Sinhalese

 
Pronunciation: /ˌsɪnhəˈliːz, ˌsɪnə-/
(also Singhalese, Sinhala /sɪnˈhɑːlə/)

noun (plural )

  • 1a member of a people originally from northern India, now forming the majority of the population of Sri Lanka.
  • 2 [mass noun] an Indic language spoken by the Sinhalese, descended from Sanskrit. It has about 13 million speakers.

adjective

  • relating to the Sinhalese or their language.

Origin:

from Sanskrit Siṅhala 'Sri Lanka' + -ese