The irrigation works in ancient

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

, the earliest dating from about 300 BCE, in the reign of

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen regnant, queen, which title is also given to the queen consort, consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contempora ...

Pandukabhaya Pandukabhaya (474 BC – 367 BC) was King of Upatissa Nuwara and the first monarch of the Anuradhapura Kingdom and 6th over all of the island of Sri Lanka since the arrival of the Vijaya; he reigned from 437 BC to 367 BC. According to many hi ...

and under continuous development for the next thousand years, were some of the most complex

irrigation system Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow crops, landscape plants, and lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,000 years and has been develop ...

s of the

ancient world Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history cov ...

. In addition to constructing underground

canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi). They carry free, calm surface f ...

s, the Sinhalese were among the first to build completely artificial reservoirs to store

water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as ...

. The system was extensively restored and further extended during the reign of King

Parākramabāhu Parākramabāhu I ( Sinhala: මහා පරාක්‍රමබාහු, 1123–1186), or Parakramabahu the Great, was the king of Polonnaruwa from 1153 to 1186. He oversaw the expansion and beautification of his capital, constructed extensiv ...

(1153–1186 CE). According to Sri Lankan history, the first tank was built by King

, who reigned from 437 to 367 BC. It is said that he had three tanks built, namely ''Abhaya wewa'', ''Gamini wewa'', and ''Jaya wewa'', yet, presently, only one tank named ''Basawakkulama wewa'', which is known as the Abhaya wewa in the past, can be identified. After King Pandukabhaya, King Parakramabahu I had many tanks built, with one large tank called ''Parakrama samudraya'' still providing water for agriculture. It can be said that many rulers of Sri Lanka contributed to the development and construction of tanks all over the ''Raja Rata'' (Northern part of the country). Henry Parker, ''Ancient Ceylon'', London-Luzca & Co., First Published by the India Office (1909)

References

External links

Sena de Silva, Reservoirs of Sri Lanka and their fisheries

FAO The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...

, 1998
FAO - Protection and revival of Ancient Irrigation Systems in Sri Lanka
Irrigation works Agriculture in Sri Lanka Irrigation in Sri Lanka {{SriLanka-stub

See also

References

External links