No. 39. — 1889.] notes on ritigala. 



11 



either case it means " long pole," Gal is said to be taken 

 from the Tamil kal, "rock," It seems, however, to be 

 cognate to the Aryan word giri, " rock." The name would 

 mean then " the rock (as steep and erect as a) long pole." 

 The steep aspect of the insulated rock rising out of the flat 

 country makes it probable that the ancients gave this locality, 

 the simple rustic name of Ritigala. Thus Kurunegala was 

 called Hasti-saila-pura (" elephant-rock-town ") from a rock 

 resembling an elephant which overlooks the town. 



The second derivation suggested is, that the rock received 

 its appellation from riti trees (Antiaris innoxia) then 

 growing upon it. As an instance of similar formations of 

 names, a recent example may be given. The Sinhalese com- 

 monly call a museum Katu-ge. Why ? Not because the ge, 

 " house," is made of Jcatu, "bones," nor because it is as white 

 as bones, but because it contains bones. This may be 

 taken as a fair example, showing clearly the natural 

 tendency of the mind of the uneducated to give obvious 

 names to things. 



The third derivation to be considered is this: — The Sin- 

 halese word riti may be derived from, or be kindred to, the 

 Pali arittha, " dreadful," gala coming from the Tamil Teal 

 or Sanskrit giri, "rock." In this connection we have the 

 authority of Mahanamo, the compiler of the first part of the 

 " Mahawansa," who calls this mountain Arittha-pabbata, 

 "dreadful rock" (chap. X., 63), and of the author of the 

 " Samantakuta Varnana," who gives it the name of Arittha- 

 sela, " dreadful rock." 



Whence then did Mahanamo get this name ? It is admitted 

 that he derived almost all the materials for his " Mahawausa" 

 from the more ancient records, such as the Sinhalese Atuwd* 

 Hence, considering that he speaks at length of Panduka- 

 bhaya's encampment on the mountain, it must be presumed 

 that the writings from which he collected his information 

 alluded to the mountain by name. It seems, therefore, 

 possible, not to say probable, that the name of the mountain 

 was then, as it is now, Riti joined to some word meaning 



