Sinhala, also known as Sinhalese, is an Indo-Aryan language primarily spoken by the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka. It is the official and national language of Sri Lanka, alongside Tamil.

• Native to: Sri Lanka
• Ethnicity: Sinhalese people
• Speakers: Approximately 16 million as a first language, with an additional 2-4 million second-language speakers.
• Language Family: Indo-European, Indo-Aryan
• Writing System: Sinhala script (Sinhala hodiya), derived from the ancient Brahmi script.

• Sinhala's origins trace back to settlers from northern India who arrived in Sri Lanka around the 5th century BCE.
• The language evolved from Indo-Aryan vernaculars, influenced by Prakrit languages like Pali, and Sanskrit.
• Early forms of Sinhala are attested as early as the 3rd century BCE.
• The language has undergone several distinct historical phases:
  • Elu Prakrit (3rd c. BCE to 4th c. CE)
  • Proto-Sinhala (4th c. CE to 8th c. CE)
  • Medieval Sinhala (8th c. CE to 13th c. CE)
  • Modern Sinhala (13th c. CE to the present)

• Diglossia: A notable characteristic of Sinhala is its diglossic nature, with distinct literary and spoken varieties.
• Word Order: Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) is the typical word order.
• Absence of Copula: Sinhala lacks a copula (like the verb "to be" in English).
• Pro-drop Language: Sinhala is a pro-drop language, meaning that sentence arguments can be omitted if they are inferable from context.
• Influence of other languages: Pali, Sanskrit, Tamil, Portuguese, Dutch and English have influenced Sinhala.

• The Sinhala script (Sinhala hodiya) is an abugida, where consonants are written with letters, and vowels are indicated with diacritics.
• The script is closely related to the Grantha script and Khmer script, and has taken elements from the Kadamba script.
• Sinhala script is written from left to right.
• The complete script consists of approximately 60 letters, with 18 for vowels and 42 for consonants. However, only 57 letters are required for colloquial spoken Sinhala.

• Regional variations and dialects exist within Sinhala, including those in the Uva Province, Southern Province, and Up-country regions.
• These variations can include differences in pronunciation and grammar.

• Sinhala plays a vital role in preserving Sri Lanka's cultural heritage, literature, and traditions.
• The language is closely linked to Theravada Buddhism, serving as a medium for preserving Buddhist teachings and literature.
• Sinhala is used in various art forms, including sculpture, literature, dance, and music.

• Sinhala is used in media, education, and government in Sri Lanka.
• Several online resources and tools are available for Sinhala translation and language learning.

• Online Sinhala dictionaries
• Online Sinhala radio
• Online news in Sinhala
• Free Sinhala fonts
• Sinhala lessons and courses