Galle
| Galle ගාල්ල காலி |
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|---|---|
| — City — | |
| City of Galle | |
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 Galle
ගාල්ල காலி |
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| Coordinates: 6°2′6″N 80°12′57″E / 6.03500°N 80.21583°ECoordinates: 6°2′6″N 80°12′57″E / 6.03500°N 80.21583°E | |
| Country |  Sri Lanka |
| Province | Southern Province |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipal Council |
| • Mayor | Kelum Seneviratne (Intern) |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Total | 99,478 |
| • Density | 5,712/km2 (14,790/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Gallians |
| Time zone | Sri Lanka Standard Time Zone (UTC+5:30) |
| Area code(s) | 091 |
| Website | galle.mc.gov.lk |
Galle (Sinhala: ගාල්ල;Tamil: காலி) is a major city in Sri Lanka, situated on the southwestern tip of Sri Lanka, 119 km from Colombo. Galle is the administrative capital of Southern Province, Sri Lanka and the district capital of Galle District.
Galle was known as Gimhathiththa (although Ibn Batuta in the 14th century refers to it as Qali[1] before the arrival of the Portuguese in the 16th century, when it was the main port on the island. Galle reached the height of its development in the 18th century, during the Dutch colonial period. The major river in the area is the Gin River (Gin Ganga), which starts from Gongala Kanda and, passing villages such as Neluwa, Nagoda, Baddegama, Thelikada, and Wakwella, reaches the sea at Ginthota. The river is bridged at Wakwella by the Wakwella Bridge.
Galle is the best example of a fortified city built by the Portuguese in South and Southeast Asia, showing the interaction between Portuguese architectural styles and native traditions. The Galle fort is a world heritage site and the largest remaining fortress in Asia built by European occupiers. Other prominent landmarks in Galle include the city's natural harbor, the National Maritime Museum, St. Mary's Cathedral founded by Jesuit priests, one of the main Shiva temples on the island, and Amangalla the historic luxury hotel.
On 26 December 2004 the city was devastated by the massive Boxing Day Tsunami caused by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake that occurred a thousand miles away, off the coast of Indonesia. Thousands were killed in the city alone. Galle is home to a cricket ground, the Galle International Stadium, rebuilt after the tsunami. Test matches resumed there on December 18, 2007.
Rumassala in Unawatuna is a large mound-like hill, which forms the eastern protective barrier to the Galle harbour. Local tradition associates this hill with some events of the Ramayana.
Contents |
History [edit]
| Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications | |
|---|---|
| Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List | |
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| Country | Sri Lanka |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | iv |
| Reference | 451 |
| UNESCO region | Asia-Pacific |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 1988 (10th Session) |
According to James Emerson Tennent, Galle was the ancient seaport of Tarshish, from which King Solomon drew ivory, peacocks and other valuables. Cinnamon was exported from Sri Lanka as early as 1400 BC and the root of the word itself is Hebrew, so Galle may have been a main entrepot for the spice.[2]
Galle had been a prominent seaport long before western rule in the country. Persians, Arabs, Greeks, Romans, Malays, Indians, and Chinese were doing business through Galle port. In 1411, the Galle Trilingual Inscription, a stone tablet inscription in three languages, Chinese, Tamil and Persian, was erected in Galle to commemorate the second visit to Sri Lanka by the Chinese admiral Zheng He.
The "modern" history of Galle starts in 1505, when the first Portuguese ship, under Lourenço de Almeida was driven there by a storm. However, the people of the city refused to let the Portuguese enter it, so the Portuguese took it by force.
In 1640, the Portuguese had to surrender to the Dutch East India Company. The Dutch built the present Fort in the year 1663. They built a fortified wall, using solid granite, and built three bastions, known as "Sun", "Moon" and "Star". After the British took over the country from the Dutch in the year 1796, they preserved the Fort unchanged, and used it as the administrative centre of Galle.
Governance [edit]
The Galle Municipal Council governs the City of Galle, established under the Municipalities Ordinance of 1865. It was, at the time, only the 3rd municipal council in the country. The first mayor of the city was appointed in 1939 in the person of Wijeyananda Dahanayake, who later went on to become Prime Minister of Ceylon.
The current Mayor of Galle is Methsiri de Silva, appointed December 4, 2008. The main vision of Galle City is "Building of moderate city through the supply of relatively increased utility services to the citizens who pay taxes to the Galle Municipal Council ", and to brand Galle as "Green City-Green Galle" [3] to create and promote Galle as Sri Lanka's cool and healthy coastal city with a clean green canopy.
