The presence of Jews in Sri Lanka, formerly Ceylon, was first noted in the 9th century.  Of the council of 16 appointed by the king of Ceylon, four were Jews. The number of Jews living in Sri Lanka during the mid-12th century was around 3,000.

Portuguese Jews in the early 16th century, either assimilated, were forced to abandon their faith and identity or slaughtered by the Portuguese Inquisition. The Portuguese were not,  supportive of a Jewish community.

The Dutch East India Company established its foothold in Ceylon, Jews from the Netherlands came to Ceylon as merchants or employees of the Dutch East Indies Company.  German Jewish brothers, Maurice, Gabriel, and Baron Solomon de Worms were the pioneer tea planters who put Ceylon tea on the map.

In the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the influx of Jews into Ceylon increased, thanks to the benevolent attitude of the British towards the Jewish population. The Jews were a thriving community in Sri Lanka until 1948 when they left for Israel, and Singapore.

There was a Jewish Synagogue at Steuart Place, Kollupitiya until it either fell down or was demolished in the early 1950s or 1960s and there are at least 18 graves written in Hebrew/Yiddish.

These days the native Jewish population eventually seems to have disappeared completely. Since 2005 there is a Chabad outpost in Sri Lanka to service the needs of ex pats and tourists.