Original: Sinhala ( à à ' à à à 1\/2 , ISO 15919 : siá hala , pronounced , sometimes referred by alternative spelling Singhalese ) , also known as Helabasa . Sinhala is the mother tongue of the Sinhalese people , who make up the largest ethnic group in Sri Lanka , numbering about 15 million .
Simplified: Sinhalese or Sinhala ( à à ' à à à 1\/2 , ISO 15919 : siá hala , pronounced ( Ë siÅ hÉ lÉ ) , earlier referred to as Singhalese ) is the language of the Sinhalese , the largest ethnic group of Sri Lanka .