Climate [edit]
Galle features a tropical rainforest climate. The city has no true dry season, though it is noticeably drier in the months of January and February. As is commonplace with many cities with this type of climate, temperatures show little variation throughout the course of the year, with average temperatures hovering at around 26 degrees Celsius throughout.
| Climate data for Galle | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 25 (77) |
26 (79) |
27 (81) |
27 (81) |
27 (81) |
27 (81) |
26 (79) |
26 (79) |
26 (79) |
26 (79) |
26 (79) |
25 (77) |
26 (79) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 102 (4.02) |
86 (3.39) |
117 (4.61) |
241 (9.49) |
297 (11.69) |
206 (8.11) |
165 (6.5) |
155 (6.1) |
213 (8.39) |
340 (13.39) |
302 (11.89) |
178 (7.01) |
2,403 (94.61) |
| Source: Weatherbase[4] | |||||||||||||
Demographics [edit]
Galle is a sizeable city, by Sri Lankan standards, and has a population of 91 000, the majority of whom are of Sinhalese ethnicity. There is also a large Sri Lankan Moor minority, particularly in the fort area, who descend from Arab merchants that settled in the ancient port of Galle. Galle is also notable for its foreign population, both residents and owners of holiday homes.
| Ethnicity | Population[5] | % Of Total |
|---|---|---|
| Sinhalese | 66,114 | 72.70 |
| Sri Lankan Moors | 23,234 | 25.55 |
| Sri Lankan Tamils | 989 | 1.09 |
| Indian Tamils | 255 | 0.28 |
| Other (including Burgher, Malay) | 342 | 0.38 |
| Total | 90,934 | 100 |
Education [edit]
Schools [edit]
Galle is home to some of the oldest leading schools in Sri Lanka: 29 government schools and 5 international schools being part of the city's system. Some of the schools situated in Galle city are listed below.
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Universities [edit]
Two main faculties of the University of Ruhuna are located in Galle. The Faculty of Engineering is located at Hapugala about 6 km from the city center. The faculty of Medicine is located at Karapitiya near the Karapitiya Teaching Hospital. The Medical faculty is also located at about 5 km from the city center. A study centre of the Open University of Sri Lanka is also located in Galle at Labuduwa junction.
- Faculty of Engineering
- Faculty of Medicine
- Study Centre of the Open University of Sri Lanka
Higher Education Institutes [edit]
Advanced Technological Institute in Labuduwa, Galle was started in year 2000 and it was planned to offer Higher National Diploma in Information Technology - HNDIT and Higher National Diploma in Agriculture Technology - HNDT (Agri). Since then Labuduwa ATI has been a pioneer in technological education in Sri Lanka. National Institute of Business Management in Galle was established in 2010 to provide higher education opportunities in the fields of Information Technology and Business Management.
- Advanced Technological Institute (ATI)
- National Institute of Business Management (NIBM)
Transport [edit]
Galle is served by Sri Lanka Railways' Coastal Line. Galle Railway Station is a major station on the line, and serves as the meeting point of the west-coast and south-coast segments of the line. Galle is connected by rail to Colombo and Matara.[6]
The Southern Expressway, Sri Lanka's first E Class highway also links the Sri Lankan capital Colombo with Galle.
Twin cities [edit]
The City of Galle is twinned with:
| Country | City | State / Region | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
 Netherlands |
 Velsen |
 North Holland |
1988 |
Although not an official twin city, 
Melbourne, Australia 'adopted' Galle after the 2004 tsunami disaster, funding the reconstruction of its cricket ground, and providing financial and other support.
Gallery [edit]
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Main roundabout area
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A street in Galle city
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A mosque in Galle fort
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Marine walk and Galle harbor across the bay
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Galle countryside (Wakwella)
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A church in Galle fort
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Old fortress & light house
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Grass-clad walls of fort
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Lighthouse in Galle fort
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Galle Fort Ligthouse
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ "Medieval Traveller Ibn Battuta was a Guest of the Jaffna King in 1344". Ilankai Tamil Sangam. 2006.
- ^ "Psychosocial Forum District Data Mapping: Galle". Psychosocial Forum District Data Mapping: Galle. Department of Social Services: Galle. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
- ^ Galle Green
- ^ "Galle, Sri Lanka Travel Weather Averages". Weatherbase. Retrieved 2013-01-22.
- ^ "Population by Ethnicity according to D.S. Division and Sector: Galle District (Provisional)". Census of Population Housing 2001. Department of Census and Statistics. 2001. Archived from the original on 2007-06-10. Retrieved 2013-01-22.
- ^ "Colombo - Galle - Matara by rail". Colombofort.com. 2011.
- Galle Municipal Council
- Galle Shipwreck's (Article from Divaina)
- Galle harbour (Article from Divaina)
- Discover Sri Lanka - Galle and Galle Fort
External links [edit]
- Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications, UNESCO World Heritage
- Official website of the Sri Lanka Tourism Board
- Corridors of Oceanic Heritage: The Maritime Archaeology Museum, Galle
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