Jaffna District
Jaffna District (Tamil: யாழ்ப்பாணம் மாவட்டம் Yāḻppāṇam Māvaṭṭam; Sinhala: යාපනය දිස්ත්රික්කය yāpanaya distrikkaya) is one of the 25 districts of Sri Lanka, the second level administrative division of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a District Secretary (previously known as a Government Agent) appointed by the central government of Sri Lanka. The capital of the district is the city of Jaffna.
Jaffna District
யாழ்ப்பாணம் மாவட்டம் යාපනය දිස්ත්රික්කය | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 09°40′N 80°10′E | |
Country | Sri Lanka |
Province | Northern |
Capital | Jaffna |
DS Division | |
Government | |
• District Secretary | Kanapathipillai Mahesan[1] |
• MPs | |
• MPCs | List
|
Area | |
• Total | 1,025 km2 (396 sq mi) |
• Land | 929 km2 (359 sq mi) |
• Water | 96 km2 (37 sq mi) 9.37% |
• Rank | 24th (1.56% of total area) |
Population (2012 census)[3] | |
• Total | 583,378 |
• Rank | 16th (2.88% of total pop.) |
• Density | 570/km2 (1,500/sq mi) |
Ethnicity (2012 census)[3] | |
• Sri Lankan Tamil | 577,246 (98.95%) |
• Sinhalese | 3,366 (0.58%) |
• Sri Lankan Moors | 2,139 (0.37%) |
• Indian Tamil | 499 (0.09%) |
• Other | 128 (0.02%) |
Religion (2012 census)[4] | |
• Hindu | 483,900 (82.95%) |
• Christian | 94,146 (16.14%) |
• Buddhist | 2,533 (0.43%) |
• Muslim | 2,455 (0.42%) |
• Other | 344 (0.06%) |
Time zone | UTC+05:30 (Sri Lanka) |
Post Codes | 40000-40999 |
Telephone Codes | 021 |
ISO 3166 code | LK-41 |
Vehicle registration | NP |
Official Languages | Tamil, Sinhala |
Website | Jaffna District Secretariat |
History
Between the 5th century BC and the 13th century AD present day Jaffna District was part of various Kingdoms such as Pandya, Chola, Pallava, Kalinga, Rajarata. Jaffna District was thereafter part of the pre-colonial Jaffna kingdom.[5] The district then came under Portuguese, Dutch and British control. In 1815 the British gained control of the entire island of Ceylon. They divided the island into three ethnic-based administrative structures: Low Country Sinhalese, Kandyan Sinhalese and Tamil. Jaffna District was part of the Tamil administration. In 1833, in accordance with the recommendations of the Colebrooke-Cameron Commission, the ethnic based administrative structures were unified into a single administration divided into five geographic provinces.[6] Jaffna District, together with Mannar District and Vanni District, formed the new Northern Province.[7] At the time that Ceylon gained independence, Jaffna was one of the three districts located in the Northern Province. Parts of the district were transferred to newly created Mullaitivu District in September 1978. Kilinochchi District was carved out of the southern part of Jaffna District in February 1984.
Geography
Jaffna District is located in the far north of Sri Lanka in the Northern Province and occupies most of the Jaffna Peninsula. It has an area of 1,025 square kilometres (396 sq mi).[2] It is divided into four areas geographically:
- Thenmarachchi or Thenmaradchi
- Vadamarachchi or Vadamaradchi
- Valikamam
- Jaffna Islands
Administrative units
Jaffna District is divided into 15 Divisional Secretary's Division (DS Divisions), each headed by a Divisional Secretary (previously known as an Assistant Government Agent).[8] The DS Divisions are further sub-divided into 435 Grama Niladhari Divisions (GN Divisions).[8]
DS Division | Main Town | Divisional Secretary | GN Divisions [8] |
Area (km2) [8][9] |
Population (2012 Census)[10] | Population Density (/km2) | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sri Lankan Tamil | Sinhalese | Sri Lankan Moors | Indian Tamil | Other | Total | ||||||
Delft | A. Siri | 6 | 45 | 3,780 | 38 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3,819 | 85 | |
Islands North | Kayts | Anton Yoganayagam | 15 | 30 | 9,846 | 129 | 3 | 19 | 0 | 9,997 | 333 |
Islands South | Velanai | Manchulathevi Satheesan | 30 | 78 | 16,379 | 6 | 125 | 15 | 0 | 16,525 | 212 |
Jaffna | Jaffna | Sugunarathy Theivendram | 28 | 17 | 48,413 | 504 | 1,682 | 104 | 56 | 50,759 | 2,986 |
Karainagar | Karainagar | Thevanthini Babu | 9 | 22 | 9,533 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 9,544 | 434 |
