An Investigatory Study on Literary Characteristics of Sinhala ''Thupavansaya''

Abstract

Sinhala Thupavansaya is a literary work translated into Sinhala language during the Kurunegala period. This chronicle written according to Pali Thupavansaya is a creation of Sri Parakrama Panditha. Although this is a translation, the translator has introduced creative and literary features into it superseding its chronicle characteristics. The objective of this research is to investigate into the facts related to literary characteristics included in the Sinhala Thupavansaya translation. The significance of this study is the ability to study the nature of the translation on Sinhala Thupavansaya and about the changes effected in the course of translation while identifying the literary characteristics of chronicle literature. The research problem of this study is to ascertain as to whether Sinhala Thupavansaya is a text that has superseded the chronicle characteristics and literary features. The methodology of the research is to study about facts from books through primary and secondary sources. Sinhala Thupavansaya, Pali Thupavansaya and other chronicles which were translated into Sinhala during the Kurunegala era were viewed as primary sources, and discursive texts composed by post classical authoritative erudite about chronicle literature were recognized as secondary source texts. As the results of this research reveal, Sinhala Thupavansaya was identified as the translated text that comprises of the most number of literary characteristics among other chronicle texts. It was also identified that in the course of translation, the facts which were presented briefly in Pali Thupavansaya have been illustrated in detail and creatively in the Sinhala translation which demonstrates that it consists of literary characteristics. According to this research, it could be concluded that Sinhala Thupavansaya is a chronicle that is enriched with nutriment efficacy of literary sustenance.