Sri Lanka can be called the most westernized country in south Asia due to the widespread use of English and its huge tourist industry. Despite this, it is a hierarchical society and the traditions of culture and religion greatly influence the life of Sri Lankans.
Sri Lanka is an island country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent and is surrounded by the Indian Ocean. Until 1972 it was known as Ceylon. Sinhalese and Tamil are the two official languages; English is widely used for education, scientific, and commercial purposes. Sri Lanka is a multi-religious country, but Buddhism constitutes the religious faith of about 70% of the population of the island, while Hinduism is the second most prevalent religion. The climate can be described as tropical, and it is quite hot all year round.
