The Pali chronicles, Dipavamsa, Mahavamsa, Thupavamsa and Chulavamsa, as well as a large collection of stone inscriptions, the Indian Epigraphical records, the Burmese versions of the chronicles etc., provide information on the history of Sri Lanka since the 6th century BCE.
According to Mahavamsa, Vijaya, a notorious prince expelled by his father King Sinhabahu from Wanga Desha, landed on Sri Lanka near Mahathitha (Manthota or Mannar), and named the island as Thambaparni (“copper-colored sand”). This name is attested to in Ptolemy’s map of the ancient world.
Tamirabharani is the old name for the second longest river in Sri Lanka (Malwatu Oya / Aruvi Aru in Tamil), which was a main supply route connecting the capital, Anuradhapura, to Mahathitha (Mannar). The waterway was used by Greek and Chinese ships travelling the southern Silk Route. Mahathitha was an ancient port linking Sri Lanka to India and the Persian Gulf.
543–377 BCE – Pre-Anuradhapura Era Indo-Aryan immigration
