Sri Lanka Geography - 2024

Location

Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India

Geographic coordinates

7 00 N, 81 00 E

Map references

Asia

Area

total: 65,610 sq km

land: 64,630 sq km

water: 980 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than West Virginia

Area comparison map:

Land boundaries

total: 0 km

Coastline

1,340 km

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm

contiguous zone: 24 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate

tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)

Terrain

mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior

Elevation

highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m

lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m

mean elevation: 228 m

Natural resources

limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay, hydropower, arable land

Land use

agricultural land: 43.5% (2018 est.)

arable land: 20.7% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 15.8% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 7% (2018 est.)

forest: 29.4% (2018 est.)

other: 27.1% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

5,700 sq km (2012)

Population distribution

the population is primarily concentrated within a broad wet zone in the southwest, urban centers along the eastern coast, and on the Jaffna Peninsula in the north

Natural hazards

occasional cyclones and tornadoes

Geography - note

strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes; Adam's Bridge is a chain of limestone shoals between the southeastern coast of India and the northwestern coast of Sri Lanka; geological evidence suggests that this 50-km long Bridge once connected India and Sri Lanka; ancient records seem to indicate that a foot passage was possible between the two land masses until the 15th century when the land bridge broke up in a cyclone