09/06/2026
The Systematically Marginalized "Afro-Sri Lankans or Sri Lankan African Community"
Although Sri Lanka is a multi-ethnic country enriched with diverse religions, languages, and cultures, within this diversity exists a forgotten community that has long been overlooked by society and scholars, rapidly assimilating into other cultures. They are the "Afro-Sri Lankans" or the "Sri Lankan African" people. Despite arriving in the country during the colonial era, exploring this unique community which faces systemic exclusion today has become an essential social responsibility.
The history of Afro-Sri Lankans traces back to three waves of migration by European colonizers (Portuguese, Dutch, and British) who controlled the island's coastal belt. These rulers brought these people to Sri Lanka from various countries across the African continent to serve their diverse needs. They served in various fields as mercenaries, musicians, road and railway builders, salt pan guards, domestic workers, and personal bodyguards. In 17th-century Sinhala literary works, they were referred to as 'Abisi', and more commonly known as 'Habshi', 'Sidi', or 'Kaffir'.
Since Sri Lanka gained independence, this community had to directly confront post-colonial socio-political changes, and with the end of European colonialism, their social status gradually deteriorated. This systemic marginalization and neglect are so severe that not even a proper written history of them has been created in the country. Most tragically, because the population of Afro-Sri Lankans has rapidly declined, they have not been listed as a separate ethnic group even in recent census reports, thereby erasing them from the country's official statistics. According to the 2025–26 Census of Population and Housing statistics, the total population belonging to "other ethnic groups" stands at 9,160 individuals, among whom the number of Sri Lankan Africans can be estimated to be roughly between 500 and 1,000.
Today, the last remaining Afro-Sri Lankan community lives in the Sirambiadiya area, near Puttalam in the North Western Province. Around 150 to 200 families belonging to this community currently live there amidst extreme hardships, facing social marginalization. Although the present generation of Afro-Sri Lankan children receives education in the Sinhala medium from schools like Puttalam Maha Vidyalaya as a result of free education, no systematic program is in place to uplift their economic and social standards. A majority of Sri Lankan African people terminate their school education at the primary or secondary level to engage in various informal jobs or get married. Consequently, the percentage of individuals from this community accessing high-level or government jobs, or reaching decision-making levels, remains extremely low. Those of African descent who previously lived in areas like Wellawatte in Colombo have fully assimilated into the local Muslim population and can no longer be identified separately, making Sirambiadiya the final stronghold where their distinctive identity survives.
Even though the ancestors of these people were African, the rulers who brought them to Sri Lanka distanced them from African customs and forcibly imposed European traditions, leading them to adopt a Portuguese identity. This identity is strongly expressed through language and the Roman Catholic faith. "Sri Lanka Portuguese Creole", which was used even in Dutch households during the colonial era as a common tool for close communication in Sri Lanka, is the mother tongue of these people. However, today, the number of individuals who can speak this unique Creole language has dwindled to a minuscule group of about 500. Having evolved under the influence of the local Sinhala language (following the Subject-Object-Verb word order), this linguistic heritage is now on the verge of extinction.
The greatest contribution of Afro-Sri Lankans, and the factor that still keeps them alive, is their music, songs, and dance. Traditional triumphant Creole songs like "Senhor Sanantoni", sung by past soldiers upon their arrival in Sri Lanka, still exist among them today. Although elderly Afro-Sri Lankan artists like Mary Jacintha have formed groups to add color to the Sri Lankan music industry through their talents, they have not received the national recognition and economic stability they rightfully deserve.
In the face of the current severe economic crisis, Sri Lankan African women bear a heavy burden in maintaining their families and managing household responsibilities. Having to survive on a traditionally meager daily wage, they must work exceptionally hard to meet basic family needs, healthcare, and food security. Furthermore, the informal responsibility of preserving and passing down the community's unique cultural heritage, such as songs and dances, to the next generation falls upon the women. However, due to the lack of proper state patronage or stable economic returns for these artistic skills, their opportunities to strengthen the family economy are restricted, leaving them further marginalized socio-economically.
As a result of the free education system, the current generation of Sri Lankan African children attends local schools like Puttalam Maha Vidyalaya, adapting to education in the Sinhala medium. Nonetheless, they often face indirect social marginalization or discrimination within the school system and general society due to their physical appearance and community identity. The most serious issue is that neither their mother tongue, "Sri Lanka Portuguese Creole", nor their true historical heritage is included in the local educational curricula. Consequently, these children gradually alienate themselves from their community's identity within the school system, leading to a blow to their self-esteem and causing a dual identity crisis.
The younger generation of Sri Lankan Africans is currently facing a severe employment crisis. In light of the country's economic decline, there are no proper political or state-level plans to uplift their living standards or provide permanent vocational training opportunities. Although today's youth are reluctant to rely solely on daily wage labor like their ancestors, their opportunities to secure equal footing in the professional job market remain limited. Consequently, the youth suffer from severe unemployment and economic instability, tempting them to leave their traditional villages and merge with other religious or ethnic groups, masking their true identity.
The elderly and aged members of the community currently find themselves in an extremely vulnerable position. Because these people are not documented as a separate ethnic group even in official state census reports, elderly African Sri Lankans do not receive any specific welfare or social security benefits. Spending the twilight of their lives, they suffer from severe poverty and a lack of healthcare facilities. Above all, this elderly generation is the only group that possesses the entire oral history and knows the "Sri Lanka Portuguese Creole" mother tongue, which is restricted to a very limited number of people. They deeply experience the psychological trauma in their old age that this unique cultural and linguistic heritage might vanish forever after them, alongside the crisis of becoming an invisible group in a post-colonial society.
Afro-Sri Lankans represent another unique ethnic segment that nurtures the cultural diversity of our country. Due to their systemic exclusion, omission from censuses, and the failure to document their history, there is a risk that the remaining oral and cultural knowledge about these people will be lost forever. Therefore, protecting this minority group, ensuring their rights, and integrating them into the main mainstream of society is an undeniable responsibility of both the authorities and society as a whole.
