The Sinhalese people speak Sinhala, an insular Indo-Aryan language. They are the largest ethnic group in Sri Lanka, constituting about 75% of the Sri Lankan population and number more than 15.2 million.
Historically, they were also known as the Helas ( Sinhala: හෙළ) or the Lion People. The Sinhalese people ( Sinhala: සිංහල ජනතාව, romanized: Sinhala Janathāva), also known as the Sinhalese are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group native to the island of Sri Lanka.
