Mahanama College

Mahanama College is a Sinhala Buddhist boys school in Colombo, Sri Lanka which was established in 1954. As a public, national school, it is controlled by the central government, as opposed to a provincial council. It provides both primary and secondary education.

Mahanama College
මහානාම විද්‍යාලය
Location
R. A. D. Mel Mawatha
Colombo 03

Sri Lanka
Coordinates6°54′22″N 79°51′15″E
Information
TypeNational
Mottoවිද්වාන් සර්වත්‍ර පූජ්‍ය‌ෙතේ
(විද්වතා සෑම තැනකදීම පැසසුම් ලබයි)
Vidhwan Sarvatra Poojyate
(A scholar is reputed everywhere)
Established1954
FounderVen. Vahalle Dhammananda Thero
PrincipalPrabath I. Withanage
Staff350
Grades1 to 13
GenderBoys
Enrollment6500
Colour(s)Gold, silver and black
   
Songසිරි ලක වොරදන
Websitemahanamacollege.lk

College

Location

Mahanama College is located in Kollupitiya. College's main entrance is located at R. A. D. Mel Mawatha, Colombo 3 while the south premise is situated right next to C.M.S. Ladies' College.[1]

History

The institution was founded in 1954 by W. A. K. Gunawardana in Sri Wardanarama, Colombo, with just five students in the class. In 1958, the school was registered as a government-assisted junior school. The number of students gradually increased to 163 with four staff members and, on 1 January 1960, J. D. A. Jayakodi was appointed as the first principal of the school. By 1969, there were 14 staff members and 373 students

With the rapid increase in student enrollment, the school moved to a nearby location, Valukarama. Primary classes were held in a nearby building, Thurstan College. In 1974, during T. N. Silva's time as principal, the junior school at Thurstan College moved to its present location, Mahanama College. In 1975, 130 students sat for the national General Certificate of Education, and 107 students passed the exam. The government donated 7 acres (28,000 m2) of land as the school expanded. By 1976, the site contained several two-story buildings.

During the early 1970s, principal N. E. Fernando made improvements to the school's facilities, including the construction of a dental unit and additional classrooms, as well as the first two-story building. Principal K. N. P. de Silva retired on 5 February 1986 and was succeeded by D.G. Sumanasekera. Sumanasekera was the first SLEAS Class-1 principal to head Mahanama. During his four years in office, he laid the foundation for the present school.

K. K. Rathnadasa became principal in 1990 and, during his time at the college, several three-storey buildings were constructed, a computer section was established, and a children's park was created. The annual carnival 'Foot-Loose' was also organised during his tenure.[2]

In 1999, G. Liyanage became principal. He added a three-storey building with an art gallery to the existing campus. During his tenure, the school laboratories and computer sections were improved and buildings renovated. The Battle of the Golds also known as "Big Match" between Mahanama College and its friendly rival D. S. Senanayake College, Colombo, was inaugurated.[3]

Administration and Education
Mahanama College Auditorium
Mahanama College Auditorium
College playground and the auditorium

As it is a national school, college is funded by the Ministry of Education. Ministry appoints principal, the head of the administration. The principal is assisted by Vice principals and academic staff. Like other Sri Lankan colleges, the school is divided into three sections named primary, middle and upper school. Each section under its own sectional head who controls the specific sector of the school. School also appointed prefects to maintain the discipline. Prefects are pupils who have been given limited authority over other pupils in the school, similar to the authority given to a hall monitor or safety patrol member.

Mahanama college only consists of Buddhist and Sinhala students. Sinhala is the official language used in the school. However, students can choose Sinhala or English medium to do their higher educations.[4]

Principals
  • Ven. Vahalle Dhammananda Thero (1954–1960)
  • J. D. A. Jayakody (1960–1968)
  • N. E. Fernando (1968–1974)
  • T. S. Silva (1974–1976)
  • K. N. P. de Silva (1976–1986)
  • D. G. Sumanasekara (1986–1990)
  • K. K. Ratnadasa (1990–1999)
  • G. Liyanage (1999–2003)
  • W. H. Premalal Kumarasiri (2003–2012)
  • U. M. Prasanna Upashantha (2013–2016)
  • L. M. D. Dharmasena (2016–2020)
  • R. A. R. M. Rathnayake (2020–2021)
  • A. M. A. A. C. Perera (2021–2023)
  • Prabath Vithanage (2023-present)

