Colombo (Singhalese කොළඹ, there கொழும்பு) is the largest city in Sri Lanka. It is located in the Western Province, in the Colombo district. The population is 672.7 thousand inhabitants (2007), the population of Greater Colombo (which also includes the large cities of Moratuwa, Dehiwala Mount Lavinia and Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte – the capital of the country) is 5,648,000 people.

History
According to different versions, the name of the city comes from Sinhalese. කොල-අඹ-තොට Kola-amba-thota – “Harbor with deciduous mango trees”, or from Sinhalese. කොලොන් තොට Kolon thota – “a harbor on the Kelani River”. There is also an old version about the existence of the original Sinhalese word kolamba, which meant a ford, a harbor. Arab, Chinese, Roman merchants visited the harbor of Colombo over 2000 years ago. In the 8th century, the Arabs settled here for a long time, controlling almost all maritime trade of the Sinhalese kingdoms. The Portuguese arrived here in the 16th century and changed the name of the city in honor of Christopher Columbus. In the next century, in 1656, the Dutch captured the city, and in 1802 Colombo became the capital of the British colony of Ceylon. Since 1948 – the capital of the Dominion of Ceylon, since 1972 – the democratic socialist republic of Sri Lanka. In 1982, the official capital was moved to Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte.

Climate
The climate of Colombo is subequatorial. Colombo is located almost on the equator, and the air temperature is stable throughout the year around 27 ° C. The annual rainfall exceeds 2400 mm. Apparently, precipitation, as for the whole of Sri Lanka, is determined by monsoons (southwest – from May to September and northeast – from December to February), and in the inter-monsoon periods (March-April and October-November) – sea ​​breeze and cyclones. Since Colombo is located in the southwestern part of the island, the influence of the southwest monsoon is much stronger than the northeast, and precipitation in its season (average value – 213 mm per month) is much more abundant than in the northeast monsoon season (average value – 102 mm per month). The month of May and the October-November inter-monsoon period for the city is the rainiest time of the year. Daytime relative humidity for Colombo exceeds 70 percent throughout the year, rising to 90 percent in June.

Infrastructure
Colombo has a 250 sq. ha, protected by three piers. Near the port is the business center of the city, called “Fort”. This area got its name due to the fact that earlier there was a Portuguese fortress guarding the entrance to the port. Now the Fort is administrative buildings, shops, hotels, banks. Colombo is the largest industrial and cultural center of the country. The chemical, textile, oil refining, glass, cement, woodworking, leather and footwear industries, and jewelry production are developed. The port of Colombo is one of the largest in South Asia. Fourth place after Indian ports: Paradeep, Nova Sheva, Mumbai.

Districts
The districts of the city developed historically and sometimes differ greatly from each other. At the end of the 19th century, Lake Beira seemed to divide the city into two parts: the Fort adjacent to the port and areas south of the lake were inhabited mainly by Europeans, while Petta and other areas north of the lake occupied the quarters of the indigenous (Sinhalese and Tamils) and mixed population. Nowadays, Petta remains an area of ​​artisans and small traders. “Petta” in Tamil means “outside”, that is, outside the Fort. There are little eateries, little shops, narrow streets. To the north of Petta is now the main industrial area of ​​​​the city: factories for the production of rubber, coconut oil, tea-packing factories. Further north is the Free Trade Zone. One of the areas south of the Fort is Cinnamon Gardens, where there used to be extensive cinnamon plantations, abandoned and turned into an ordinary quarter back in the 19th century. Another area south of the Fort is Slave Island. Its name is translated as “Island of slaves” (eng. Slave Island). But this name was originally given to him by the Dutch, who settled here, in captivity, the slaves who worked for them during the domination of the Dutch East India Company in Ceylon (until the beginning of the 19th century). To the south of the Fort, the esplanade of Galle Face stretches along the coast, which has served as a popular place for outdoor entertainment since the end of the 19th century. Small shopkeepers and handicraftsmen live in the Maradan area.

Education, art, religion
The city has a university, several colleges, an observatory, and a national museum. Many churches, mosques, Buddhist and Hindu temples. On the outskirts of the city – two Buddhist universities. There is an astronomical observatory at the University of Colombo.
International Airport Solomon Bandaranaike is located 30 km north of Colombo. The city is connected by railways and highways with all provinces of the country.