When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that owing to its multi ethnic population, Sri Lanka is a multi religious country.


When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that around 70% of Sri Lanka’s population is of Buddhist faith, with most of them following the Theravada school of Buddhism. Buddhism is believed to have been introduced to Sri Lanka in the 2nd Century B. C. by thero Mahinda, during the reign of King Devanampiyatissa. To coincide with this great event, a sapling of the Bo-tree under which Lord Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment, was brought to Sri Lanka.

When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that Sri Lanka is proud to have had the longest continuous history of Buddhism out of the rest of the Buddhist nations.


Islam was introduced to Sri Lanka by Arab Merchants and today, followers of Islam in the country comprise around 8% of the population.


Hinduism is believed to have been established in Sri Lanka by migrants and invaders from southern India. When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that Hindus now constitute the third largest religious group in the country with approximately 7% of the population being of the Hindu faith.



European colonists introduced Christianity to the country in the 16th Century and the religion has been embraced by approximately 6% of the local population.
As visitors who travel to Sri Lanka would soon realize, religion plays a key role in the life and culture of all Sri Lankans, regardless of their religious faith. When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that while the Buddhists observe Poya Days every month according to the lunar calendar, the Hindus and Muslims observe their own holidays. When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that along with the numerous Buddhist temples, Sri Lanka also has a number of Islam mosques, Hindu temples and Christian churches across the island.

Once you travel to Sri Lanka, you observe that the Buddhists are distributed across most parts of the island except the North. When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that the Hindu population can be found in the north, east and central parts of the country. When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that Christians, on the other hand, and particularly Roman Catholics, are mainly concentrated along the western coastal belt. When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that Muslims live along the coast as well as the interior of the island. When you travel to Sri Lanka you will see that all religious communities can be found in the western province and other urban areas.