The beginning of Sri Lanka
The pre-history of Sri Lanka goes back 125,000 years and possibly even as far back as 500,000 years. The era spans the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, and early Iron Ages. Among the Paleolithic human settlements discovered in Sri Lanka, Pahiyangala (37,000), named after the Chinese traveler monk Faxian Batadombalena (28,500) and Belilena (12,000 ) are the most important. In these caves, archaeologists have found the remains of anatomically modern humans which they have named Balangoda Man, and other evidence suggesting that they may have engaged in agriculture and kept domestic dogs for driving game.
The earliest inhabitants of Sri Lanka were probably ancestors of the Vedda people,an indigenous people numbering approximately 2,500 living in modern-day Sri Lanka.
During the protohistoric period (1000–500 BCE) Sri Lanka was culturally united with southern India, and shared the same megalithic burials, pottery, iron technology, farming techniques and megalithic graffiti. This cultural complex spread from southern India along with Dravidian clans such as the Velir, prior to the migration of Prakrit speakers.
One of the first written references to the island is found in the Indian epic Ramayana, which provides details of a kingdom named Lanka that was created by the divine sculptor Vishvakarma for Kubera, the God of Wealth. It is said that Kubera was overthrown by his rakshasa stepbrother, Ravana.
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