Sri Lanka, an island in South Asia shaped as a teardrop or a pear/mango,[168] lies on the Indian Plate, a major tectonic plate that was formerly part of the Indo-Australian Plate.[169] It is in the Indian Ocean southwest of the Bay of Bengal, between latitudes 5° and 10° N, and longitudes 79° and 82° E.[170] Sri Lanka is separated from the mainland portion of the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and Palk Strait. 

Jaffna (Tamil: யாழ்ப்பாணம், romanized: Yāḻppāṇam, IPA: [jaːɻpːaːɳɐm]; Sinhala: යාපනය, romanized: Yāpanaya, IPA: [jaːpənəjə])) is the capital city of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a peninsula of the same name. With a population of 88,138 in 2012, Jaffna is Sri Lanka's 12th most populous city.[1] Jaffna is approximately six miles (9.7 kilometres) from Kandarodai which served as an emporium in the Jaffna peninsula from classical antiquity. Jaffna's suburb Nallur served as the capital of the four-century-long medieval Tamil Jaffna Kingdom.[2]

Prior to the Sri Lankan Civil War, it was Sri Lanka's second most populous city after Colombo. The 1980s insurgent uprising led to extensive damage, expulsion of part of the population, and military occupation. Since the end of civil war in 2009, refugees and internally displaced people began returning to homes, while government and private sector reconstruction started taking place.[3] Historically, Jaffna has been a contested city. It was made into a colonial port town during the Portuguese occupation of the Jaffna peninsula in 1619 who lost it to the Dutch, only to lose it to the British in 1796. During the civil war, the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) occupied Jaffna in 1986. The Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) briefly occupied the city in 1987. The LTTE again occupied the city from 1989 until 1995, when the Sri Lankan Army regained control.

The majority of the city's population are Sri Lankan Tamils with a significant number of Sri Lankan Moors, Indian Tamils and other ethnic groups present in the city prior to the civil war. Most Sri Lankan Tamils are Hindus followed by Christians, Muslims and a small Buddhist minority. The city is home to number of educational institutions established during the colonial and post-colonial period. It also has number of commercial institutions, minor industrial units, banks, hotels and other government institutions. It is home to many historical sites such as the popular Jaffna library that was burnt down and rebuilt and the Jaffna fort which was rebuilt during the Dutch colonial period. 

Vadamarachchi (Tamil: வடமராட்சி Vaṭamarāṭci, Sinhala: වඩමාරච්චි) is one of the three historic regions of the Jaffna peninsula in northern Sri Lanka. The other two regions are Thenmarachchi and Valikamam. 

 Thunnalai is situated in Vadamarachi.

The village of Thunnalai ( _ta. துன்னாலை) is near the lagoon called Thondaman Aru. It is also in close proximity to Point Pedro and  Vallipuram. The mouth of the lagoon has the famous Skanda temple, Selva Sannithy, which has a spiritual connection with Kataragama Temple in Sri Lanka. The lagoon is deep enough for small boats to travel up to Thunnalai (thun = fresh water; alai = banyon tree). The   makeup of the lagoon is rectangular in shape, and the lagoon has a fresh water supply. Ancient ships could sail in without difficulty and anchor to procure food and water on their routes to various countries.

Overview

Part of Thunnalai was under the sea for a longtime and seashell deposits can be seen in the rice fields as the evidence of such occurrences. Some of the Ganesh Temple walls are built from these seashells. The soil in these areas are bleached of mineral colour due to inundation with sea water. The northern part of Thunnalai has calcic red latosols used for making pottery which was a cottage industry   during 20th Century.

Hartley College was first located in Thunnalai. After an arson attack on the school, it was moved to Point Pedro.

Kaddaiveli Church and Kaddaiveli Parish are the remnants of the colonial rule. An ancient Sivan temple was demoilished before the church was erected.

Thunnalai a very small village in Jaffna district, is the birth place of many well known people - Professors, Politicians, Actors,   Singers, Poets, Directors, Writers....Vallipuram temple