History

The University of Peradeniya is the heir to former University of Ceylon, the first institution of its kind in the country. Its founding on 1st of July, 1942 as an autonomous corporation was the fulfillment of hopes and expectations of many who had been campaigning for a university in this country, prior to which had existed the University College, Colombo affiliated to the University of London. The University of Ceylon was established in Colombo on 1 July 1942 and on 6 October 1952 a new campuses in Peradeniya was created. In 1967, it was made a separate university with the name " University of Ceylon - Peradeniya" and it became the independent "University of Peradeniya" in 1979. Today, the university stands as a prominent educational institution in the country, catering to the needs of students from a variety of academic streams, ethnic groups and religions.

However, the history of the establishment of the University of Ceylon goes much beyond 1942. A few distinguished academics, administrators, politicians and public-spirited citizens of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), as well as some other eminent foreign academics and administrators with a genuine interest in the advancement of higher education in this country, had had to strive hard for well over half a century, to achieve the cherished goal of establishing the first university in the country. Therefore, the history of the University of Peradeniya would be incomplete if no mention is made of the pioneering efforts of the abovementioned persons in establishing this seat of higher learning.