Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

 has divided into nine districts and Uva Province

Uva Province

Uva is Sri Lanka's second least populated province, with 1,187,335 people, created in 1896. It consists of two districts: Badulla බදුල්ල பதுளை and Moneragala මොනරාගල மொனராகல. The provincial capital is Badulla. Uva is bordered by Eastern, Southern and Central provinces...

 distinct place among them. The natural beauty and the proud history of the province are the main reasons for it.

Name

When the wind blows through the mountains, a "hoo" sound is generated. It is believed from the tales that the word "hoo-wa" is later transformed into "Uva". But how and when it is used is never mentioned.

Establishment

In the 19th century Governor

Governor

A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

 of Ceylon, Sir Hamilton Gorden established the Uva province. Before that divisions such as Bintenna, Wiyaluwa, Wellassa, Udukinda, Yatikinda were belonged to Central Province and Wellawaya and Buttala belonged to the Southern Province

Southern Province, Sri Lanka

The Southern Province of Sri Lanka is a small geographic area consisting of the districts of Galle, Matara and Hambantota. The region is economically backward compared to the Western province, where the capital Sri Jayawardenapura-Kotte is situated...

.

Administration divisions

The province had been divided into seven provincial financial control divisions

• Udukinda
• Yatikinda
• Buttala
  Buttala
  Buttala is a town in Sri Lanka. It is located in Monaragala District of Uva Province, Sri Lanka.-History:The name Buttala or ‘Bath hala’ which is said to have been given in the times of King Dutugemunu. A large number of soldiers located in the area . They had been fed from the plentiful of rice in...
  
  
• Wellawaya
• Wellassa
• Wiyaluwa
• Bintenna

Udukinda and Yatikinda

The word "Kinda" denotes the land. The area with a higher elevation is called "Udukinda" and the area with a lower elevation is called "Yatikinda"

The areas with a higher elevation, such as Pattipola, Ohiya

Ohiya

Ohiya is a rural village located in Badulla District of Uva Province, Sri Lanka. It is much closer to the Horton Plains National Park. The picturesque Colombo -Badulla Railyway runs through Ohiya...

, Haputale

Haputale

Haputale is a town in Badulla District, Sri Lanka. The elevation is 1431 m above the sea level. The area has a rich bio-diversity dense with numerous varieties of flora and fauna. The town has a cooler climate than its surroundings, due to its elevation. The Haputale pass allows views across the...

, Welimada

Welimada

-Administration:The Welimada city is now administered by the Welimada Divisional Council.Notable government institutions include:* Divisional Secretariat* Police Station* Government Hospital-Places of interest:*Divurumwela Old Temple*Sthripura Cave...

, Gurutalawa

Gurutalawa

Gurutalawa is a rural town in Sri Lanka. It is located in Badulla District of Uva Province, Sri Lanka.The famous St. Thomas' College is located in Gurutalawa....

, Ambewela

Ambewela

Ambewela is a small town, or a hill station, located in the Nuwara Eliya District of Sri Lanka. The area is also sometimes called "Little New Zealand". The town is situated approximately south-east of the district capital Nuwara Eliya...

 and Ettampitiya were fallen under "Udukinda". Other areas with lower elevation such as Badulla

Badulla

Badulla , is the capital of Uva Province, Sri Lanka. Badulla is located 60 km southeast of Kandy, almost encircled by the Badulu Oya River, about 680 metres above sea level and is surrounded by picturesque hills and mountains, most of which have tea plantations.-Geography:It is located on the...

, Passara, Lunugala

Lunugala

Lunugala is a town in the Sri Lankan province of Uva.There are 26 Grama Niladhari Divisions in the Lunugala Divisional Secretariat Division...

, Demodara, Ella, Hali-Ela, Narangala and Spring-Vally were fallen to "Yatikinda".

Buttala

During the era of King Dutugemunu the path way from Northern province to the southern province was fallen through Buttala. A free meal was given to people who travelled from the north to the south. The place where the free meal was given called "Bath Hala", and name "Bath Hala" was later trasnformed in to "Buttala".

Wellawaya

When compared to the other divisions of the Uva province, wellawaya area is very much closer to the sea. The area is with a lower elevation and less number of mountains. Therefore this area is touched with the wind blown from the sea, which was called "Welle Wayuwa". It is believed the name "Welle Wayuwa" later called "Wellawaya".

Wiyaluwa

Bamboo

Bamboo

Bamboo is a group of perennial evergreens in the true grass family Poaceae, subfamily Bambusoideae, tribe Bambuseae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family....

 trees were called as "Wiyalu". The area with a large number of bamboo trees, was named as "Wiyaluwa".

Village Councils before 1950

During and after the British Ceylon

British Ceylon

British Ceylon refers to British rule prior to 1948 of the island territory now known as Sri Lanka.-From the Dutch to the British:Before the beginning of the Dutch governance, the island of Ceylon was divided between the Portuguese Empire and the Kingdom of Kandy, who were in the midst of a war for...

period, the Uva Province was administered as several Village Councils and Town Councils. Later these administration units were transformed into Municipal Councils, Urban Councils and Provincial Councils.

• Bintenna
• Palwatta Arulupitiya
• Oya Palatha
• Soranathota
• Wiyaluwa
• Dehivini Palata
• Dambavini Palatha
• Gampaha
• Meda Palatha
• Yati Palatha
• Uda Palatha
• Rilpola
• Kumbalwela
• Bogoda
• Passara
• Pattipola
• Wegam pattu Nilagala
• Medagam Pattu
• Dambagalla
• Buttala
• Wellawaya
• Kanda Pallena No 01
• Kandapallena No 02
• Kandukara
• Buttala Wedirata