10 Notable alumni of University of Peradeniya
Updated: June 22, 2026 EliteDegrees
University of Peradeniya is ranked #1,724 in the world and #2 in Sri Lanka by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 10 notable alumni from University of Peradeniya sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff. Many individuals affiliated with University of Peradeniya won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. W. S. Karunaratne
1928-1986 (aged 58)
diplomat
Wijesinghe Sugathadasa Karunaratne was a Sri Lankan scholar of Buddhism who was known as “W. S.” by Sri Lankans and “The Don” in academic circles.
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2. Athuraliye Rathana Thero
1962-. (aged 64)
politician
Venerable Athuraliye Rathana Thera, is a Sri Lankan Bhikkhu politician and former Member of Parliament.
3. W. J. M. Lokubandara
1941-2021 (aged 80)
lawyer
politician
Wijesinghe Jayaweera Mudiyanselage Lokubandara, was a Sri Lankan politician who was Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka from 2004 to 2010 and Governor of Sabaragamuwa Province from 2010 to 2015. He was a lawyer by profession, and wrote books, poems, and songs. He held several ministries in the government of Sri Lanka before his appointment as Speaker of the...
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4. Jayantha Dhanapala
1938-2023 (aged 85)
diplomat
Jayantha Dhanapala was a Sri Lankan diplomat. A career diplomat in the Sri Lanka Overseas Service, he served as the Under Secretary General to re-establish the Department of Disarmament from 1998 to 2003; Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN in Geneva from 1984 to 1987; and Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the United States from 1994...
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5. Lalith Wijerathna
1958-1990 (aged 32)
Vijalath Pathirannehelage Lalith Wijeratne, popularly as Lalith Wijerathna, was a Sri Lankan politician and militant leader. He was a member of the JVP party in the period 1983-1990. He was known to be appointed as the third leader of the JVP after Rohana Wijeweera and Saman Piyasiri Fernando.
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6. Siva Sivananthan
academic
Professor Sivalingam Sivananthan is an American academic, scientist, businessman and Director of the Microphysics Laboratory at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
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7. Anoma Gamage
politician
Anoma Gamage is a Sri Lankan politician, a member of the Parliament of Sri Lanka. She was appointed as the Deputy Minister of Irrigation and Agriculture in January 2015 and Deputy Minister of Petroleum and Petroleum Gas in September 2015 by President Maithripala Sirisena. Mrs. Gamage is married to United National Party National Organizer & Minister Daya Gamage.
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8. Bhikkhu Anālayo
1962-. (aged 64)
Buddhist monk
Bhikkhu Anālayo is a bhikkhu, scholar, and meditation teacher. He was born in Germany in 1962, and went forth in 1995 in the Theravādin monastic tradition of Sri Lanka. He is best known for his comparative studies of Early Buddhist Texts as preserved by the various early Buddhist traditions.
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9. Nyanaponika Thera
1901-1994 (aged 93)
Buddhist monk
Nyanaponika Thera or Nyanaponika Mahathera was a German–Sri Lankan Theravada Buddhist monk and scholar who, after ordaining in Sri Lanka, later became the co-founder of the Buddhist Publication Society and author of numerous seminal books and articles on Theravada Buddhism. He mentored and taught a whole generation of Western Buddhist leaders such as Bhikkhu Bodhi.
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10. Dharmasena Pathiraja
1943-2018 (aged 75)
film director
screenwriter
Pathiraja Navaratne Wanninayake Mudiyanselage Ranjith Dharmasena was a Sri Lankan film director and screenwriter. He has been referred to as a 'rebel with a cause', an ‘enfant terrible of the '70s', and is widely recognized as the pioneer of Sri Lankan cinema’s 'second revolution'. He is also renowned as an academic, playwright and poet.
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