee, one at Jaffna, one at Colombo,
one at barbareen, and one at Point de Galle.-

It is perhaps reasonable, therefore, to assume that the Arabs, professing the religion of Islam,
arrived in Sri Lanka around the 7th./8th. century A.D. even though there was a settled community
of Arabs in Ceylon in pre-Islamic times.

The circumstances that helped the growth of Muslim settlements were varied. The Sinhalese were
not interested in trade and were content in tilling the soil and growing cattle. Trade was thus wide
open to the Muslims. the Sinhalese Kings considered the Muslim settlements favorably on account
of the revenue that they brought them through their contacts overseas both in trade and in politics.
The religious tolerance of the local population was also another vital factor in the development of
Muslim settlements in Ceylon.

The early Muslim settlements were set up, mainly, around ports on account of the nature of their
trade. It is also assumed that many of the Arab traders may not have brought their womenfolk
along with them when they settled in Ceylon. Hence they would have been compelled to marry the
Sinhalese and Tamil women of the island after converting them to Islam. The fact that a large
number of Muslims in Sri Lanka speak the Tamil language can be attributed to the possibility that
they were trading partners with the Tamils of South India and had to learn Tamil to successfully
transact their business. The integration with the Muslims of Tamil Nadu, in South India, may have
also contributed to this. It is also possible that the Arabs who had already migrated to Ceylon, prior
to Islam, had adopted the Tamil language as a medium of communication in their intercourse with
the Tamil speaking Muslims of South India. The Muslims were very skilful traders who gradually
builtup a very lucrative trading post in Ceylon. A whole colony of Muslims is said to have landed at
Beruwela (South Western coast) in the Kalutara District in 1024 A.D.

The Muslims did not indulge in propagating Islam amongst the natives of ceylon even though
many of the women they married did convert. Islam did attract the less privileged low caste
members of the Tamil community who found the factor of equality a blessing for their status and
well-being.

There is also a report in the history of Sri Lanka of a Muslim Ruler, Vathimi Raja, who reigned at
Kurunegala (North Central Province) in the 14th. century. This factor cannot be found in history
books due to their omission, for reasons unknown, by modern authors. Vathimi Raja was the son
of King Bhuvaneka Bahu I, by a Muslim spouse, the daughter of one of the chiefs. The Sinhalese
son of King Bhuvaneka Bahu I, Parakrama Bahu III, the real heir to the throne was crowned at
Dambadeniya under the name of Pandita Parakrama Bahu III. In order to be rid of his step brother,
Vathimi Raja, he ordered that his eyes be gouged out. It is held that the author of the Mahavansa
(ancient history of Ceylon) had suppressed the recording of this disgraceful incident. the British
transaletor, Mudaliyar Wijesinghe states that original Ola (leaf script) was bodily removed from the
writings and fiction inserted instead. The blinded Vathimi Raja (Bhuvaneka Bahu II or Al-Konar,
abbreviated from Al-Langar-Konar, meaning Chief of Lanka of Alakeshwara) was seen by the Arab
traveller Ibn Batuta during his visit to the island in 1344. His son named Parakrama Bahu II
(Alakeshwara II) was also a Muslim. The lineage of Alakeshwara kings (of Muslim origin) ended in
1410. Although all the kings during this reign may not have been Muslims, the absence of the
prefix -Shri Sangha Bodhi- (pertaining to the disciples of the Buddha) to the name of these kings
on the rock inscriptions during this hundred year period may be considered as an indicator that
they were not Buddhists. Further during Ibn Batutas visit a Muslim ruler called Jalasthi is reported
to have been holding Colombo, maintaining his hold over the town with a garrison of about 500
Abyssinians.

In spite of this the Mulsims have always been maintaining very cordial relationships with the
Sinhalese Royalty and the local population. There is evidence that they were more closer to the
Sinhalese than they were to the Tamils. The Muslims relationship with the Sinhalese kings grew
stronger and in the 14th. century they even fought with them against the expanding Tamil kingdom
and its maritime influence.

By the beginning of the 16th. century, the Muslims of Sri Lanka, the descendants of the original
Arab traders, had settled down comfortably in the island. They were evry successful in trade and
commerce and integrated socially with the customs of the local people. They had become an
inseparable, and even more, an indispensable part of the society. This period was one of
ascendancy in peace and prosperity for the Sri Lankan Muslims.

The Malays:
Sri Lankan Muslims include the Malays although they form a separate group by themselves. Even
the earliest census of Sri Lanka (1881) lists the Muslims as Moors and Malays separately. Malays
too, follow the Islamic religion just like the Moors.
The real beginning of the Malays in Sri Lanka dates back to the 13th. century. Husseinmiya writes,

-The definite arrival of Malays in Sri Lanka took place in the 13th. century. Chandra Bhanu, the
Malay King of Nakhon Sri Dhammarat in the Isthmus of Kra on the Malay Peninsula invaded Sri
Lanka in A.D. 1247, with Malay soldiers. He was determined to possess the relics of the Buddha
from the Sinhalese kingdom. In a second invasion he brought soldiers from India-.

Chandra Bhanus 50 year rule of northern Ceylon in the 13th. century is remembered by such
place names as Java Patnam (Jaffna), Java Kachcheri (Chavakachcheri), Hambantota etc. Most
authors have, yet, linked the origin of the Malays in Ceylon to the period when the uisland was
ruled by the Dutch. Murad Jayah in -The plight of the Ceylon Malays today-, MICH Silver Jubilee
Souvenir, 1944-1969, Colombo (1970), p 70, writes,

-In 1709 Susana Mangkurat Mas, king of Java, was exiled to Sri Lanka by the Dutch with his entire
retinue. He was followed in 1723 by 44 Javanese princes and noble men who surrendered at the
battle of Batavia and exiled to this country with their families. These familes formed the nucleus
from which the Malay community grew.-

-The Dutch continued to bring more -Java Minissu- (Malay people) as exiles, and employed them
to fill the ranks of the army, the police force, the fire brigade, the prison staff and other services.
They formed the bulk of the servicemen during the Dutch occupation and the early British times.
The British too imported Malay families for settlement in Ceylon with the idea of raising a regiment.
The Kings colors were awarded in 1801 to the Ceylon Malay Regiment, the first Asian to receive
that Honor.-

The unsuccessful attempts of the British to attract more Malays from overseas, the meagre
salaries paid to the malay soldiers coupled with more avenues for lucrative employment in the
plantation industry, resulted in the disbandment of the malay Regiment in 1873. The Malays
released from the army were absorbed into the police and the fire brigade services.

The mother tongue of Malays is Malay (Bahasa Melayu). Murad Jayah writes,

-Bahasa Melayu has been preserved in this country for over 250 years due to the fact that the
original exiles from Indonesia were accompanied by their womenfolk and it was not necessary for
them to find wives among Sinhalese and Tamil women, unlike the Arab ancestors of the Ceylon
Moors.-

http://www.missionislam.com/knowledge/srilanka.htm