Sin: නුගේගොඩ nugēgoḍa – Tam: நுகேகொடை nukēkoṭai
‘Banyan Village’ WP, Sri Lanka
From Sin: nuga, ‘banyan tree’ [ficus benghalensis]; and goda, ‘village, hamlet’.
The banyan is revered as sacred in India, where it is the national tree. It is a parisitic fig tree which grows from the cracks and crevices of a host tree.
The roots grow downwards towards the ground and eventually envelop the original tree.
Nugegoda is a suburb of Colombo between Dehiwala, Maharagama and Kotte.
