What do you know about Tamil language? Did you know that it is one of the oldest living language in the world. It is amazing that this language has survived for thousands of years and is still actively being used today.
Tamil is spoken by over 80 million people, mostly in India where it is the official language in the state of Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry. It is also one of the official language in Sri Lanka and Singapore. It is recognised as a minority language in Malaysia, Mauritius and South Africa.
While most of the ancient text in the north of India are written in Sanskrit, Tamil was the secondary lingua franca of the region. The Tamil language belongs to the Dravidian language family and Tamils make the largest groups in southern India. Currently there are Tamils existing almost all around the world with a significant Tamil population in Malaysia, Singapore, Britain, North America and others.
Tamil is also one of the six classical languages of India. It was the first to make it into the list in 2004 followed by Sanskrit (2005), Kannada (2008), Telugu (2008), Malayalam (2013), and Odia (2014). What are the features needed to be categorised as a classical language? It has to be rich in literature, posses varied ancient text and most important of all, it has to have independent tradition.
In this article, I will give you a brief introduction of Tamil history, how the language developed over time,information on Tamil alphabets, writings and what to look out for if you plan on learning Tamil.
Origins of Tamil Language
According to the Archeological Survey of India and the Epigraphical Society of India, Tamil inscriptions can be dated back to third century BCE. Tamil Nadu Archeological Department states that Tamil developed the art of writing somewhere around sixth century BCE. The exact date when any language is born is impossible to determine as it depends on when they had started keeping records of writing of the language.
Scholars have divided the history of the language into three periods. They are, Old Tamil (300 BC - AD 700), Middle Tamil (700 - 1600) and Modern Tamil (1600 - present).
The evolution of the language can be seen over these three periods. The Tamil language evolved from using Brahmi script called Tamil Brahmi and Vatteluthu during the Old Tamil period to using the Pallava Grantha script during the Middle Tamil period where the Sanskrit influence is seen to weeding out Sanskrit in the Modern Tamil era.
Even though there were a significant grammatical and syntactical changes that occurred in the language during its journey between these three periods, the core of the grammar system remain unchanged.
Tamil is said to be one of the more difficult languages from the Dravidian family because of its effort to stay away from influence of Sanskrit. Even though some scholars link the origins of Tamil to Sanskrit, it has tried to remain independent of Sanskrit. It has the least borrowed words from Sanskrit compared to the other Dravidian languages like Telugu and Kannada.
Tamil Literature & Writers
History of Tamil literature goes back to the Sangam era which occurred around 3rd century B.C. and 3rd century A.D. It is strongly influenced by social, cultural and political history of the Tamil Nation.
Sangam age is divided into first sangam, second sangam and third sangam. All literary works from the first sangam is lost. The earliest work that exist is from second sangam which is Tholkapiyam written by Tholkapiyar. Materials from third sangam is what is referred to as sangam literature today which consists of Ettuthogai (eight anthologies) and Pathupattu (10 long poems). Sangam age was known to be the golden era of Tamil literature.
As the Sangam era started to decline, Post Sangam period occurred. During this period, Pathinenkilkanakku or eighteen works dealing with ethics and morals was written. Some noteworthy mention from this period are the two epics : Silappathikaram by Elango Adigal and Manimegalai by Sittalai Sattanar.
There is debate on the period of when one of the prominent material which is the Thirukkural written by Thiruvalluvar who is a well known poet and philosopher. Some sources claim it to be from the third sangam period while others claim that it was from the Post sangam period. Either way, it is considered as a masterpiece of ethics and morality.
Contemporary or modern Tamil literature are work from the 18th century to current time. Some of the noteworthy mentions from this era are Kannan pattu and Panchali sapatham by Subramania Bharathi, Thamilukum Amudenru per and Sanke Mulangu by Bharathidasan and Ponniyin Selvan by Kalki Krishnamurthy.
