K. M. de Silva


Kingsley Muthumuni de Silva is a Sri Lankan academic, historian and author. A former lecturer of history at the University of Ceylon, Peradeniya, de Silva has written numerous books on Sri Lankan history including the highly acclaimed A History of Sri Lanka.

Early life and family

De Silva was born on 31 December 1931. He was educated at Kingswood College, Kandy, and later at the University of Ceylon, Peradeniya from where he received a BA degree in history. He later received a Ph.D from the University of London for his research into the social policy of missionary organisations in the mid-19th century.
De Silva is married to Chandra and they have a son Rajiv.

Career

After graduation de Silva started teaching at the University of Ceylon, Peradeniya. He was made chair of Sri Lanka history at the university in 1969. He held this position until 1995.
De Silva was awarded a D.Litt degree by the University of London in 1991. He founded International Centre for Ethnic Studies in 1982 and served as its chairman and executive-director. He was awarded the 2002 Fukuoka Asian Culture Prize in the academic category. De Silva was awarded the Deshamanya title in the 2017 Sri Lankan national honours. He was appointed Chancellor of the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka in May 2017.

Works

De Silva has written/edited numerous books during his long career.History of Ceylon: Volume I Part 1 History of Ceylon: Volume I Part 2 From the Earliest Times to 1505 Social Policy and Missionary Organizations in Ceylon 1840-1855 History of Ceylon: Volume III From the Beginning of the Nineteenth Century to 1948 A History of Sri Lanka Managing Ethnic Tensions in Multi-Ethnic Societies: Sri Lanka, 1880-1985 Religion, Nationalism, and the State in Modern Sri Lanka Internationalization of Ethnic Conflict Peace Accords and Ethnic Conflict J. R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka: a Political Biography J. R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka: 1906-1956 Regional powers and small state security: India and Sri Lanka, 1977-1990 Reaping the Whirlwind: Ethnic Conflict, Ethnic Politics in Sri Lanka Sri Lanka and the Defeat of the LTTE Ethnic Conflict in Buddhist Societies in South and Southeast Asia: The Politics Behind Religious Rivalries The Making of a Historian: A Memoir
  • ''The Island Story: A Short History of Sri Lanka''