Vavuniya (Tamil: வவுனியா, romanized: Vavuṉiyā, Sinhala: වවුනියාව, romanized: Vavuniyāva). Vavuniya City is the capital of Vavuniya District in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka and the largest city in the Northern Province. The municipality is administered by Vavuniya Urban Council. The town has been known since ancient times, but being a heavily forested area, less than 10,000 people lived in the entire district before the Sri Lankan Civil War. The city is situated as a border town that divides the Tamil and Sinhalese population. To the south of the city are the Sinhala cities and to the north are the Tamil cities. The city has a large population of Tamils, Muslims and a significant number of Sinhalese. In the early days, Vavuniya was known as Vanni due to the abundance of Vanni Trees. The Security Forces Headquarters - Wanni is located in Vavuniya.