with the arrival of arab traders in the 7th century a.d., islam began to flourish in sri lanka. the first people to profess the islamic faith were arab merchants and their native wives, whom they married after having them converted to islam. by the 8th century a.d., arab traders had taken control of much of the trade on the indian ocean, including that of sri lanka. many of them settled down on the island in large numbers, encouraging the spread of islam. however, when the portuguese arrived during the 16th century, many of these arab traders' descendants - now called the sri lankan moors - were the main traders in spice, with networks extending to the middle east. the portuguese colonists attacked, persecuted, and destroyed the sri lankan moor settlements, warehouses, and trading networks. many defeated moors sought refuge from persecution by escaping to the interior of sri lanka. the population of sri lankan moors declined significantly during the portuguese colonial rule due to the pogroms against the moors. the sinhalese ruler king senarat of kandy gave refuge to some of the muslims in the central highlands and eastern province, sri lanka.