Kanagasabapathy Kailasapathy (5 April 1933 – 6 December 1982) was a Sri Lankan journalist and academic. He was the first president of the Jaffna Campus of the University of Sri Lanka.

Professor
K. Kailasapathy
க. கைலாசபதி
Born(1933-04-05)5 April 1933
Died6 December 1982(1982-12-06) (aged 49)
Alma materJaffna Hindu College
Royal College, Colombo
University of Ceylon
University of Birmingham
OccupationAcademic

Early life and family

edit

Kailasapathy was born on 5 April 1933 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaya.[1] His family moved from Malaya to Ceylon.[2] He was then educated at the Jaffna Hindu College and Royal College, Colombo.[2][3] After school he joined the University of Ceylon, Peradeniya.[1][4] Whilst at Peradeniya Kailasapathy wrote for Virakesari and Tholkappiyam.[4] He then went to University of Birmingham from where he obtained a Phd after producing a thesis on Tamil heroic poetry in 1968.[2][4]

Kailasapathy married Sarvamangalam, daughter of N. Manicka Idaikaddar.[1] They had two daughters.[1]

Career

edit

After university Kailasapathy joined Lake House as a journalist.[1] He became editor of the weekly edition of Thinakaran and then served as its editor-in-chief of between 1959 and 1961.[1][4][5]

Kailasapathy then left journalism to take up a career in academia. He served as president of the Jaffna Campus of the University of Sri Lanka between August 1974 and July 1977.[5][6]

Kailasapathy wrote numerous articles and more than ten books during his life.[2]

Death

edit

Kailasapathy died on 6 December 1982 at the Colombo General Hospital.[1][5]

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d e f g Arumugam, S. (1997). Dictionary of Biography of the Tamils of Ceylon. pp. 65–66.
  2. ^ a b c d Sriskanthadas, Bhagavdas (6 January 2008). "Kailasapathy and his interest in theatre". The Nation (Sri Lanka).
  3. ^ Perinbanayagam, R.S.; Kantha, Sachi Sri. "Prof. K Kailasapathy Evaluated with his peers". Ilankai Tamil Sangam.
  4. ^ a b c d Theva Rajan, A. (January 1983). "Kailas - The Writer, Editor, Literary Midwife and Don" (PDF). Tamil Times. II (3): 8–9.
  5. ^ a b c "About People: Prof. K. Kailasapathy" (PDF). Tamil Times. II (3): 12. January 1983.
  6. ^ "Establishment of the Jaffna Campus of the University of Sri Lanka". University of Jaffna. Archived from the original on 21 July 2012.