History of Sri Lanka

Patrick Peebles is Professor of History at the University of Missouri, Kansas City.

• Maps Series Foreword Frank W. Thackeray and John E. Findling Preface Acronyms Timeline of Historical Events 1 The Settings 2 Ancient Civilization to 1200 3 Abandonment of the Dry Zone and the Kandyan Kingdom 4 Portuguese, Dutch, and British Colonialism 5 A Colonial Society 6 A Plantation Economy 7 Sinhalese and Tamil Nationalism 8 The Coming of Independence 9 Triumph of Sinhalese Nationalism 10 Authoritarianism and Ethnic Conflict 11 Economic Liberalization and the Quality of Life 12 Civil War 13 Searching for Peace Notable People in the History of Sri Lanka Appendix: Sri Lankan Sovereigns, Dutch and British Governors, Prime Ministers, and Presidents Glossary Bibliographic Essay Index MapsPhysical Map of Sri Lanka Ancient Sri Lanka Colonial Sri Lanka Provinces and Districts Modern Sri Lanka

Peebles presents the history of Sri Lanka in this volume that is part of a series aimed at students and general readers. Along the way, he integrates geography, economics, culture, colonialism, and Sinhalese and Tamil nationalism into the discussion, and describes the country's independence from Britain, ethnic conflicts, quality of life, the recent civil war and quest for peace, and the 2004 tsunami. Brief biographies of key figures are appended.