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| glottoname2 = Old Tamil | | glottoname2 = Old Tamil | ||
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'''Tamil''' is | '''Tamil''' is the oldest [[Dravidian language]].<ref>{{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|æ|m|ɪ|l}} Laurie Bauer, 2007, ''The Linguistics Student’s Handbook'', Edinburgh</ref> It is spoken in the [[Tamil Nadu]] and [[Puducherry]] states of [[India]] and parts of [[Sri Lanka]]. Many people in [[Singapore]] and [[Malaysia]] also speak it. Many people speaking Tamil live in various places around the world. | ||
The Tamil language is part of the Dravidian language family, which includes Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam. According to a survey, 1863 newspapers are published in the Tamil language only every day.<ref name="Circulation and the Historical Geog">{{Citation | first= Burton |last=Stein |date=1977 | title = Circulation and the Historical Geography of Tamil Country | journal = The Journal of Asian Studies | volume = 37 | issue = 1 | pages = 7–26| doi = 10.2307/2053325 | jstor=2053325}}</ref><ref>Steever, Sanford B. ''"The Dravidian languages"'', First Published (1998), pp. 6–9. {{ISBN|0-415-10023-2}}</ref> The oldest text found in Tamil is [[Tolkāppiyam]]. Tamil has a long literary history, and is spoken by almost 90 million people. | The Tamil language is part of the Dravidian language family, which includes Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam. According to a survey, 1863 newspapers are published in the Tamil language only every day.<ref name="Circulation and the Historical Geog">{{Citation | first= Burton |last=Stein |date=1977 | title = Circulation and the Historical Geography of Tamil Country | journal = The Journal of Asian Studies | volume = 37 | issue = 1 | pages = 7–26| doi = 10.2307/2053325 | jstor=2053325}}</ref><ref>Steever, Sanford B. ''"The Dravidian languages"'', First Published (1998), pp. 6–9. {{ISBN|0-415-10023-2}}</ref> The oldest text found in Tamil is [[Tolkāppiyam]]. Tamil has a long literary history, and is spoken by almost 90 million people. | ||
== Tamil script == | == Tamil script == | ||
The script of the language is very old. It has 12 consonants, 18 [[Consonant|vowels]], and the ''āytam'' <span lang="ta">ஃ</span>, which is neither a consonant nor a vowel. The ''āytam ''can be used with other letters to represent sounds not in the Tamil script, such as'' '''f''<nowiki/>'. ''The consonants and vowels can mix to form compound letters. Altogether, there are 247 sounds/sets of sounds in the Tamil script. Tamil, like English, is written from left to right. | The script of the language is very old. It has 12 consonants, 18 [[Consonant|vowels]], and the ''āytam'' <span lang="ta">ஃ</span>, which is neither a consonant nor a vowel. The ''āytam ''can be used with other letters to represent sounds not in the Tamil script, such as'' '''f''<nowiki/>'. ''The consonants and vowels can mix to form compound letters. Altogether, there are 247 sounds/sets of sounds in the Tamil script. Tamil, like English, is written from left to right. | ||
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It is a [[Brahmi]] script, and it has been said that most of the other Indian scripts are basically derived from the letters of Tamil. In a few cases, the words themselves were used in other Indian languages for better understanding. Tamil numbers have certainly shaped the numbers in other Dravidian language family. | It is a [[Brahmi]] script, and it has been said that most of the other Indian scripts are basically derived from the letters of Tamil. In a few cases, the words themselves were used in other Indian languages for better understanding. Tamil numbers have certainly shaped the numbers in other Dravidian language family. | ||
Tamil is the dominant language in Tamil Nadu, India, and Northern Province, Sri Lanka. It is also spoken in places like the [[United States]], [[Germany]], [[Fiji]], [[Indonesia]], [[France]], [[Africa]] and [[Thailand]]. | Tamil is the dominant language in Tamil Nadu, India, and Northern Province, Sri Lanka. It is also spoken in places like the [[United States]], [[Germany]], [[Fiji]], [[Indonesia]], [[France]], [[Africa]] and [[Thailand]]. This is because of the Tamil [[diaspora]]. | ||
== References == | == References == | ||
{{reflist}} | {{reflist}} | ||
== Other websites == | == Other websites == | ||
{{InterWiki|code=ta}} | {{InterWiki|code=ta}} | ||
{{wikibooks-inline|Tamil}} | {{wikibooks-inline|Tamil}} | ||
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{{Asia-stub}} | {{Asia-stub}} | ||
[[Category:Tamil language| ]] | [[Category:Tamil language| ]] | ||
{{simple-Wikipedia}} | {{simple-Wikipedia}} | ||