Ceylon is one of countries with high population density. On average per 1 sq. km of its territory accounts for about 170 people. The islands close to Ceylon in the area are very inferior to him in population: on the island of Tasmania, for example, the average population density is less than one person per 1 sq. km, on the island of Hokkaido — a little more than 60 people. In terms of population density, Ceylon surpasses India and stands at the level of European countries such as, for example, Italy or Germany. In the territory of Ceylon, the population is located extremely unevenly. High population density is sharply distinguished by the southwestern area. It occupies only about 1/3 of the territory, but it concentrates 2/s population of the country. In the Western province occupying the seaside part of this area, the density exceeds 600 people per 1 .km. This is an example of an extremely high population density found in some agrarian regions of the world. The seaside territory of the South-Western Ceylon can be compared with the island of Java in Indonesia or with some territories in the valleys of the Great Asian and African rivers. The high density of the population of the South-Western region is due to the fact that in the course of historical development this area became the center of economic life of the whole country. Especially high population density in territories directly gravitating towards the most important economic centers of the South-West-Colombo, also Kandy and Galle. The second area of significant accumulation of the population is the extreme north of the island, the Jafn Peninsula, where the density reaches 200 people per 1 sq. km. Here also the focus of agriculture arose many centuries ago. The coastal stripes are equally densely populated in the north-west and northeast of the island. The internal territory of Ceylon is much weaker: per 1 sq. km here accounts for 10 to 50 people, and in some areas even less than 10 people.
