_#_Language: Sinhala (official); Sinhala and Tamil listed as national languages; Sinhala spoken by about 74% of population, Tamil spoken by about 18%; English commonly used in government and spoken by about 10% of the population
_#_Literacy: 86% (male 91%, female 81%) age 15 and over can read and write (1981)
_#_Labor force: 6,600,000; agriculture 45.9%, mining and manufacturing 13.3%, trade and transport 12.4%, services and other 28.4% (1985 est.)
_#_Organized labor: about 33% of labor force, over 50% of which are employed on tea, rubber, and coconut estates
_*Government #_Long-form name: Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
_#_Type: republic
_#_Capital: Colombo
_#_Administrative divisions: 24 districts; Amparai, Anuradhapura,
Badulla, Batticaloa, Colombo, Galle, Gampaha, Hambantota, Jaffna,
Kalutara, Kandy, Kegalla, Kurunegala, Mannar, Matale, Matara, Moneragala,
Mullaittivu, Nuwara Eliya, Polonnaruwa, Puttalam, Ratnapura, Trincomalee,
Vavuniya; note—the administrative structure may now include 8 provinces
(Central, North Central, North Eastern, North Western, Sabaragamuwa,
Southern, Uva, and Western) and 25 districts (with Kilinochchi added to
the existing districts)
_#_Independence: 4 February 1948 (from UK; formerly Ceylon)
_#_Constitution: 31 August 1978