Gampaha (District)

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Coordinates: 7 ° 6 '  N , 80 ° 0'  E

Gampaha
District ගම්පහ දිස්ත්‍රික්කය
கம்பகா மாவட்டம்
District map
Province : Western province
Administrative headquarters : Gampaha
Area : 1,387 km²
of which land area: 1,341 km²
of which inland waters: 46 km²
Residents : 2304833
Population density : 1,719 inhabitants / km²

Gampaha ( Sinhala ගම්පහ දිස්ත්රික්කය Gampaha distrikkaya ; Tamil கம்பகா மாவட்டம் Kampakā māvaṭṭam ) is a district in the West Province in Sri Lanka . The main town is Gampaha .

geography

The district of Gampaha is located on the west coast of Sri Lanka on the Gulf of Mannar and belongs to the Western Province . Neighboring districts are Puttalam and Kurunegala in the north, Kegalle in the east, Colombo in the south and the Gulf of Mannar in the west.

The Gampaha District has an area of ​​1,387 square kilometers (of which 1,341 square kilometers are land and 46 square kilometers are inland water). This makes it the fifth smallest district in Sri Lanka in terms of area.

population

According to the 2012 census, the Gampaha district has 2,304,833 inhabitants. With 1,718 inhabitants per square kilometer, the population density is well above the average for Sri Lanka (325 inhabitants per square kilometer). Of the residents, 1,116,893 (48.46%) were male and 1,187,940 (51.54%) were female. The population is very young. This is illustrated by a look at the age distribution.

Age 0–9 years 10–19 years 20-29 years 30–39 years 40-49 years 50–59 years 60–79 years 80 years and more
number 355.220 348,918 364,549 367.251 313.101 259.940 262,514 33,340
proportion of 15.41% 15.14% 15.82% 15.93% 13.58% 11.28% 11.39% 1.45%

District population by ethnic group

The Sinhalese make up over 90% of the total population. Only in four of the thirteen divisions are there any significant minorities.

Sinhalese

The vast majority of the residents of Gampaha District are Sinhalese . Their share ranges between 71.11% in Waththala (Wattala) and 98.98% in Diulapitiya (Divulapitiya).

Moors

There is also a minority of Moors or Tamil-speaking Muslims. They form large minority groups in the Negambo (Negombo; 13.84%) and Aththanagalla (Attanagalla; 11.85%) divisions. Their share ranges between 0.06% in Diulapitiya (Divulapitiya) and 13.84% in Negambo (Negombo).

Sri Lankan Tamils

The Sri Lankan Tamils make up the third largest population group. In two of the thirteen divisions, their share is above average. In Waththala (Wattala) they make up 18.81%, in Negambo (Negombo) 8.99% of the total population. Their share ranges between 0.31% in Dompe and 18.81% in Waththala (Wattala).

Malays

It is true that they form only a small minority of the population in the entire district. But in the Kelaniya (3,168 people; 2.31%) and Mahara (3,643; 1.75%) divisions they form sizable minorities.

Burgher

In five of the thirteen divisions there are between 800 and 3,500 people who are committed to this ethnic group. In the divisions Ja-ela (3,453; 1.71%) and Waththala (Wattala; 2,566 people or 1.46%) they form sizable minorities.

Indian Tamils

The Tamils ​​of Indian descent are a small minority. Members of this ethnic group live in all divisions. But mostly only in small numbers. The only exception is the Waththala division (Wattala), where they comprise 3,280 people or 1.87% of the total population.

Sri Lankan Chetties

This ethnic group is an ethnic peculiarity of the district. There are only 5,595 members in the whole of Sri Lanka. Of these, 3,861 or 69% live in the Gampaha district. There they focus on the Katana division (3,247 people or 1.38% of the total population).

year Sinhalese 1 Sri Lankan Tamils 2 Indian Tamils 2 Moors 3 Burgher Malays Others 4 Total
number % number % number % number % number % number % number % number %
1981 1,279,512 91.99% 48.182 3.46% 5,919 0.43% 37,826 2.72% 8,423 0.61% 8,675 0.62% 2,325 0.17% 1,390,862 100.00%
2001 1,877,545 90.98% 65,302 3.16% 7,621 0.37% 78,705 3.81% 11.093 0.54% 13,683 0.66% 9,735 0.47% 2,063,684 100.00%
2012 2,086,469 90.53% 81,245 3.52% 9,137 0.40% 97,621 4.24% 10,784 0.47% 12,720 0.55% 6,857 0.30% 2,304,833 100.00%
Source: Sri Lanka censuses in 1981, 2001 and 2012

