Northwest Province (Sri Lanka)

Coordinates: 7 ° 29 '  N , 80 ° 22'  E

Northwest Province වයඹ පළාත (Vayamba Paḷāta) வட மேல் மாகாணம் (Vaṭamēl Mākāṇam)
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Capital :	Kurunegala
Area :	7888 km²
Residents :	2,371,881 (2012)
Population density :	316 inhabitants per km²

The Northwest Province (also Wayamba , singhales. වයඹ පලාත) is a province of Sri Lanka . The capital is Kurunegala . It consists of the administrative districts of Kurunegala and Puttalam . The province covers 7888 km² and has 2,184,136 inhabitants (2005).

A western coastal strip of the province has been claimed by the Tamil Tigers as part of Tamil Eelam . The province is best known for its numerous coconut plantations.

Other important cities in the province are the fishing ports of Chilaw (24,712 inhabitants) and Puttalam (45,661 inhabitants).

The majority of the population are Sinhalese , but many of the coastal residents also speak Tamil . There are also a relatively large number of moors around Puttalam.

Along with coconut and rubber plantations , fishing and crab farming are the most important industries in the region.

The climate is tropical, with a dry season and temperatures between 25 ° in January and 28 ° C in March. The south of the province is more humid and has almost 2000 mm of rainfall per year. The north is one of the driest regions in Sri Lanka with less than 1000 mm of annual precipitation.

literature

• Baedeker editorial team (ed.): Baedeker travel guide Sri Lanka. 5th edition, Verlag Karl Baedeker, Ostfildern 2014.

Web links

• Northern Province (Sri Lanka) (accessed October 5, 2015)
• Religions in South Asia (accessed October 5, 2015)