සිංහයා
siṁhayā[ˈsiŋhəˈjaː]
The Sinhala word for lion is සිංහයා (siṁhayā).
සිංහයා is a noun used to refer to the big cat of the species Panthera leo.
Meaning: big cat Panthera leo (noun)
How do you pronounce it?
siṁhayā
Did you know?
- The legendary origin of the Sinhala people is tied to the සිංහයා, as the name 'Sinhala' is derived from the word for lion.
- The word සිංහයා is actually a Sanskrit borrowing rather than a native Sinhala root. This connects the Sinhala language to the ancient liturgical and scholarly traditions of India.
- In Sri Lankan heraldry and national symbols, the lion is the central figure. The term සිංහයා is deeply tied to the identity of the nation and its historical emblems.
Examples in context
- සිංහයා හරිම දරුණු සතෙක්.siňhayā harima daruṇu satēk.The lion is a very fierce animal.
- වනාන්තරයේ සිංහයා ජීවත් වෙනවා.vanāntarayē siňhayā jīvat venavā.The lion lives in the forest.
- සිංහයාගේ හයිය වැඩියි.siňhayāgē hayiya vædiyi.The lion's strength is great.
Example conversation
Nupun and Ishani are looking at animals in a book.
- නුපුන් Nupunඉෂානි, බලන්න මේ සිංහයා කොතරම් ලස්සනද!Ishani, balanna me sinhaya kotharam lassanada!Ishani, look how beautiful this lion is!
- ඉෂානි Ishaniඔව්, සිංහයා ඇත්තටම ශක්තිමත් සතෙක්.ow, sinhaya aththatama shakthimath sathek.Yes, the lion is truly a powerful animal.
- නුපුන් Nupunඔයා සිංහයා බලාපොරොත්තු වෙනවාද?oya sinhaya balaporoththu venavada?Do you want to see a lion?
- ඉෂානි Ishaniමම කැමතියි සත්වෝද්යානයට ගිහින් බලන්න.mama kamathiyi sathvodyanayata gihin balanna.I would like to go to the zoo and see one.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “lion” translations and entries සිංහයා, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries සිංහයා, CC BY-SA 4.0.
