The Portuguese arrived in Ceylon, or Ceilão, as they called it, by chance. In 1505, a fleet commanded by Lourenço de Almeidaâthe son of Francisco de Almeida, the first viceroy of Portuguese Indiaâwas blown into Galle by adverse winds. It was thirteen years later, in 1518, that the Portuguese established formal contact with the Kingdom of Kotte, ruled by Vira Parakrama Bahu, and were permitted to build a fort in Colombo.
Although the Portuguese were primarily interested in exploring trade and commercial opportunities in Sri Lanka, an opening for greater exploitation presented itself in the form of seven warring kingdoms within the island. With time, the kingdom of Kotte began to depend heavily on the Portuguese for defense against the other kingdoms, leading to an  enhanced role for the Portuguese in Sri Lankan affairs.
An agreement in 1543 between King Buvenaka Bahu of the kingdom of Kotte and the Portuguese resulted in his grandson Prince Dharmapala being educated in the Franciscan order of the Roman Catholic Church. The conversion of Dharmapala heralded sweeping changes in Sri Lankaâs social landscape, as the Portuguese embarked on a mission to convert the local populace.
Sri Lankans in the western coastal areas were particularly susceptible to the changes, with conversions occurring en masse, Â but conversions occurred interior and in the northernmost parts of the island as well. As Portuguese culture permeated the island, Sri Lankan Tamils and Sinhalese took on many Portuguese names as their own, suffixed to their personal names.
The surname âSilvaâ, and its derivative âde Silvaâ, meaning âfrom Silvaâ or âof Silvaâ is a popular Portuguese surname and means âforestâ or âwoodlandâ. It is a wide-spread surname in Portuguese-speaking countries as well as regions formerly under the control of the Portuguese empire (like Sri Lanka, India, America, and Africa.) âSilvaâ and âde Silvaâ are very common surnames in Sri Lanka, but doesnât necessarily mean the holder is of Portuguese descentâjust that the holders ancestors subscribed to the cultural hegemony perpetuated by the Portuguese.
The surname âFernandoâ, although perpetuated in Sri Lanka by the Portuguese, is the old Spanish form of a Germanic name meaning âadventurousâ or âbold journeyâ. It is made up of the elements âfardiâ, meaning âjourneyâ, and ânandâ meaning âdaring and braveâ. In addition to being a popular name in Portugal, the name is common in Western India which was colonised by the Portuguese, and of course in Sri Lanka, where it is one of three most popular (the others being âde Silvaâ and âPereraâ) surnames taken on by Sinhalese.
The surname âPereraâ, and its variant âPereiraâ is derived from the Portuguese surname âPereiraâ, meaning âpear treeâ. Perera is a very common surname in Sri Lanka, taken on by Sinhalese converts to Roman Catholicism with the advancement of Portuguese rule in Sri Lanka. âPereraâ is also a Spanish name with a number of variants (Perer, Perero, Pereros, Pereyra, Pereyras, Das Pereiras, Paraira) Â in the Iberian peninsula.
âAlmeidaâ and its variant âde Almeidaâ, meaning âofâ or âfromâ Almeida is a Portuguese surname derived from the town of Almeida (in the Beira Alta province) in Portugal. Portuguese explorer Lourenço de Almeida who âdiscoveredâ Sri Lanka, was the first of his kind to arrive in the island. In the subsequent decades, with the expansion of Portuguese powers in Sri Lanka, the surname âAlmeidaâ took on prominence with many Sinhalese and Tamil families taking on the name.
âCostaâ and its variant âde Costaâ meaning âfromâ or âofâ Costa is a Portuguese surname derived from the Latin word âCostaâ which means âribâ. With time, the surname came to mean âsideâ, âslopeâ, or âcoastâ denoting the holder was from the coastal area. The surname âCostaâ and âde Costaâ are also Italian and Spanish surnames. In Sri Lanka, the surname was adopted by many Sinhalese and Tamil families, with the adoption of Portuguese mores in Sri Lanka.
The surname âFonsekaâ is derived from the Portuguese surname âFonsecaâ, which comes from the Latin âfÅns siccusâ, meaning âdry wellâ. It refers to a spring that has dried up during the hot summer months and is today a well-known Sinhalese surname in Sri Lanka.
The surname âCorreaâ or âCoreaâ is a derivative of the Portuguese word âcorreiaâ meaning âleather strapâ. The surname is of occupational origin, meaning the holder was originally a maker or seller of leather straps (or belts). The surname is popular in Portugal and in Spain and is adopted by Sri Lankan Tamil and Sinhalese families for further advancement under Portuguese rule.
The surname âTisseraâ is derived from the Portuguese surname âTeixeiraâ  which refers to a âtexioâ or âyew treeâ. Variants âTexeiraâ and âTécherâ are also common in Portugal. Although less common than the âPereraâ, âde Silvaâ, and âFernandoâ, âTisseraâ is today a well-known surname in Sri Lanka.
The surname âCabralâ and its variant âCabraalâ are Portuguese and Galician surnames that are derived from the Latin word âcapraâ meaning âgoatâ or  âcapralisâ which means âplace of goatsâ. The surname is an occupational one, meaning the holder was engaged in work relating to the care of goats, possibly a goatherd. In Sri Lanka, the surname is has been adopted mainly by Sinhalese families.
The surname âThabrewâ and its variant âde Abrewâ meaning âfrom Abrewâ or âof Abrewâ is a derivative of the Portuguese name âAbreuâ. The origins of the name is debated; some argue that it is a reference to the phrase âAbraham the Hebrewâ, while others claims it refers to a ancient branch of the House of Normandy.
There are countless other Sri Lankan names o
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