Hello
! and Welcome.
Hello and welcome to 'De Fonseka Online', a web site dedicated to the De Fonseka families of Sri Lanka and the Karava people. These pages contain genealogy and history of the de Fonseka families and the associated families of D'andrado, de Rowel, Thamel, Tissera, and other families. It also records the history of the 'Karava ' caste, a minority but prominent caste, in the caste system of Ceylon. The de Fonseka's were one of the six families with a distinct rank and status as chieftains of the Karava clans.
If you are a first time visitor to this site, you have probably come to the best place to start off your voyage of discovery. The following notes will guide you on the contents of this site, how it has been organized, the navigation structure and and how to look for specific information.
The families welcome you and invite you to take a glimpse into their rich and colorful past as cheiftains of the low country, a past now unknown to many. With a documented history going back to 1658 in the Dutch period (during the reign of King Raja Singha II), the families were part of the ruling Mudaliyar class in the lowlands. Once considered Aristocrats, they have now integrated with the cosmopolitan community, that is the present day Sri Lanka. This site takes you on their journey thru time.
This site is more than a Genealogy Site or a list of Family Names. The site has continually endeavored to present well researched and authenticated information to it's net community and had done it's best to illustrate the life and times as lived by the generations of 'de Fonseka' and associated families centuries apart. It also hopes to bring alive the lives and characters of a time gone by and bring to life the stories that has passed down the generations.
Contents:
The site has been structured to show the family Genealogies in two separate sections. The Ancestry page traces back the roots from the early part of the 20th century, way back to 1658 and beyond, with the help of the genealogy information found in de Fonseka family documents, ' The Karava of Ceylon' by M. D. Rhaghavan (1961), the D'Andrado Manuscripts ( A collection of historical Dutch Documents ) and other Reference material. In this page we also look at the different branches or segments of 'de Fonseka' families found in Sri Lanka.
This site also covers the genealogies of the associated families of D'anderado, Lowe, De Rowel, Tamel and de Tissera. They were the other members of the Varnakula Adittiya Arasanilayitta clan, one of the 'Surya ' clans of the Karava Caste.
The Family section picks up from where the genealogy charts end, and records in detail more than six further generations of the families with over 400+ entries. These details have been collected from family members, fellow genealogists and by painstakingly researching Church and Government records.
History of the Karava caste, the caste system in Ceylon and other interesting details, of particular interest to the de Fonseka families can be found in the Karava section. This provides the early historical background, so necessary to understand the information presented elsewhere in the site. The history recorded here charts the Karava from the time of the 'Mahabharata', to their arrival here during the Kotte period, their rise and fall through the Portuguese, Dutch and British periods, and the sweeping social changes of the 20th century. This material gives us an idea of the origins and the possible paths, the De Fonseka's and the other Karava families may have taken over the years.
The Tributes page illustrates the life's and works of many of the illustrious family members and their achievements. Thru these pages we repay our 'debt' to them for enriching the De Fonseka name through their sacrifice, commitment and hard work. Eminent author J. P. De Fonseka and some of his work, is featured in these pages.
The Reference page brings to light, the many references made to the families, in books and historical journals and records of Ceylon, from as far back as 1672 by Baldaeus, and as recent as the year 2000. Where possible, the relevant sections of these documents have been reproduced in the pages. Also included here is a collection of Dutch Records and associated material collectively known as the D'Andrado Manuscripts, which have been brought online for the very first time. These documents from the Sri Lanka National Archives refer exclusively to the D'andrado and De Fonseka families. Other historical books record the D'andrado involvement in the Dutch conquest of Jaffna and the Lowe/Tamel family's involvement in the Dutch wars with the Kingdom of Kandy
The People page brings alive the people and events and lists interesting subjects, anecdotes, facts and stories, that lay buried in memories and reference material. These cover subjects ranging from the origins of the 'de Fonseka' surname, to a recent article published in the year 2000 in the Dallas Morning News of Texas.
The Photo page contains photo-documentaries of great value and interest. These authenticated stories explores people of a bygone era, their places and or properties, their triumphs and tragedies, their place and the contributions to the society they lived in. It brings to us the very humane stories that linger behind faded photographs and memories. Some of these photo stories takes us back to the very places mentioned in the documents, and traces the story to date.
The History page contains articles of historical importance in general, and with particular importance to the de Fonseka families.
If you are a regular visitor to this web site, the What's New page will indicate the updates that have taken place in the recent past. This web site is continually updated with new material as and when available.
The Links page contains a wealth of supporting information, through online links provided to other interesting web sites containing historical and or genealogy information.
The Search page allows you to search for any word or combination of words within these web pages, a good way to get at your own page, or any family member you may be searching.
If you are a visiting 'de Fonseka', please go to the Contact page and help me to enhance these pages further, by providing information or material which may be in your possession, and which may be useful in developing these pages further. Your feedback is most welcome.
Navigation:
To start your journey, select a topic from the buttons displayed on the header. These buttons represent the main themes or the sections of the website. Once you select your subject, the links or navigation buttons displayed within the page will guide you thru the pages relating to the subject. Use the back button in your browser to come back to a main page.
For clarity, switching between subjects is provided only on the main subject page. In most pages embedded Hyperlinks (in underline) provides you additional supporting information. . The screens have been optimized for Windows Explorer with a resolution of 600 * 800 and may not appear well under other settings. If you are using Windows Explorer, you may also press F11 for a full screen view.
How it all began
My passion for Genealogy and my profession in IT combined around 2000 to form the first version of the 'De Fonseka Homepage'. Initially restricted to my own family with the research material in my collection, this site has now grown to cover the entire De Fonseka surname in Sri Lanka, with contributions from all parts of the world.
From the beginning the site has been built up for those who had a desire to know more about their 'Gene Bank', and how they ended up with a name that sounded quite 'foreign' and Portuguese, in comparison to the traditional Singhalese names. This site will lead you to material relating to the families that may answer many of your questions.
To me it has been a hard, time consuming but a fascinating and rewarding journey. Many have contributed and helped me on this endeavor by providing their time, books, photographs, and other invaluable information. I am grateful and indebted to all of them for the support extended.
Objectives of the web site:
This Web Site was started with the following objectives in mind.
This Web Site hopes to use the new medium of the Internet and it's associated technologies to achieve the above stated objectives.
The web site is still evolving with contributions from far corners of the world, from people like you who stumble upon it, and contribute in your own different ways to make it grow and glow.
Hope you'll enjoy browsing these pages, as much as I enjoyed bringing it 'Online'.
This site has been lovingly created in celebration of the
De Fonseka families of Sri Lanka ( Ceylon ).