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Ceylon

 - 7 dictionary results

Cey⋅lon

[si-lon, sey-]
–noun
former name of Sri Lanka.

Sri Lan⋅ka

[sree lahng-kuh, lang-kuh, shree]
–noun
an island republic in the Indian Ocean, S of India: a member of the Commonwealth of Nations. 18,762,075; 25,332 sq. mi. (65,610 sq. km). Capital: Colombo.
Formerly, Ceylon.
Arabic, Serendip.


Sri Lankan, adjective, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To Ceylon
Cey·lon   (sĭ-lŏn', sā-)   
See Sri Lanka.
Cey'lo·nese' (-nēz', -nēs') adj. & n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Cultural Dictionary

Ceylon

Former name for the nation now called Sri Lanka.


Sri Lanka [(sree lahng-kuh)]

Formerly Ceylon, now an island republic in the Indian Ocean just southeast of India.

Note: A British colony since 1796, the island became independent in 1948.
Note: Marked by hostility between its Buddhist Sinalese majority and Hindu Tamil minority (see Buddhism and Hinduism).
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History

Sri Lanka 
large island southeast of India (known in Eng. until 1972 as Ceylon), from Lanka, older name for the island and its chief city + Skt. sri "beauty" (esp. of divinities, kings, heroes, etc.), also an honorific prefix to proper names, from PIE base *kreie- "to be outstanding, brilliant, masterly, beautiful" (cf. Gk. kreon "lord, master").

Ceylon 
Port. form of Sri Lanka (q.v.).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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