List of Roman Catholic dioceses in Sri Lanka

List of Roman Catholic dioceses in Sri Lanka

The Roman Catholic Church in Sri Lanka is composed of one ecclesiastical province with an archdiocese and 11 suffrages dioceses.

·        Diocese of Anuradhapura

·        Diocese of Badulla

·        Diocese of Batticaloa

·        Diocese of Chilaw

·        Archdiocese of Colombo

·        Diocese of Galle

·        Diocese of Jaffna

·        Diocese of Kandy

·        Diocese of Kurunegala

·        Diocese of Mannar

·        Diocese of Ratnapura

·        Diocese of Trincomalee

#	Catholics	Population	Percent Catholic	Diocese	Year	Source
1	648,184	5,522,956	11.74%	Colombo (Archdiocese)	2004	ap2005
2	231,205	679,113	34.05%	Chilaw	2004	ap2005
3	166,329	1,625,925	10.23%	Jaffna	2004	ap2005
4	75,435	2,414,973	3.12%	Kandy	2004	ap2005
5	73,977	219,633	33.68%	Mannar	2004	ap2005
6	62,078	1,514,336	4.10%	Trincomalee-Batticaloa	2004	ap2005
7	48,967	1,505,866	3.25%	Kurunegala	2004	ap2005
8	23,812	1,797,355	1.32%	Ratnapura	2004	ap2005
9	21,985	1,614,000	1.36%	Badulla	2004	ap2005
10	9,855	1,105,663	.89%	Anuradhapura	2004	ap2005
11	8,100	2,210,486	.37%	Galle	2004	ap2005

·         Note: The table above is generated with the most recent data available for each diocese.

Thanks to- www.catholic-hierarchy.org/country/dlk.htm

Beauty of Srilanka

Beauty of Srilanka

Sri Lanka (/sriːˈlɑːŋkə/, /sriːˈlæŋkə/ or Listen/ʃriː ˈlɑːŋkə/;Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකාව, śrī laṃkāva, Tamil: இலங்கை, ilaṅkai), officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in the northern Indian Ocean off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent in South Asia; known until 1972 as Ceylon (/sɨˈlɒn/, /seɪˈlɒn/, or /siːˈlɒn/), Sri Lanka has maritime borders with India to the northwest and the Maldives to the southwest.

Sri Lanka has a documented history that spans over 3000 years. Its geographic location and deep harbours made it of great strategic importance from the time of the ancient Silk Road through to World War II. Sri Lanka is a diverse country, home to many religions, ethnicities and languages. It is the land of the Sinhalese, Sri Lankan Tamils, Moors, Indian Tamils, Burghers, Malays, Kaffirs and the aboriginal Vedda. Sri Lanka has a rich Buddhist heritage, and the first known Buddhist writings were composed on the island. The country's recent history has been marred by a thirty-year civil war which decisively but controversially ended in a military victory in 2009.

Sri Lanka is a republic and a unitary state governed by a presidential system. The capital, Sri Jayawardenapura-Kotte, is a suburb of the largest city, Colombo. An important producer of tea, coffee, gemstones, coconuts, rubber, and the native cinnamon, Sri Lanka is known as "the Pearl of the Indian Ocean" because of its natural beauty. Sri Lanka has also been called "the teardrop of India" because of its shape and location, and "the nation of smiling people". The island contains tropical forests and diverse landscapes with high biodiversity.

The country has had a long history of international engagement, being a founding member of SAARC and a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the G77 and the Non-Aligned Movement.

Bishop of Trincomalee

 

Bishop Joseph Kingsley Swampillai

Bishop of Trincomalee

Date	Age	Event	Title
9 Dec 1936	76.99	Born	Kayts
20 Dec 1961	25.0	Ordained Priest	Priest
17 Mar 1983	46.3	Appointed	Bishop of Trincomalee-Batticaloa, Sri Lanka
7 May 1983	46.4	Ordained Bishop	Bishop of Trincomalee-Batticaloa, Sri Lanka

3 Jul 2012

75.6

Appointed

Bishop of Trincomalee, Sri Lanka

Short History of the Diocese

• 1893.08.25: Established as Diocese of Trincomalee / Trincomalien(sis) (Latin) (from Metropolitan Archdiocese of Colombo and Diocese of Jaffna)
• 1967.10.23: Renamed as Diocese of Trincomalee–Batticaloa / Trincomalien(sis)–Batticaloaën(sis) (Latin)
• 1975.12.19: Lost territory to establish Apostolic Prefecture of Anuradhapura
• 2012.07.03: Renamed as Diocese of Trincomalee / Trincomalien(sis) (Latin) (lost territory to establish Diocese of Batticaloa)

Thanks to- http://www.gcatholic.org/dioceses/diocese/batt2.htm

The Diocese of Trincomalee

map of srilanka

The Diocese of Trincomalee

The diocese of Trincomalee covers 2,727 square kilometers comprising the civil district. Trincomalee is derived from the Tamil name Thiru-kona-malai, meaning "Holy-East Hill". Hindu civilization flourished here during the reign of the South Indian emperors of the Chola Dynasty. Trincomalee is a port city on the northeastern coast of Sri Lanka, about 257 kilometers northeast of Colombo. The town is built on a peninsula, which divides the inner and outer harbors. Trincomalee diocese is adjacent to Jaffna in the north, Colombo in the west, Galle in the south, Kandy in the central region and Kurunegala. The 2012 census counted 378,182 people in this diocese, whom it identified 14,795 as Catholics. Standard Tamil language is in use. Sinhalese language is used in some areas.

Trincomalee has one of the world's finest natural harbors and can accommodate large vessels. This fact led to Trincomalee being captured in turn by the Portuguese, Dutch, French and British from the 16th to the 19th centuries. It is an important trading city between Sri Lanka and the outside world. Trincomalee lies in the region of Sri Lanka where most of the population is Tamil and Islam by religion. Trincomalee and its environs are sacred to Hindus as well as Buddhists. Tiriyayi, 47 kilometers north of Trincomalee, is a place of Buddhist interest. The ruins of an ancient Buddhist monastery have been discovered here. Ancient ruined temples, beautiful beaches, lagoons, hot springs, vast agricultural lands and tourist hotels can be seen here. The town also has the largest Dutch fortress in Sri Lanka. Trincomalee enjoys warm weather all year round. Trincomalee diocese was one of the places hardest hit by the 2004 tsunami.