瓦武尼亚

Vavuniya

北部干旱地区的门户城镇，僧伽罗南部和泰米尔北部之间的繁忙十字路口，周围环绕着古老的寺庙和宁静的水库。

概述

瓦武尼亚是北部干旱地区的主要城镇，也是 A9 高速公路和北部铁路线前往贾夫纳的第一个主要站点。长期以来，这里都是泰米尔人、穆斯林和僧伽罗人社区的交汇点，熙熙攘攘的市场街道上矗立着一座地标性清真寺、一座色彩缤纷的 Murugan kovil 和一座虽小但颇有价值的考古博物馆。城镇周围坐落着马杜坎达 (Madukanda) 的古代佛教遗址，还有散布在黎明和黄昏时吸引水鸟的大型灌溉水池。瓦武尼亚本身并不是一个目的地，而是一个友好的基地和交通枢纽，它提供了斯里兰卡万尼地区真实的日常生活品味。

历史

Vavuniya takes its name from the 'Vanni' forests that once covered this thinly settled frontier, historically governed by local Vanni chieftains between the Sinhalese kingdoms of the south and the Tamil kingdom of Jaffna. Its significance grew with the building of the northern railway and the A9 road, which made it the principal town of the Vanni. During the long civil conflict it became a heavily militarised border and transit point between government- and rebel-held territory, and since the war's end in 2009 it has re-emerged as a busy commercial crossroads and the administrative centre of Vavuniya District.