Ceylon (Sinhala: , "Brithānya Laṃkāva"; Tamil: பிரித்தானிய இலங்கை, "Birithaniya Ilangai") was the British Crown colony of present-day Sri Lanka between 1815 and 1948. Initially the area it covered did not include the Kingdom of Kandy, which was a protectorate, but from 1817 to 1948 the British possessions included the whole island of Ceylon, now the nation of Sri Lanka.