Nallur | Nallur | Palasingam Senthilnanthanan | 40 | 38 | 67,777 | 199 | 45 | 21 | 6 | 68,048 | 1,791 |
Thenmarachchi | Chavakachcheri | Anjalidevi Santhaseelan | 60 | 221 | 64,162 | 247 | 62 | 169 | 45 | 64,685 | 293 |
Vadamarachchi East | Maruthankerney | Nadarajah Thirulinganathan | 18 | 179 | 12,718 | 1 | 3 | 16 | 0 | 12,738 | 71 |
Vadamarachchi North | Point Pedro | R. T. Jeyaseelan | 35 | 29 | 47,183 | 167 | 12 | 26 | 1 | 47,389 | 1,634 |
Vadamarachchi South West | Karaveddy | S. Sivasri | 35 | 88 | 45,495 | 73 | 18 | 38 | 4 | 45,628 | 519 |
Valikamam East | Kopay | Maruthalingam Pradeepan | 31 | 102 | 72,908 | 252 | 101 | 35 | 2 | 73,298 | 719 |
Valikamam North | Tellippalai | Kanagarajah Shrimohanan | 45 | 57 | 28,179 | 1,336 | 21 | 4 | 6 | 29,546 | 518 |
Valikamam South | Uduvil | M. Nanthagopalan | 30 | 30 | 52,574 | 190 | 44 | 25 | 0 | 52,833 | 1,761 |
Valikamam South West | Sandilipay | Subramaniyam Muralitharan | 28 | 45 | 52,039 | 159 | 18 | 8 | 2 | 52,226 | 1,161 |
Valikamam West | Chankanai | 25 | 44 | 46,260 | 65 | 5 | 9 | 4 | 46,343 | 1,053 | |
Total | 435 | 1,025 | 577,246 | 3,366 | 2,139 | 499 | 128 | 583,378 | 569 |
Demographics
Population
Jaffna District's population was 583,378 in 2012.[3] It is one of the most densely populated districts of Sri Lanka. The population of the district is almost exclusively Sri Lankan Tamil.
The population of the district, like the rest of the north and east of Sri Lanka, has been heavily affected by the civil war. The war killed an estimated 100,000 people.[11] Several hundred thousand Sri Lankan Tamils, possibly as much as one million, emigrated to the West during the war.[12] Many Sri Lankan Tamils also moved to the relative safety of the capital Colombo. Most of the Sri Lankan Moors and Sinhalese who lived in the district fled to other parts of Sri Lanka or were forcibly expelled by the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
Ethnicity
Year | Tamil[lower-alpha 2] | Sinhalese | Muslim[lower-alpha 3] | Other | Total No. | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | ||
1881 Census | 261,902 | 98.61% | 80 | 0.03% | 2,648 | 1.00% | 953 | 0.36% | 265,583 |
1891 Census | 275,227 | 98.55% | 131 | 0.05% | 3,049 | 1.09% | 877 | 0.31% | 279,284 |
1901 Census | 296,805 | 98.66% | 226 | 0.08% | 3,078 | 1.02% | 742 | 0.25% | 300,851 |
1911 Census | 321,908 | 98.53% | 403 | 0.12% | 3,485 | 1.07% | 916 | 0.28% | 326,712 |
1921 Census | 324,874 | 98.29% | 1,042 | 0.32% | 3,748 | 1.13% | 877 | 0.27% | 330,541 |
1946 Census | 413,264 | 97.29% | 4,546 | 1.07% | 5,620 | 1.32% | 1,358 | 0.32% | 424,788 |
1963 Census | 597,920 | 97.50% | 5,630 | 0.92% | 8,600 | 1.40% | 1,080 | 0.18% | 613,230 |
1971 Census | 673,043 | 95.56% | 20,402 | 2.90% | 10,312 | 1.46% | 593 | 0.08% | 704,350 |
1981 Census | 812,247 | 97.73% | 4,615 | 0.56% | 13,757 | 1.66% | 493 | 0.06% | 831,112 |
1997 Estimate | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 466,937 |
1998 Estimate | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 457,264 |
1999 Estimate | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 491,007 |
2000 Estimate | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 502,356 |
2001 Estimate[lower-alpha 4] | 541,133 | 99.95% | 49 | 0.01% | 201 | 0.04% | 0 | 0.00% | 541,383 |
2002 Estimate | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a | 574,164 |
2003 Estimate | 590,299 | 99.74% | 40 | 0.01% | 1,241 | 0.21% | 248 | 0.04% | 591,828 |
2004 Estimate | 583,064 | 99.73% | 88 | 0.02% | 1,384 | 0.24% | 131 | 0.02% | 584,667 |
2005 Estimate | 595,651 | 99.69% | 75 | 0.01% | 1,705 | 0.29% | 69 | 0.01% | 597,500 |
2006 Estimate | 650,339 | 99.72% | 54 | 0.01% | 1,725 | 0.26% | 66 | 0.01% | 652,184 |
2007 Enumeration | 559,188 | 99.92% | 67 | 0.01% | 350 | 0.06% | 14 | 0.00% | 559,619 |
2008 Estimate | 559,665 | 99.91% | 29 | 0.01% | 452 | 0.08% | 50 | 0.01% | 560,196 |
2009 Estimate | 623,841 | 99.87% | 26 | 0.00% | 777 | 0.12% | 0 | 0.00% | 624,644 |
2011 Enumeration | 564,455 | 99.51% | 746 | 0.13% | 1,874 | 0.33% | 154 | 0.03% | 567,229 |
2012 Census | 577,745 | 99.03% | 3,366 | 0.58% | 2,139 | 0.37% | 128 | 0.02% | 583,378 |
Religion
