Valikamam Explained

Valikamam
Native Name:Tamil: வலிகாமம்
Sinhala; Sinhalese: වලිකාමම්
Settlement Type:Region
Pushpin Map:Sri Lanka
Pushpin Relief:1
Coordinates:9.75°N 81°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: Sri Lanka
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Type2:District
Seat Type:Largest city
Seat:Jaffna
Parts Type:Divisional Secretariats
Parts Style:coll
P1:Jaffna
P2:Nallur
P3:Valikamam East
P4:Valikamam North
P5:Valikamam South
P6:Valikamam South West
P7:Valikamam West
Unit Pref:Metric
Area Total Km2:344.2
Population Total:358,991
Population As Of:2007
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone1:Sri Lanka
Utc Offset1:+05:30

Valikamam (Tamil: வலிகாமம் valikāmam, Sinhala; Sinhalese: වැලිගම) is one of the three historic regions of Jaffna peninsula in northern Sri Lanka. The other two regions are Thenmarachchi and Vadamarachchi. Alternative spellings include Valikaamam or Valigamam.

Etymology

Valikamam translates to "the sandy village" in English. It is derived from the Tamil words vali (sand) and kamam (village). It is also an equivalent to the ancient name of Jaffna with the same meaning, Manaltidar or Manarridal. According to the 16th Century Jaffna Tamil literary work Santiago Kumara Ammanai, Valikamam referred as Valli Kiraamam (Village of Plant Tinospora cordifolia) [1]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Book: Ragupathy, Ponnampalam. Early Settlements in Jaffna: An Archaeological Survey. 1987. Thillimalar. University of Jaffna. 211. en.