Media Origin and Evolution of the Media in Sri Lanka

You have already learned that there are various traditional forms of communication in the social system of ancient Sri Lanka. By the pre-colonial period, 1815, the network of communications was still around the king. After the surrender of Buddhism and the monarchy-centric communications to the English, Sri Lanka came under Christian domination and colonial rule of law. School opening Official Announcements in Sinhala Publication of the Bible by the Colombo Bible Company in Sinhala in 1812 The publication of the Lanka Lokaya newspaper in 1860 and the commercial newspaper The observer and commercial advertiser in 1834 became milestones in Sri Lankan communication, especially for launching the Sinhala Buddhist Community against the British rule. The use was marked by literary and religious debates

Novelists and playwrights such as Piyadasa Sirisena, John de Silva and Charles Dias worked for the Anti-British National Movement. Among John de Silva's plays such as Sinhala Parabhava, Alakeshwara, Sirisangabo and Weera Wickrama created a special revival.

Meanwhile, the missionaries used plays to propagate Catholicism. With the arrival of an Indian Nurti record company and the recording of Sinhala Nurti songs, a gramophone culture was born in Sri Lanka. Novels such as Piyadasa Sirisena's Lucky Marriage, Rosalyn and Jayatissa became popular at the time.



Creation of Sinhala newspapers






Several magazines have been published in Sri Lanka before the publication of Sinhala newspapers .The first magazine is considered to be the Monthly Gift Magazine published in 1832 and the second magazine is the Ceylon Treasure published in 1840.

Lankalokaya is considered to be the first Sinhala newspaper in the country but it is an unregistered newspaper. The first registered newspaper in the country was the Lakmini Pahana newspaper A September 1862 (11). With the inception of the Sinhala press, a number of other special events took place .These spread on social, political and economic grounds .Printed communication also contributed to the launch of nationalist movements .The rise of literary and religious debates and the emergence of local scholars led to the development of these. However, the Sinhala Jathiya newspaper grew as a means of communicating patriotic poetry and later with the emergence of leading newspaper houses such as Lake House, the political, cultural, economic and religious influence of newspaper communication had a great impact on the local society.