It has been revealed through various explorations that the Ruhuna region has been inhabited by humans from prehistoric times. According to Genealogy, the Ruhuna region has been an important settlement in Sri Lanka from the 6 th Century BC. The Dathu Vanshya states that Lord Buddha visited Tissamaharama on his third Lankan Journey. The Bodivansha states that King Paethis II planted a branch of the Sri Maha Bodhi Dethis Palaruha Bodhi at Tisamaharama.