Trincomalee: Sri Lanka's Ancient Deep-Water Harbour

Trincomalee, located 257 km north-east of Colombo, is considered one of the finest natural deep-water harbours in the world. This video offers a vivid portrait of the town — its sweeping coastline, its layered history, and the remarkable landscapes that have drawn travellers, traders and pilgrims for well over two thousand years.

Today, Trincomalee is celebrated for the white-sand beaches of Nilaveli and Uppaveli, as well as the offshore sanctuary of Pigeon Island. Dive centres at both Nilaveli and Uppaveli cater to visitors keen on diving, snorkelling and swimming, and the area has more recently gained popularity as a whale watching destination. A short 8 km from the town centre, the seven hot springs at Kanniyai draw steady crowds throughout the year, valued for the therapeutic properties of their waters — which vary in temperature from one well to the next.

A Place of Many Names

Trincomalee district is referred to in historical chronicles and inscriptions as Gokanna or Gokarna, and it stands as a major Sinhalese Buddhist cultural and archaeological site. Scholars have recorded the town under a remarkable range of names: Sri Gokarna, Siri Gokanna, Sri Gonapura, Siri Gonamala, Gonagamaka Pattana, Gonagama-Patuna and, in even earlier sources, Gokannatitta. The present Sinhala name, Thirikunamala, is understood to be a derivation from Siri Gonamala, following the same pattern by which other Sinhala place names were transformed over time. The conversion of Gokarna to the Tamil form Tirukonamalai first appears in a Tamil inscription dated to the 10th or 11th century.

An Ancient Port Since 543 B.C.

Alongside Mantota in Mannar and Dambakolapattuna in Jaffna, Gokarna was one of the great sea-ports of ancient Sri Lanka from as early as 543 B.C. According to the historical chronicles, it was at Siri Gonamala harbour that Prince Panduvasudeva — nephew of King Vijaya — sailed into Sri Lanka from Sinhapura, India. Badda Kachchayana, who later became queen of King Panduwasdeva (505–474 B.C.), is also said to have landed at this same harbour with her party of royal maidens. She was a sister of Prince Digha, the founder of Dighavapi.

In his essay Aryan Settlements and Early Kings, published in the Concise History of Ceylon, the historian and archaeologist Dr. Senarath Paranavithana wrote that Panduvasdeva and thirty-two followers arrived in Ceylon in the guise of mendicant monks, landing at the mouth of the Mahakandara River at the port of Gokanna — identified by the commentator of the Mahavamsa as the modern Trincomalee. E. T. Kannangara, writing in Jaffna and the Sinhala Heritage, further noted that Trincomalee was one of the chief trading centres in Sri Lanka during the periods of the Sinhala kings.

Buddhist Heritage and Fort Frederick

The Buddhist Vihara at Gokanna, known as Sri Gokarna Vihara, is recorded as the earliest religious edifice in Trincomalee, built during the reign of King Mahasen (276–303 A.C.). Situated on a rock, it was also known as Vehera Gala — meaning "vihara on a rock." The temple was later expanded by King Agbo V (718–724 A.D.) before being demolished by the Portuguese in the 16th century to make way for a fortress. Gokanna Vihare is among 74 Buddhist sites identified within the Trincomalee district by the Department of Archaeology of Sri Lanka. Swami Rock, the highest point in Fort Frederick, is an ancient site where Buddhist shrines are also believed to have stood.