Mahavamsa in the context of "Suvarnabhumi"

The Haryanka dynasty was the ruling dynasty of Magadha, according to the Buddhist text Mahavamsa between 544 BC and 413 BC though some scholars favour a later chronology (5th century BCE to first half of 4th century BCE). Initially, the capital was Rajagriha. Later, it was shifted to Pataliputra, near present-day Patna in India during the reign of Udayin. Bimbisara is considered to be the founder of the dynasty.

According to the Mahavamsa, Bimbisara was appointed king by his father, Bhattiya, at the age of fifteen. This dynasty was succeeded by the Shaishunaga dynasty.

The word Yona in Pali and the Prakrits, and the analogue Yavana in Sanskrit, were used in Ancient India to designate Greek speakers. "Yona" and "Yavana" are transliterations of the Greek word for "Ionians" (Ancient Greek: Ἴωνες < Ἰάoνες < *Ἰάϝoνες), who were probably the first Greeks to be known in India.

Both terms appear in ancient Sanskrit literature. Yavana appears, for instance, in the Mahabharata, while Yona appears in texts such as the Sri Lankan chronicle Mahavamsa.

Wilhelm Ludwig Geiger (/ˈɡaɪɡər/; German: [ˈɡaɪɡɐ]; 21 July 1856 – 2 September 1943) was a German Orientalist in the fields of Indo-Iranian languages and the history of Iran and Sri Lanka. He was known as a specialist in Pali, Sinhala language and the Dhivehi language of the Maldives. He is especially known for his work on the Sri Lankan chronicles Mahāvaṃsa and Cūlavaṃsa and made critical editions of the Pali text and English translations with the help of assistant translators.

The Shaishunaga dynasty (IAST: Śaiśunāga, literally "of Shishunaga") was possibly the second ruling dynasty of Magadha. According to the Buddhist text Mahavamsa, this dynasty was the second ruling dynasty of Magadha, succeeding Nagadashaka of the Haryanka dynasty. The Hindu Puranas have given a different list with different chronology of the Shaishunaga dynasty kings, whereas Jain texts do not mention this dynasty.

The Sinhalese monarchy (Sinhala සිංහල රාජාණ්ඩුව) has its origins in the settlement of North Indian Indo-Aryan immigrants to the island of Sri Lanka. The Landing of Vijay as described in the traditional chronicles of the island, the Dipavamsa, Mahavamsa and Culavamsa, and later chronicles, recount the date of the establishment of the first Sinhala Kingdom in 543 BC when Prince Vijaya (543–505 BC), an Indian Prince, and 700 of his followers are claimed to have landed on the island of Sri Lanka and established the Kingdom of Tambapanni. In Sinhalese mythology, Prince Vijaya and followers are told to be the progenitors of the Sinhalese people. However according to the story in the Divyavadana, the immigrants were probably not led by a scion of a royal house in India, as told in the romantic legend, but rather may have been groups of adventurous and pioneering merchants exploring new lands.

The Sinhalese monarch was the head of state of the Sinhala Kingdom (Sri Lanka). Anachronistically referred to as the Kings of Sri Lanka, the monarch held absolute power and succession was hereditary. The monarchy comprised the reigning monarch, his or her family, and the royal household which supports and facilitates the monarch in the exercise of his royal duties and prerogatives. The monarchy existed for over 2300 years. Tambapanni and its successive kingdoms were situated in what is presently Sri Lanka. The monarchy ended with Sri Vikrama Rajasinha of Kandy in 1815 after generations of European influences and upheaval in the royal court.

The history of Sri Lanka covers Sri Lanka and its surrounding regions of South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean.

Prehistoric Sri Lanka goes back 125,000 years and possibly even as far back as 500,000 years. The earliest humans found in Sri Lanka date to Prehistoric times about 35,000 years ago. Little is known about the history before the Indo-Aryan Settlement in the 6th century BC. The earliest documents of the settlement on the Island and its early history are found in the national chronicles of the Mahāvamsa, Dipavamsa, and the Culavamsa.

Mahadharmarakkhita (Sanskrit: Mahadharmaraksita, literally "Great protector of the Dharma") was a Greek (in Pali:"Yona", Sanskrit: "Yavana", lit. "Ionian") Buddhist master, who lived during the 2nd century BCE during the reign of the Indo-Greek king Menander.

In the Mahavamsa, a key Pali historical text, he is recorded as having travelled from “Alasandra” (thought to be Alexandria of the Caucasus, around 150 kilometers north of today's Kabul, or possibly Alexandria of the Arachosians), with 30,000 monks for the dedication ceremony of the Maha Thupa ("Great stupa") at Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka, when it was completed shortly after the death of the Sri Lankan king Dutthagamani Abhaya (r. 161 - 137 BCE).