The First Aryan Colonization of Ceylon

Summary

This essay re-examines the origins of Sinhalese civilisation by analysing the legend of Prince Vijaya and the linguistic evidence for early Aryan settlement in Ceylon. The author surveys the Mahāvaṃsa account of Vijaya’s arrival from northern India and his establishment of a kingdom after defeating local Yakṣa and Nāga chieftains. He criticises theories that link Vijaya to Bengal alone, arguing instead that the earliest colonists came from northwestern India and brought with them an Indo-Aryan dialect akin to Māgadhī and Prākrits spoken in the lower Indus region. Philological examination of Old Sinhalese vocabulary, phonetic changes and morphological structures suggests affinities with western Indo-Aryan languages rather than eastern ones. The paper also discusses archaeological finds, such as punch‑marked coins and early Brahmi inscriptions, that support a pre‑Mauryan northern connection. By comparing cultural practices—like names of months and rituals—with those of Gujarat and Sindh, the author proposes that multiple Aryan groups settled in Ceylon in successive waves, merging with indigenous communities. The fusion produced the unique Sinhalese culture recorded in chronicles and preserved in Pali literature.