Sri Lanka, Jan. 16 -- Sometimes, I like to replay a scene from Dr. No in my mind. The clock shows three in the morning. Smoke swirls about the casino tables and luck evades a lady in red at the baccarat table.

"I need another thousand," she calls, and a man from the casino leans over to collect the cheque she writes.

From across the table, she hears: "I admire your courage, Miss . uh?"

"Trench, Sylvia Trench."

"I admire your luck, Mr. .?"

"Samarasena, Jasenthu Kankanamge Charith Akalanka Samarasena."

In the unlikely event that James Bond will one day be played by a Sri Lankan, that scene would be the first one to be edited out. A typical Sri Lankan name is a thing of great length, unpronounceable sounds and bewildering origins; a li...