The Jaffna Peninsula (, or ) is a region in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is home to the capital city of the province, Jaffna, and comprises much of the former land mass of the medieval Jaffna Kingdom.
The peninsula was historically divided into the three regions of Vadamarachchi, Thenmarachchi and Valikamam, which today make up three regions of the Jaffna District.
History
Naga Nadu
The Naga people were one of the ancient tribes of Sri Lanka, who were mainly concentrated in the Jaffna Peninsula. The peninsula was also known in pre-mediaeval era as Naga Nadu, which means "Land of the Nagas" as mentioned in the twin epics of ancient Tamilakam, the Silappatikaram and Manimekalai. The Pali chronicle Mahavamsa also refers to the peninsula with the corresponding name as Nagadipa, meaning "island of Nagas", where it is described as a Chiefdom with rulers named as Diparaja, meaning "King of Island". Ptolemy, the Greek writer from 100 AD refers to Nagadipoi as one of the coastal towns of Taprobana. Naga identity was visible through personal names which observed in Pali chronicles and the Tamil Sangam literature. Some scholars postulate that the Naga people were the ancestors of Tamil-speaking Dravidians.
Kingdom of Jaffna
In the 13th century, the Northern part of Sri Lanka including the Kingdom of Polonnaruwa was under the rule of Pandyan dynasty. Kulasekara Cinkaiariyan, a minister of the Pandyan dynasty, was installed as the king of peninsula. He was the first king of the Aryacakravarti dynasty. Under the rule of the Aryacakravarti kings, the Vannimai chieftains paid tribute to the Jaffna kings. The dynasty ruled the peninsula until 1619, after the last king Cankili II was killed under the Portuguese conquest of the Jaffna kingdom.
2004 Indian Ocean tsunami
The Northern and Eastern coasts of the peninsula were badly affected by tsunamis, especially by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake; this includes the villages on the Northern coast from Thondaimanaru to Thumpalai and the Eastern coast from Vallipuram to Kuddarappu. The damage to the eastern coast was higher than that of the northern coast. The fisheries sectors of this district were badly affected. Estimation of damages caused to different sectors has not been completed.
Available data revealed that a total of 2,640 people lost their lives while 1,647 were injured and 1,204 are missing. 37,255 people belonging to 9,885 families were displaced, of which 15,034 people belonging to 4,038 families are living in the welfare camps and the balance 22,221 people belonging to 5,847 families are living with their friends and relatives. People displaced from the coastal villages of Kankesanthurai, Myliddy and Palali due to the formation of heavy security zones are not yet settled in the above villages and are facing difficulties without homes and jobs. The fisheries and agriculture sectors in the above villages are affected badly and the Sri Lankan government has no plan to improve the living standards of these conflict-affected zones.
Geography and climate
Koppens classification AM. This type of climate, results from the monsoon winds which change direction according to the seasons. This climate has a driest month (which nearly always occurs at or soon after the "winter" solstice for that side of the equator) with rainfall less than 60 mm, but more than 1/25 the total annual precipitation
The climate of the Jaffna region is considered to be Tropical monsoonal AM with a seasonal rhythm of rainfall. The temperature ranges from 26 C to 33 C. Annual precipitation ranges from 696 mm to 1125 mm. It is evenly spread over the area. The northeast monsoon rain (October to January) accounts for more than 90% of the annual rainfall. The Jaffna peninsula is divided into two agroecological regions. The peninsula is mostly surrounded by water, connected to the rest of the island by a small strip of land. Its underground water is used for drinking, agriculture and industry. Paddy cultivation is rain-fed but only for three months during the North East monsoon period. It is a part of the peninsula consisting of fourteen D.S Administrative Divisions. The total land area including inland water is 1,230 km². The terrain of the region is almost flat and of low elevation except in the central part of the western sector in the area around Tellippalai, where the elevation rises to 10.5 m above sea level. From there it slopes gently towards the south and southeast, while to the north the elevation tends to drop abruptly.
The soil found in Jaffna belongs to the following three major soil groups: Calcic Red-yellow latosols. Solodized solonetz and solon chaks. Regosols.