Every April, as the sun moves into the sign of Aries, Sri Lanka celebrates the Sinhala and Tamil New Year. Houses are cleaned, new clothes are worn, and families gather at auspicious times to light the hearth and share the first meal of the year.
The New Year table
- Kiribath — milk rice, cut into diamonds and often served with lunu miris
- Kavum — sweet oil cakes made with rice flour and treacle
- Kokis — crisp, lacy biscuits shaped with a special mould
- Aasmi, athirasa, aluwa and mung kavum — every family has its favourites
Tea, of course
Through the days of celebration, visiting relatives and neighbours is part of the tradition — and every visit comes with a cup of tea. Plain tea with a piece of jaggery, or milk tea poured frothy and sweet, is the natural partner for rich New Year sweets.
However you celebrate, we wish you a happy and prosperous New Year — Suba Aluth Avuruddak Wewa! Iniya Puthandu Vazhthukkal!
