Mannar (District)

Mannar district ; மன்னார் மாவட்டம் ; මන්නාරම දිස්ත්රික්කය
Province :	Northern Province
Administrative headquarters :	Mannar
Area :	1996 km²
of which land area:	1880 km²
of which inland waters:	116 km²
Residents :	99570
Population density :	53 people / km²

8.9814 79.9102Coordinates: 8 ° 59 ' N , 79 ° 55' E

The Mannar district ( Tamil : மன்னார் மாவட்டம் mannaric Māvaṭṭam , Sinhala : මන්නාරම දිස්ත්රික්කය Mannārama distrikkaya ) is a district in Northern Province Sri Lanka . The main town is the city of Mannar on the island of the same name . Mannar district was one of the areas affected by the civil war in Sri Lanka from 1983 to 2009 .

The district of Mannar is located in the northwest of the island on the west coast of Sri Lanka on the Gulf of Mannar and belongs to the Northern Province. Neighboring districts are Kilinochchi in the north, Mullaitivu in the northeast, Vavuniya in the east and southeast, Anuradhapura and Puttalam in the south and the Gulf of Mannar in the west.

Mannar District has an area of 1,996 square kilometers (1,880 square kilometers of which is land and 116 square kilometers of inland water). This puts it in 13th place among the districts of Sri Lanka in terms of area.

population

According to the 2012 census, Mannar district has 99,570 inhabitants. This makes it the second smallest district in Sri Lanka after the Mullaitivu district in terms of population. With only 53 inhabitants per square kilometer, it is very sparsely populated and the population density is well below the Sri Lankan average (325 inhabitants per square kilometer). Of the residents, 50,053 (50.27%) were male and 49,517 (49.73%) 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	18,695	19,986	15,683	15.094	12,118	9,742	7,625	627
proportion of	18.78%	20.07%	15.75%	15.16%	12.17%	9.78%	7.66%	0.63%

District population by ethnic group

The Sri Lankan Tamils make up the majority of the population of Mannar District. But there are large minorities of other ethnic groups.

Sri Lankan Tamils The Sri Lankan Tamils are the largest ethnic group. In four of the five divisions they make up the majority of the population. They are above average in the Nanaddan division (93.95% Sri Lankan Tamils). In the Musalai division, they are only the second largest ethnic group with 3,094 people (38.11%). Their share ranges between 38.11% in Musalai and 93.95% in Nanaddan.

Moors The second strongest ethnic group and thus the largest minority are the Moors or Tamil-speaking Muslims. They are the largest population group in the Musalai Division (59.74% Moors). They are also well above average in the Mannar Town division (17.78%). Their share ranges between 3.66% in Nanaddan and 59.74% in Musulai.

Sinhalese The proportion of Sinhalese is still small today. The 1881 census showed a number of 142 Sinhalese (0.67% of the population). Until 1921 it fluctuated between 0.81 and 2.5%. Afterwards there was increased immigration of members of this ethnic group and the proportion rose to 8.17% by the beginning of the civil war. Many Sinhalese new settlers then turned their backs on the fighting area. The Sinhalese population ranges between 1.54% in Nanaddan and 4.32% in Madhu.

Indian Tamils The Tamils of Indian descent are descendants of immigrants from India during British colonial rule. At the 1946 census, their proportion of the population in Mannar District was 11.2%. In 1953 this figure rose to 18.3% (or 7,979 people). Their numbers increased steadily until the beginning of the civil war, but their proportion of the population decreased from census to census. Today their ethnic group has almost completely disappeared. Even in their former stronghold of Mannar Town there are only 433 people or 0.85% of the population.

Other ethnic groups The Malay, Burgher and Sri Lanka Chetties are small minorities. The ethnic group of the Indian Moors has almost completely disappeared (in 1946 still 2.87% of the residents or around 900 people).

year	Sinhalese ¹		Sri Lankan Tamils ²		Tamils ²		Moors ³		Burgher		Malays		Others ⁴		Total
year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
1981	8,683	8.17%	54,474	51.28%	13,850	13.04%	27,717	26.09%	36	0.03%	35	0.03%	1,440	1.36%	106,235	100.00%
2012	2,305	2.31%	80.103	80.45%	692	0.69%	16,436	16.51%	12	0.01%	11	0.01%	11	0.01%	99,570	100.00%
Source: Sri Lankan censuses in 1981 and 2012

¹ Lowland and Kandy Sinhalese together ² Sri Lankan Tamils and Indian Tamils separately ³ only Sri Lankan moors ⁴ thereof 2012 1 Sri Lanka Chetty and no Bharathas

Population of the district by confession

The distribution of creeds is only partly a reflection of ethnic relationships. On closer inspection, there are significant differences from the rest of the country. The Hinduism , the Sri Lankan only about 30% of the Indian Tamils and heard, is the second largest religious community in Mannar district. There are, however, major differences within the five divisions. The extremes are Madhu (54% Hindus and 46% Christian among the Tamils) and Musalai (11% Hindus and 89% Christian among the Tamils). In third place is Islam , to which the Moors and Malays belong. In the Musalai division, Muslims are even the majority of the population (59.71%). The Buddhism is the fourth-largest religious group. But more than 500 Sinhalese (around 20% of their ethnic group) and around 55,000 Tamils (almost 70% of their ethnic group) belong to Christianity . That is why a majority of the population is a member of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Madhu Church of Mary

year	Buddhists		Hindus		Muslims		Catholics		other Christs		Other		Total
year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
1981	3,363	3.17%	28,885	27.19%	29,161	27.45%	43,633	41.07%	1,056	0.99%	137	0.13%	106,235	100.00%
2012	1,809	1.82%	24,027	24.13%	16,512	16.58%	52,415	52.64%	4,790	4.81%	17th	0.02%	99,570	100.00%
Source: Sri Lankan censuses in 1981 and 2012

Population development

For decades, the population of Mannar District grew faster than the country as a whole. This changed with the beginning of the civil war. From 1981 to 2012 (the last two census years) the decrease was 6,665 people. This is a decrease of 6.27%. Nevertheless, the population has more than tripled since independence (+ 216%).

The civil war in Sri Lanka has had a significant impact on the demographics of the district. In 1981, the year of the last census before the outbreak of civil war, the Mannar district still had 105,276 inhabitants. The population of the district declined by around six percent between 1981 and 2012, while the total population of Sri Lanka rose by 37 percent in the same period. According to government statistics, around 4500 internally displaced persons and a good 34,000 people who were previously displaced were still living in the Mannar district in 2012.

Significant places

The district is rural. The district capital Mannar (2012: 24,417 inhabitants) is the only medium-sized city. There are no small towns.

administration

Divisions of Mannar District

The head of the district holds the title of District Secretary. The district is further divided into five divisions (under a Division Secretary). The cities and larger towns have their own administration (municipal parliament or council). There are 153 village administrations (Grama Niladharis) for the 621 villages in the entire district.

The DS Divisions in Mannar District
Surname	main place	Residents 2012	Area in km²	density	GN	Villages
Madhu	Periyapandivirichchan	7,711	553	14th	17th	76
Mannar Town	Mannar	51,078	212	241	49	153
Manthai West	Adampan	14,771	608	24	36	121
Musalai	Chilawathurai	8,119	475	17th	20th	115
Nanaddan	Nanaddan	17,891	148	121	31	156
Mannar District	Mannar	99,570	1,880	53	153	621