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| The '''Tamil people''' are a ]n community numbering more than seventy million and living mostly in ] state and neighbouring areas in south-eastern ] (65 million), in the north and east of ] (three million), in ] (two million) and in ] (approx two hundred thousand). There are also pockets of Tamil communities living in Madagascar, Seychelles Islands, Australia (expatriate SriLankan Tamils), South Africa, Mauritius, Trinidad. | The '''Tamil people''' are a ]n community numbering more than seventy million and living mostly in ] state and neighbouring areas in south-eastern ] (65 million), in the north and east of ] (three million), in ] (two million) and in ] (approx two hundred thousand). There are also pockets of Tamil communities living in Madagascar, Seychelles Islands, Australia (expatriate SriLankan Tamils), South Africa, Mauritius, Trinidad. | ||
| Nearly all Tamils speak the ], one of the ] tongues once spoken widely across the Indian subcontinent but now largely confined to its southern quarter. |
Nearly all Tamils speak the ], one of the ] tongues once spoken widely across the Indian subcontinent but now largely confined to its southern quarter. Tamils have a stronger ethno-linguistic identity than other Indian language-groups and distinguish themselves from Indian groups speaking (Sanskrit-derived) ] languages. | ||
| Most Tamils are ], with significant minorities being ] or ]. | Most Tamils are ], with significant minorities being ] or ]. | ||
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| ==Trivia== | ==Trivia== | ||
| ]ns often refer to the Tamil people as '''Tamilians'''. (Singular: '''Tamilian'''). | |||
| '''Tamil''' is actually the anglicized pronunciation of the more precise '''Tamizh'''. 'zh' denotes retroflex 'l' when Tamil is written in Latin script. | |||
Revision as of 16:34, 12 May 2004
The Tamil people are a South Asian community numbering more than seventy million and living mostly in Tamil Nadu state and neighbouring areas in south-eastern India (65 million), in the north and east of Sri Lanka (three million), in Malaysia (two million) and in Singapore (approx two hundred thousand). There are also pockets of Tamil communities living in Madagascar, Seychelles Islands, Australia (expatriate SriLankan Tamils), South Africa, Mauritius, Trinidad.
Nearly all Tamils speak the Tamil language, one of the Dravidian tongues once spoken widely across the Indian subcontinent but now largely confined to its southern quarter. Tamils have a stronger ethno-linguistic identity than other Indian language-groups and distinguish themselves from Indian groups speaking (Sanskrit-derived) Indo-Aryan languages languages.
Most Tamils are Hindu, with significant minorities being Christian or Muslim.
In Sri Lanka, armed conflict between the Sinhala dominated government and the militant Tamil Tiger separatists during the 1980s and 1990s has now given way to a gradual peace process. Sri Lanka's Tamils are mostly descendants of the island's earlier Dravidian inhabitants, with a significant minority being immigrant labor the British brought from Tamil Nadu when they ruled the Ceylon (now called Sri Lanka).
There are now large Tamil communities in many parts of the world, including Europe and North America (especially Toronto), and Tamils can no longer be considered a purely Asia-centred ethnic group.
Trivia
Indians often refer to the Tamil people as Tamilians. (Singular: Tamilian).
Tamil is actually the anglicized pronunciation of the more precise Tamizh. 'zh' denotes retroflex 'l' when Tamil is written in Latin script.