 right|thumb|180px|the jami ul alfar mosque in pettah area one of the oldest mosques in colombo islam in sri lanka is practiced by 9.7%department of census and statistics,the census of population and housing of sri lanka-2011 of the population of sri lanka. 1,967,227 persons adhering islam as per the census of 2012. the muslim community is divided into three main ethnic groups: the sri lankan moors', the indian muslims and the malays, each with its own history and traditions. the attitude among the majority of people in sri lanka is to use the term "muslim" as an ethnic group, specifically when referring to sri lankan moors. ==history of islam in sri lanka== 200px|thumb|distribution of islam in sri lanka based on 2001 and 1981 (cursive) census with the arrival of arab traders in the 7th century ce, islam began to flourish in sri lanka. the first people to profess the islamic faith were arab merchants and their native wives, whom they married after converting to islam. by the 8th century ce, arab traders had controlled much of the trade on the indian ocean, including that of sri lanka. many of them settled down on the island in large numbers, encouraging the spread of islam. however, when the portuguese arrived during the 16th century, many of their descendants now called the sri lankan moors - were persecuted.the sinhalese ruler king senarat of kandy gave refuge to some of the muslims in the central highlands and eastern province, sri lanka. during 18th and 19th centuries, javanese and malaysian muslims bought over by the dutch and british rulers contributed to the growing muslim population in sri lanka. their descendants, now the sri lankan malays, adapted several sri lankan moor islamic traditions while also contributing their unique cultural islamic practices to other muslim groups on the island. the arrival of muslims from india during the 19th and 20th centuries has also contributed to the growth of islam in sri lanka. most notably, pakistani and south indian muslims have introduced shia islam and the hanafi school of thought into sri lanka, however although most muslims on the island still adhere to the traditional practices of sunni islam. in modern times, muslims in sri lanka are handled by the muslim religious and cultural affairs department, which was established in the 1980s to prevent the continual isolation of the muslim community from the rest of sri lanka. muslims of sri la
Islam_by_country Islam_in_Asia Sri_Lankan_Malays Sri_Lankan_Moors