Place · city
Anuradhapura
Anuradhapura is a city in north-central Sri Lanka that was the island's first great capital, from about the 4th century BCE until the 11th century CE. The chronicles credit its founding to King Pandukabhaya, and it grew into a centre of Theravada Buddhism with vast stupas such as the Ruwanwelisaya and Jetavanaramaya and the sacred Bodhi tree. It was abandoned after Chola invasions, and its ruins are a World Heritage Site.
Mentioned in 4 state histories
See also
Cite this entry
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Anuradhapura. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/anuradhapura
- MLA
- “Anuradhapura.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/anuradhapura. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Anuradhapura.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/anuradhapura.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Anuradhapura’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/anuradhapura (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