A Note on Sri Lankan Names

Sri Lankan names can be extremely difficult for westerners to understand. Often, people have two or three long surnames, inherited from their parents. Picking which one to use is arbitrary. Since these names can become extremely complicated, I plan to follow the Sri Lankan custom of using initials for the surnames followed by a person's given name.

As Sri Lankan names go, Shyamali's is fairly simple: Punchchi Hewage Shyamali. Here she is known as P.H. Shyamali, just as her father is known as P.H. Sumanapala.

Some middle-class Sri Lankans have adopted the western practice of using a given name followed by a single family name. In such cases, I will use the full name, rather than initials.

-- Michael Dobbs

By washingtonpost.com |  February 11, 2005; 11:00 AM ET  | Category:  Michael Dobbs
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