Matale is a name given by the ‘Hela’  people ; ‘Hela’ is how the Sinhalese  were known in ancient times. In Pali,  Matale has been referred to as ‘Maathula’ and means ‘ Uncle’. In the Hela language, it means a large group of people,  a very large plain and  a  large fountain.  The history of Matale could be traced back to King  Pandukabhaya.  We find the word ‘Maatuka’ in one of  the   cave inscriptions written in the Brahmi script.  That is the oldest word used for Matale. 

Historians are of the view that  Matale was  a  settlement  established by  ‘Shiva’ , a  minister  and an uncle of King Pandukabhaya . It was  established at the same time   other settlements like  Upatissa, Uruwela , Anuradha etc were established in Sri Lanka.