School houses

Students are divided into four houses, whose names are derived from Sanskrit language.[5]

House Colour Code Meaning
Mettha
 
Benevolence, friendliness, amity, friendship, goodwill, kindness.
Karuna
 
The Buddhist concept of compassion.
Muditha
 
Means joy. It is especially sympathetic or vicarious joy, the pleasure that comes from delighting in other people's well-being.
Upekha
 
The Buddhist concept of equanimity.

Sports and extracurricular activities

Eighteen sports are played in Mahanama College.[6]

Cricket

The Battle of the Golds is the annual cricket contest between D. S. Senanayake College and Mahanama College. It began in 2007, and is commonly referred to as the "Big Match." The contest revives their age-old cricketing tradition. The "Golden parade" of Mahanama College is a parade of vehicles that runs through the streets of Colombo. It is organized by the Old Boys Association of Mahanama College. Every year large crowds from both schools gather at the SSC Cricket Ground to witness the encounter.[7] Below are listed the results to date:

Year Result Ref.
2007 Lost —
2008 Won —
2009 Lost —
2010 Won —
2011 Lost —
2012 Won [8]
2013 Won [9]
2014 — —
2015 Lost [10]
2016 Won [11]
2017 Won [12]
2018 Won [13]
2019 Won [14]
2020 Postponed due to COVID-19 —
2021 —
2022 Won [15]
2023 Won —

Co-curricular Activities

Mahanama College Media Unit (MCMU)

Mahanama College Media Unit is one of the leading and pioneering school media units in Sri Lanka. The Media Unit of Mahanama College was started in 1987 and, this is one of Sri Lanka’s oldest school media unit which has more than 33 years of history and experience. The Media Unit has achieved:

  • First school radio to transmit through short wave amateur radio technology.
  • First school television to transmit a live big match one day encounter on Facebook Live
  • Sri Lanka’s first school media website to awarded in Sri Lanka’s only web designing competition BestWeb.lk in the year 2020.[16]

Notable Events

In 2014, Mahanama College's 60th anniversary and annual prize-giving was held under the patronage of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Bandula Gunawardena. The president awarded students and teachers who had excelled in various fields.[17]

Notable alumni

References
  1. "Mahanama College · WV43+FW2, ආර් ඒ ද මෙල් මාවත, Colombo, Sri Lanka". Mahanama College · WV43+FW2, ආර් ඒ ද මෙල් මාවත, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  2. Mahanama College 66 Years Of Excellence | Documentary, retrieved 19 May 2022
  3. "History". Retrieved 17 October 2014.
  4. "Festival Of Cricket | Mahanama". Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  5. "Mahanama College - Brief Information". Mahanama College Media Unit. 18 March 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  6. "Sports – Mahanama College". Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  7. "Battle of the Golds – Mahanama College". Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  8. Ariyaratne, Gayan. "Battle of the Golds 2012". www.mcoba.com.au. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  9. "DS vs Mahanama | Battle of the Golds 2013". Xtream Youth. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  10. "Full Scorecard of Mahanama Col vs DS Senanayak 10th Battle of the Gold 2015/16 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  11. "Full Scorecard of Mahanama Col vs DS Senanayak 10th Battle of the Gold 2015/16 - Score Report | ESPNcricinfo.com". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  12. "All Set for the 11th Battle of the Gold as Mahanama lock horns with DS". batsman. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  13. "12th Battle of the Golds - D.S. Senanayake, Mahanama battle for supremacy". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  14. Kumarasinghe, Chathura (13 March 2019). "DS-Mahanama lock horns for the 13th time". ThePapare.com. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  15. "Battle of the Golds ends in draw".
  16. "Mahanama College Media Unit". Mahanama College Media Unit. Retrieved 26 May 2022.
  17. "President at 60th anniversary celebrations of Colombo Mahanama College". News.lk. Department of Government Information, Sri Lanka. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
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