Pettah, Sri Lanka

For other uses, see Pettah.

Pettah පිට කොටුව புறக் கோட்டை
Suburb
Country	Sri Lanka
Province	Western Province
District	Colombo District 11
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (Sri Lanka Standard Time Zone)
Postal Code	01100

Pettah is a neighborhood in Colombo, Sri Lanka located east of the City centre Fort. The Pettah neighborhood is famous for the Pettah Market, a series of open air bazaars and markets. It is Sri Lanka's most busiest commercial area, where most of the shops, textiles, buildings and many other business organizations are centered.

Pettah is derived from the Tamil word, Pettai, an Anglo-Indian word used to indicate a suburb outside a fort. Today, the Sinhalese phrase, pita-kotuwa (outside the fort) conveniently describes the same place.

Demographics

Pettah is a multi-religious and multi-ethnic area. Moors and Memons are the predominant ethnic group found within Pettah, however an average amount of Sinhalese and Tamil populations also exist. There are also various other minorities such as Burghers, Malays and others. Religions include Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and various other religions and beliefs to a lesser extent.

Buildings and landmarks

Notable landmarks in the neighborhood include Wolvendaal Church, the Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque, Kayman's Gate, the old Colombo Town Hall, the Colombo Dutch Museum and the Khan Clock Tower, which was built by the Khan family of Bombay (now known as the city of Mumbai) in India.

• 
  Wolvendaal Church, one of the oldest Protestant churches still in use in Sri Lanka.
• 
  The Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque located in Pettah, is one of the oldest mosques in Colombo and one of the most visited mosques in the area.
• 
  The Khan Clock Tower, is situated on a landscaped roundabout that marks the entrance to the Pettah Market.
• 
  One of the streets that make up the Pettah Market.
• 
  One of the streets that make up the Pettah Market
• 
  One of the streets that make up the Pettah Market