1 lowland and Kandy Sinhalese together 2 Sri Lankan Tamils and Indian Tamils separately 3 only Sri Lankan moors 4 thereof 2001 6,361 Sri Lankan Chetties and 780 Bharathas; including 3,861 Sri Lanka Chetties and 568 Bharathas in 2012

Population of the district by confession

In contrast to most of the Sri Lankan districts, the distribution of creeds is not a reflection of ethnic conditions. Because numerous Tamils ​​and Sinhalese are Christians . Nevertheless, the majority of the Sinhalese residents follow Buddhism . Since the Sinhalese make up the clear majority of the population, this also applies to Buddhism. Christianity is clearly the second strongest creed. In the divisions Negambo (Negombo) (68.65% Christians), Ja-ela (53.23%) and Waththala (Wattala) (50.58%) the Christians are even in the majority. In the Katana division, 36.15% are followers of Christianity. Only in three divisions in the eastern part of the district there are hardly any Christians. The third strongest religious group is Islam , to which the Moors and Malays belong. They live mainly in the districts of Negambo (Negombo; 14.33%) and Aththanagalla (Attanagalla; 12.42%). The Hinduism , the Sri Lankan and Indian Tamils, the majority of the plays, is a minority religion. Only in the Waththala division (Wattala; 12.98%) does their share exceed the ten percent mark.

year Buddhists Hindus Muslims Catholics other Christs Other Total
number % number % number % number % number % number % number %
1981 989.212 71.12% 26,750 1.92% 48.117 3.46% 313,352 22.53% 12,563 0.90% 868 0.06% 1,390,862 100.00%
2001 1,479,955 71.71% 42,356 2.05% 93,496 4.53% 418.286 20.27% 28,361 1.37% 1,230 0.06% 2,063,684 100.00%
2012 1,642,767 71.27% 52,973 2.30% 112,746 4.89% 449,398 19.50% 46,080 2.00% 869 0.04% 2,304,833 100.00%
Source: Sri Lanka censuses in 1981, 2001 and 2012

Population development

Note: for the sake of clarity, the total population of the districts of Colombo and Gampaha (1978 separately) is shown in the table.

The district's population is growing rapidly. In the period from 2001 to 2012 (the last two census years), the increase was 241,149 people. This is a growth of 11.69%. In the 32 years between 1981 and 2012, the population grew by 65.71%.

And also the data from 1981:

Significant places

Peliyagoda Wattala Ja-Ela Katunayaka Gampaha Negombo

Other big places are Daluguma , Hendala , Kandana , Kelaniya , Minuwangoda , Ragama and Welisara .

history

The Colombo district was divided with the district reform of August 31, 1978. The Gampaha district was created from parts of the previous Colombo district.

Local administration

The head of the district holds the title of District Secretary. The district is further divided into thirteen divisions (under a Division Secretary). The cities and larger towns have their own administration (municipal parliament or council). There are 1,177 village administrations (Grama Niladharis; GN) for the 1,810 villages in the entire district.

The DS Divisions in Gampaha District
Surname main place Residents
2012		 Area
in km²		 density GN Villages
Attanagalla Attanagalla 179,565 154.0 1.166 151 191
Biyagama Biyagama 186,585 61.6 3,029 49 61
Divulapitiya Divulapitiya 144.506 202.3 714 123 227
Dompe Dompe 154.005 178.3 864 133 176
Gampaha Gampaha 197,667 95.7 2,065 101 148
Yes-Ela Yes-Ela 201,521 64.0 3.149 57 101
Katana Katana 235.291 107.6 2,187 79 131
Kelaniya Kelaniya 137,339 21.9 6,271 37 47
Mahara Mahara 207,782 98.8 2,103 92 108
Minuwangoda Minuwangoda 178,331 130.5 1,367 121 192
Mirigama Mirigama 164,580 186.6 882 149 273
Negombo Negombo 142,136 30.8 4,615 39 50
Wattala Wattala 175,525 54.6 3.215 46 105
Gampaha District Gampaha 2,304,833 1,386.7 1,662 1,177 1,810

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Final result of the 2012 census
  2. ^ Map of the ethnic distribution after the 2012 census
  3. ↑ District data after the 2012 census
  4. ^ Map of religious distribution after the 2012 census
  5. ↑ District data after the 2012 census
  6. ^ Gampaha District Handbook 2011, Table 1.1
  7. ↑ Handbook of the Gampaha District 2011, Table 1.5

Web links

Commons : Gampaha District  - Collection of images, videos and audio files