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.

For related place names see Sri Lanka Place names.