What is "mahavamsa"

The Mahavamsa ("Great Chronicle", Pali Mahāvaṃsa) (5th century CE) is a non-canonical text written in Pali of the Kings of Sri Lanka. The first version of it covered the period from the coming of Prince Vijaya from India in 543 BCE to the reign of Mahasena of Anuradhapura (277-304 CE).

The first printed edition and English translation of the Mahavamsa was published in 1837 by George Turnour, an historian and officer of the Ceylon Civil Service. A German translation of Mahavamsa was completed by Wilhelm Geiger in 1912. This was then translated into English by Mabel Haynes Bode, and revised by Geiger.