Tamil Writing and Alphabets
Ancient form of Tamil which is known as Sanga Tamil is the form of classical literature. Modern Tamil uses a slightly different style known as Sentamil. Kondutamil which refers to the colloquial form is the style of speech.
In modern times, Sentamil is seen to be used in textbooks, literary work and even public speaking and debates. Kondutamil has gained prominence recently where there is an increased use of this in similar areas as Sentamil.
The current Tamil script contains the following:
12 vowels (Uyir Ezhuthukkal),
18 consonants (Mei Ezhuthukkal)
1 special character (Ayutha Ezhuthu)
216 combination of vowels and consonants (Uyir Mei Ezhuthukkal)
This makes up 247 characters. The consonants are further classified into three groups which are Vallinam (hard sounding consonants), Mellinam (soft sounding consonants) and Idayinam (letters that do not belong to the first two categories but fall between them). A few notable features are that the writing system is classified as Abugida or syllabic alphabet and is written from left to right in horizontal lines.
Famous Tamil Proverbs & Quotes
Tamil proverbs portrays the culture and lifestyle of Tamil people.
Here are some Tamil proverbs with meanings in English:
- Ainthil Valayaathathu Aimbathil Valayaathu
You cannot teach an old dog new tricks
- Agathin Alagu Mugathil Theriyum
Beauty of the soul is reflected on the face
- Puli Pasitthalum Pullai Thinnadhu
A person’s true nature doesn’t change no matter how hard-pressed.
- Naai Vaalai Nimirtha Mudiyathu
It is difficult to change one’s nature
- Adi Mel Adi Vaithal Ammium Nagarum
Keep trying and you will succeed
- Nilalin Arumai Veyillil thaan theriyum
You miss and appreciate the shade only when you are exposed to the sun
Here are some famous Tamil quotes which have been translated to English for your understanding:
- The arrow is straight but cruel; the lute is crooked but sweet. Therefore, judge men by their acts, not their appearance. (Thirukural, Verse 279 written by Thiruvalluvar)
- He who writes poetry is not a poet. He whose poetry has become his life, and who has made his life his poetry — it is he who is a poet. (Subramanya Bharathi)
- The fool becomes intelligent the moment he feels himself to be an idiot. The intellectual becomes foolish when he brags that he is intelligent. (APJ Abdul Kalam)
- Independent living is not about living a free life where no one is bound by anything. It is about living a life of not expecting anything in return. (K. Kamaraj)
- It is good to act, it is good to think and act. Fill your mind with lofty ambitions and thoughts. Put them in front of you every day and night; Good deeds will result from it. (Swami Vivekananda)
Learning Tamil for Beginners
When you decide to learn a new language, the common problem is that you are unsure of where to start. One thing to note before moving forward is to identify why you want to learn Tamil in the first place. Are you planning to move to a place where Tamil is the primary language of communication or do you want to learn how to read and write in Tamil? The method of learning depends on your aim.
Conversational Tamil differs from the written form. The written form of Tamil is formal. Therefore, if you are learning Tamil because you are moving to a place where people mainly speak the language, maybe your interest is in learning conversational Tamil. Tamil has different accents just like the English language. For example, people in Tamil Nadu will speak with a different accent compared to people from Malaysia. Certain pronunciation and words may vary.
You can focus on learning some basic words, common phrases and greetings depending on the region you are moving to before moving on to learning how to read and write.
If you plan to learn Tamil because you are interested in it, you can learn reading and writing. You can start with the alphabets with the pronunciations and focus on how different letters are joined to get words and improve your vocabulary. Learning the proper pronunciation is vital as you want to be understood by others.
When it comes to learning, the speed and method of learning varies depending on the individual’s ability, goals and desires. Some may prefer self-learning via resources found online while others may learn better with an instructor. This depends on your personal preference and needs.
If you would like to learn with professional support and guidance with classes catered to your specific needs, find Learn Tamil Online here on Superprof.
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