Mahavamsa, the Great Chronicle of Sri Lanka (covering the period 6th century BCE to 1815 CE)

One of the world's longest unbroken historical accounts, the Mahavamsa is the first of its kind in South Asia, initiating a mature historiographic tradition, presenting Sri Lanka’s history in a chronological order from the 6th century BCE. The authenticity of the facts provided in the document has been confirmed through archaeological research conducted in Sri Lanka and India. It is an important historical source in South Asia containing crucial information about lifetime of the Buddha, the Emperor Asoka and the rise of Buddhism as a world religion. The document played a significant role in popularizing Buddhism in South East Asia and contributed singularly to the identity of Emperor Asoka in the Indian history. The narrations of Mahavamsa has profoundly inspired the chroniclers, painters and sculptors in Asia to produce literal, painting and sculptural compositions of immense value. Existence of number of manuscripts of Mahavamsa in several countries as well as the transliteration and translation of the text to several South-east Asian and European languages stand testimony to its immense historical, cultural, literal, linguistic and scholarly values. The living significance of the Mahavamsa is reflected by the fact that the Sri Lankans, often look upon it as a proof of their origin, evolution and cultural identity.