Year | Hindu | Christian[lower-alpha 5] | Buddhist | Muslim | Others | Total No. | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | ||
1971 Census | 585,418 | 83.11% | 85,031 | 12.08% | 18,210 | 2.59% | 15,520 | 2.20% | 171 | 0.02% | 704,350 |
1981 Census | 705,705 | 84.97% | 104,766 | 12.61% | 5,104 | 0.61% | 14,844 | 1.79% | 133 | 0.02% | 830,552 |
2008 Estimate | 484,308 | 86.45% | 75,357 | 13.45% | 29 | 0.01% | 452 | 0.08% | 50 | 0.01% | 560,196 |
2012 Census | 483,900 | 82.95% | 94,146 | 16.14% | 2,533 | 0.43% | 2,455 | 0.42% | 344 | 0.06% | 583,378 |
Education
Politics and government
Local government
Jaffna District has 17 local authorities of which one is a Municipal Council, three are Urban Councils and the remaining 13 are Divisional Councils (Pradesha Sabhai or Pradeshiya Sabha).[8]
Twinned Regions
On 18 October 2016, Jaffna District twinned with the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in London.[19] This has been a milestone to build “greater understanding and sharing knowledge” in the fields of governance, healthcare and education.[20]
Notes
- Pre-1984 figures include Kilinochchi District which was carved out of the southern part of Jaffna district in February 1984.
- Sri Lankan Tamil and Indian Tamil.
- Sri Lankan Moors and Indian Moors.
- 2001 Census was not carried out in Jaffna District.
- Roman Catholic and Other Christian.
- 2009 for Jaffna Municipal Council.
- 2009 for Jaffna Municipal Council.
- Includes TULF.
References
- "District Secretary - Jaffna". Archived from the original on 6 May 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
- "Area of Sri Lanka by province and district" (PDF). Statistical Abstract 2011. Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-11-13.
- "A2 : Population by ethnic group according to districts, 2012". Census of Population & Housing, 2011. Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 2017-04-28. Retrieved 2012-11-04.
- "A3 : Population by religion according to districts, 2012". Census of Population & Housing, 2011. Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 2019-01-07. Retrieved 2012-11-04.
- de Silva, K. M. (1981). A History of Sri Lanka. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. pp. xvii.
- Mills, Lennox A. (1933). Ceylon Under British Rule (1795–1932). London: Oxford University Press. pp. 67–68.
- Medis, G. C. (1946). Ceylon Under the British (2nd (revised) ed.). Colombo: The Colombo Apothecaries Co. pp. 39–40.
- "Statistical Information 2012". Northern Provincial Council.
- "Land area by province, district and divisional secretariat division" (PDF). Statistical Abstract 2011. Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-11-13.
- "A6 : Population by ethnicity and district according to Divisional Secretary's Division, 2012". Census of Population & Housing, 2011. Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 2016-11-01. Retrieved 2012-11-04.
- "Up to 100,000 killed in Sri Lanka's civil war: UN". ABC News (Australia). 20 May 2009.
- Harrison, Frances (23 July 2003). "Twenty years on – riots that led to war". BBC News.
- "Basic Population Information on Jaffna District – 2007" (PDF). Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-11-23. Retrieved 2008-12-20.
- "Statistical Information 2010" (PDF). Northern Provincial Council.
- "Enumeration of Vital Events 2011 – Northern Province" (PDF). Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-05-23. Retrieved 2012-03-28.
- "Population by religion and district, Census 1981, 2001" (PDF). Statistical Abstract 2011. Department of Census & Statistics, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-11-13.
- "Jaffna District in Facts and Figures". Balasundarapillay.P, Rupamoorthy.k. Teepam Institute. Retrieved 21 Oct 2013.
- Jaffna District Statistical Information 2009. Jaffna District Secretariat. June 2009. p. 32.
- Hammond, Michael. "International partnerships". www.kingston.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 22 December 2016. Retrieved 2016-12-21.
- "New ties for borough as Kingston twins with Jaffna in Sri Lanka". Surrey Comet. Retrieved 2016-12-21.
External links
- Jaffna District Secretariat Archived 2018-09-19 at the Wayback Machine