Sri Lanka is a beautiful island country with ancient roots. This often overlooked destination
is filled with surprises that amaze not only those who visit, but even the locals have a lot to be
proud of! In this episode, I'll be sharing 10 surprising and interesting facts about Sri
Lanka. Hey guys! Welcome back to FTD Facts. Leroy Kenton here, and now, we get so many requests to
feature new countries, and I'm really excited to feature Sri Lanka finally. Okay, so let's
begin let's jump into the facts. Starting at number 10, let's look at some of the other names of Sri
Lanka. Sri Lanka actually has a couple of names for titles that it's referred to as. The first is "The
Pearl of the Indian Ocean. " This is said to be used because of the incredible beauty of the country
as well as its biodiversity, which, by the way, is the highest in all of Asia. And also because
one of its main exports is actually precious gemstones. Now the second name, "The Teardrop
of India," which is probably more commonly used. This is due to the teardrop land shape
and it being located off the coast of India. But guys, did you know that Sri Lanka was not
always known as Sri Lanka? It was previously known as Ceylon, which is a transliteration
of the word ceilão. And that was the name of the country under Portuguese colonization. Now
the name was later standardized as Ceylon when the land became a British colony, and the name Ceylon,
well that's used for many of the famous teas, as well as other products that are exported from Sri
Lanka. Ceylon was the official name many years after it gained independence in the year 1948,
but the name change happened in 1972. And, that takes us to the current name. That year,
the name was changed to Sri Lanka, but Hey, what does that actually mean anyway? Sri
Lanka. Well, let's break it down. Lanka was taken from the ancient name of the island, and it was
combined with the term Sri meaning resplendent. So, Sri Lanka means "resplendent island." I had to
look this up though, I didn't know what resplendent means. First time seeing it, but it actually means,
"shining brilliantly." So, the shining brilliant island. Also, the name Sri Lanka is sometimes
pronounced as "Shri Lanka" and this was just because of a preference of a former prime minister in the
pronunciation of the name. For fact number seven. Sri Lanka has topped the list as the largest
exporter of cinnamon in the entire world, and this is according to an international market survey
in the year 2019. Yes, Sri Lanka is definitely famous for cinnamon, as it's a very essential
ingredient for many of its foods. Now, cinnamon is said to have originated in Sri Lanka, and was found
by the Egyptians in 2000 BC. But, yeah, even today, at the time of filming this episode,
Sri Lanka is still a leading exporter of the worlds cinnamon, and could very well continue
to be for years to come. Next up, I'll look at the national sport of Sri Lanka. Just like me,
you probably assume that the national sport of Sri Lanka is cricket, right? But, you know cricket is
still by far the most popular sport in the country. But the national sport of Sri Lanka actually is
volleyball surprisingly! And this sport was introduced to the country in the year 1916.
The Sri Lanka Volleyball Federation is the main governing body of volleyball in Sri Lanka.
And that was founded in the year 1951. Okay guys, before we continue in the last five facts that I
have for you in this episode, just want to take this time to mention our new channel FTD Reacts.
That's a channel where we explore a variety of different topics. It's much different than the
content that we cover here on FTD Facts or on FTD Speaks. It's a lot more fun, a lot more lighthearted.
But definitely, you'll learn a thing or two over on the channel as well as you'll have a
good laugh. I'll link to it below in the video description section, where you can subscribe
for new videos posted every single week. I highly recommend it if you're looking for something new
in your daily life to keep you learning as well as laughing. Next up, number 5. This is another
important fact about Sri Lanka is that they had the first female prime minister in the world and
her name was Sirimavo Bandaranaike, and she was in office for a pretty long time. Like her first term as prime
minister began in July 1960 up until March 1965. Then, her second time in office was from May 1970
to May 1972, and her position was lost, but it continued because Ceylon had gained independence
from Britain, and so the country at that time became known as Sri Lanka as I mentioned earlier,
and she was prime minister of Sri Lanka until the year 1977. But she returned for a third time
in office! Yeah, this lady really loved her land! In the year 1994, she served up until the year 2000,
which was also the year that she sadly passed away. So, let's look at the flag of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka's
national flag is one of the oldest flags in the entire world. Like, take a look. See, this golden lion
flag was said to have been brought with the first king of Sri Lanka from India. Now, in the year 1815
when Sri Lanka became British Ceylon, the Union Flag of the Brits was introduced into the flag.
Then, the golden lion holding a sword was re-added in the year 1948 after independence. Then, the four
Bo Leaves that you'll notice in the corners, they were added to replace spearheads that were
in the corners in the year 1972. And with that, we now have the flag of Sri Lanka to this day. Those
four Bo Leaves, by the way, represent the four values of Sri Lanka. That's loving-kindness, compassion,
equanimity, and happiness. Fact number 3 is pretty interesting as well. Adam's Peak is the
most sacred mountain in Sri Lanka. Adam's Peak is also known as "Sri Pada," and it has pilgrims from all
over the world come there and climb to its peak to stand in the famous footprint that was left
there. Now, Buddhists, they believe that this was a footprint of Buddha when he visited Sri Lanka.
And Tamil Hindus believe that is a footprint of Lord Shiva. But among Christians and Muslims in Sri
Lanka, is believed that this footprint was left by adam, and this footprint happened when he was sent
out of The Garden of Eden. And some believe that Sri Lanka was actually Eden itself. Next up, let's
look at Buddhist Tooth. This is a sacred Tooth relic of Lord Buddha, and it was brought from
India in the 4th-century CE, and it's actually still preserved in the Temple of The Tooth
in the city of kandy, in Sri Lanka. Every single summer, there's a huge festival known as Esala
Perahera, which is the festival of The Tooth to honor this Tooth. And the relic came to be regarded
as a symbolic representation of the living Buddha. And the note I want to end off on, takes us to the
oldest human planted tree. The oldest tree planted by a human being rather than by natural seeding.
It's located in Anuradhapura, one of the ancient capitals of Sri Lanka. Now, it's a sacred fig or
Bo Tree, and it is believed to be over 2,300 years old, and this tree is called the Sri Maha Bodhi.
The tree was planted about 288 BC and its mother tree is said to be the famous Bodhi tree under
which Lord Buddha achieved enlightenment when he was meditating. Alright guys, so that brings us
to the end of this episode. This was a look at 10 surprising and interesting facts about Sri Lanka.
Really hope you guys enjoyed this episode. Let me know all your thoughts and comments
down below. Definitely a very fascinating and mind-blowing place. The history is so interesting
as well. So sending all the love to those of you who may be watching this from Sri Lanka.
Look forward to seeing each and every one of you, also in a future episode. So, stay tuned!
you