The Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (known as Ceylon before 1972) is a tropical island nation off the southeast coast of the Indian subcontinent. A country of unsurpassed natural beauty, rich in cultural heritage and above all well recognised for its warm and hospitable population, the island was known in ancient times as Lanka, Lankadeepa (Sanskrit for "resplendent land"), Simoundou, Taprobane (from the Sanskrit Tamaraparni), Serendib (from the Sanskrit Sinhala-Dweepa), and Selan. During colonization, the island became known as Ceylon, a name still used on occasion. Its unique shape and proximity to the Indian mainland have led some to refer to the island as the “Tear Drop of the Indian Ocean”.

Statistics of Sri Lanka
Full Name	Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
Has a recorded history of	2500 years
Geographical status	An Island
Regional Location	South Asia
Capital	Sri Jayawardenepura
Commercial Capital	Colombo
Area	65,610 sq km / 25,483 sq miles
Population	20.4 Million (2009)
Time Zone	GMT / UTC + 6 ()
Temperature	Average 30C
People	74% Sinhalese 18% Tamils 7% Moor 1% other
Main Languages spoken	Sinhala, Tamil & English
Religion	69% Buddhist 15% Hindu 8% Muslim 8% Christian
Currency	Sri Lankan Rupee (LKR or Rs)
Literacy Rate	90.7%
Life Expectancy	75.3 years
Labour Force	8.1 Million
Administrative Divisions	09 Provinces- Central, Eastern, North Central, Northern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Uva & Western
Major industries	Tea, Processing of Rubber products, Coconut, Tobacco & other Agricultural commodities viz. Sugarcane and Spices; Clothing & Textiles, Petroleum Refining, Information Technology Services, Construction, Telecommunication, Insurance, Banking, Tourism, Shipping, Cement
Major trading partners	US, UK, Germany, Japan, Singapore, India, Iran, Taiwan, Belgium, Hong Kong, China & South Korea
International participation	ADB, ARF, BIMSTEC, C, CP, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OAS OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIS, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO