Sri Lanka is an island country in South Asia. Consisting of the island of Ceylon and small adjacent islands, it lies in the Indian Ocean and covers an area of 65 610 km2. It is separated from the southwest coast of India by the Palk Strait.
The main cities are Colombo, the capital with 669 700 inhabitants, Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, Moratuwa, Jaffna and Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte.
The proximity to India has facilitated cultural interaction between the two peoples. Being a transit area for the Indian sea routes, this country was exposed to cultural influences from other Asian civilizations. Greek surveyors called it Taprobana and later other Europeans called it Ceylon. It officially became Sri Lanka in 1972.
It is nicknamed the teardrop of India because of its shape and location.