Prehistory of Sri Lanka

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Part of a series on the
History of Sri Lanka
Chronicles
Dipavamsa Mahavamsa Cūḷavaṃsa Rajavaliya Pujavaliya
Periods
Prehistory Stone Age Bronze Age Iron Age 300,000 BP –543 BC Pre Anuradhapura Indo-Aryan settlement 543–377 BC Anuradhapura Arrival of Buddhism Dutthagamani's campaign Fall of Anuradhapura 377 BC–1017 Polonnaruwa Chola conquest Sinhalese Resistance Invasion of Kalinga Magha 1017–1232 Transitional Vijayabā Kollaya Wars of Kotte Succession Crisis of the Sixteenth Century 1232–1597 Kandy First Kandyan–Dutch war Second Kandyan–Dutch war Kandyan–British wars 1597–1815 British Ceylon Great rebellion Matale rebellion Buddhist revival World War II Independence 1815–1948 Sri Lanka Dominion Republic 1948–present
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The prehistory of Sri Lanka covers the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and early Iron Age of the country until the Pre Anuradhapura period in 543 BC.

There is evidence of Paleolithic (Homo erectus) people in Sri Lanka from about 300,000 BP and possibly even as early as 500,000 BP.^[1] There is strong evidence of prehistoric settlements in Sri Lanka by about 125,000 BP.^[2] Evidence of a transition between the Mesolithic and the Iron Age is scant.

Fluctuations in sea level led to Sri Lanka being linked to the Indian subcontinent from time to time over the past million years. The last such link occurred about 5000 BC.^[3]