3400 BC to 377 BC

The first islanders

People have lived on the island for at least 38,000 years: hunters of the Balangoda culture left tools and remains in caves such as Fa Hien. The Vedda people are thought to descend from these first inhabitants. Around the fifth century BC, settlers speaking an Indo Aryan language arrive from northern India, an arrival the chronicles tell as the landing of Prince Vijaya.