Tamil is part of the Dravidian language family spoken in India, Southeast Asia, as well as in other countries such as Pakistan and Nepal. This language is widely spoken in southern India and is also the official language of the Indian states, namely in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, as well as in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It is also the official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore, and is widely spoken in Malaysia. There are about 65 million speakers of this language worldwide. Tamil has also been spoken for more than 2,500 years and has a long and rich tradition of philosophy and poetry. You can open up great opportunities if you study it.
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Part 1 of 4: Learning the Tamil Script
Step 1. Get to know the Tamil script
The Tamil script consists of 12 vowels, 18 consonants and one character called ''āytam''. This character is neither a vowel nor a consonant. However, the Tamil script is syllabic and not alphabetical. That is, symbols represent phonetic units including consonants "and" vowels which include 247 phonetic combinations. It is mostly written by adding diacritical marks to the 31 base letters to indicate changes.
- Tamil is written from left to right horizontally like English.
- The basic Tamil script chart is available here:
Step 2. Learn the Tamil vowels
The Tamil script consists of 12 vowels which are written independently when they appear at the beginning of a syllable. The shape of these letters changes when the letters are paired with consonants and whether the letters are long or short vowels. (The length of the long vowel is twice the short vowel). In some cases, a diacritical mark is added to the end of a consonant to represent a vowel. However, in other cases, this tag is added in another location.
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is read a and is read aa
- Similar to South Asian scripts, Tamil consonants attached with the sound are pronounced a. So, or a does not change when a consonant is added.
- When (aa) is added to a consonant, the diacritical mark that represents it is added to the end of the letter, like which is pronounced kaa.
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is read i and is read ii.
- When (i) is added to a consonant, a diacritical mark representing it is added to the end of the letter, like which is pronounced ki.
- When which is read ii is added to a consonant, a diacritical mark that represents it is added to the top of the letter, like which is read kii.
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is read as u and is read uu.
- When (u) is added to a consonant, the diacritical mark that represents it is added to the bottom of the consonant, as is pronounced ku.
- When (uu) is added to a consonant, the diacritical mark that represents it is added to the end of the letter, as is pronounced kuu.
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reads e and reads ee
- When (e) is added to a consonant, a modified form is added to the front of the consonant, as is read to.
- When (ee) is added to a consonant, the diacritical mark that represents it is placed in front of the consonant, as is read kee.
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reads ai.
When (ai) is added to a consonant, the modified form is placed in front of the consonant, as is pronounced kai
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is read as o and is read as oo.
- When (o) is added to a consonant, the diacritical marks e and aa are placed around the consonant, much like is pronounced ko.
- When (oo) is added to a consonant, the diacritical marks ee and aa are placed around the consonant, much like is pronounced koo.
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reads au.
When (au) is added to a consonant, the diacritical mark e is placed at the beginning of the consonant and another diacritical mark is placed at the end, such as is read you
- There are several consonant-vowel combinations in Tamil that are non-standard and do not follow these rules. The full list of exceptions is here:
Step 3. Learn the Tamil consonants
Tamil has 18 consonants which are divided into three groups: vallinam (hard consonants), mellinam (weak and nasal consonants), and idayinam (medium consonants). There are some Tamil consonants that do not have a direct equivalent in English. Thus, listen to how it is pronounced if possible.
- Vallinam consonants: '''க்'', k, ''ச்'', ch, ''ட்'', t, ''த்'', th, ''ப்'', p, ''ற்'', tr
- Mellinam consonants: '''ங்'', ng, ''ஞ்'', ng, ''ண்'', n, ''ந்'', n, ''ம்'', m, ''ன்'', n
- Idaiyinam consonants: ''ய்'', y, ''ர்'', r, ''ல்'', l, ''வ்'', v, ''ழ்'', l, ''ள்'', l
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There are several consonants borrowed from Sanskrit which are called “Grantha” letters after the original Tamil script. The sound is often heard in the spoken form of modern Tamil, but there is not much sound in the written form of classical Tamil. The letters are:
- read j
- read sh
- read s
- read h
- read ksh
- read srii
- Lastly, there is a special letter, pronounced akh which is called āytam. This character is commonly used in modern Tamil to indicate foreign sounds, such as f and z.
Step 4. Listen to the recorded Tamil vowels and consonants
The University of Pennsylvania has a site with recordings of the sounds of all the Tamil vowels and consonants. It's even better if you can find a native Tamil speaker who can help you pronounce the sounds of these letters with you.
Part 2 of 4: Understanding the Basics
Step 1. Find some basic material to start your lesson
There are several resources on the internet that can help you get started. You also need a good dictionary. The Oxford English-Tamil Dictionary published by the India branch of the Oxford University Press has 50,000 words and is considered the standard dictionary for Tamil learners. The University of Chicago also has a free online dictionary published through the South Asian Digital Dictionary project.
- The University of Pennsylvania has 36 courses on Tamil grammar and sentence structure.
- The University of Texas at Austin has a set of Tamil language and culture courses.
- The Central Institute of Indian Languages has online lessons on the Tamil script, its grammar and sentence structure. Sample lessons can be accessed free of charge, while full access courses cost $50 or around IDR 700,000.
- Polymath has several extensive sets of Tamil lessons. The lessons include an extensive list of vocabulary, pronouns, verbs, timestamps, and common questions.
- Language Reef has 14 simple Tamil lessons.
- As you get better at it, the University of Michigan has 11 free lessons at intermediate level, including audio recordings that accompany each lesson.
- The Government of Tamil Nadu has a Virtual Academy which includes games, a library of Tamil language resources and some lessons. Most of the content is free, but there are also some lessons that can be purchased.
Step 2. Buy a good book or two
There is a standard textbook entitled A Reference Grammar of Spoken Tamil written by Harold F. Schiffman, Emeritus Professor of Linguistics and Dravidian Culture at the University of Pennsylvania. If you want to speak Tamil, buy this book because the spoken variety of Tamil is very different from the written variety, which has remained largely unchanged since the 13th century.
- The printed version of Tamil for Beginners written by Kausalya Hart is readily available in many of your favorite bookstores.
- The book, entitled Colloquial Tamil: The Complete Course for Beginners by E. Annamalai and R. E. Asher is particularly focused on the spoken variety of this language. This book is also accompanied by audio recordings for the lessons. This book is still recommended, although the recording can be a little too fast for beginners.
- The University of Pennsylvania has published a book entitled Tamil Language in Context, which includes a DVD with videos of dialogue spoken by native Tamil speakers.
- The Government of Tamil Nadu has a basic e-book that can be downloaded for free. These books introduce basic Tamil script and grammar.
Step 3. Understand the basic construction of sentences
Tamil is an inflected language. That is, words are changed by using prefixes or suffixes to indicate people, numbers, modes, timestamps and sounds. Sentences may not have a subject, verb, and object. However, if these elements are present, the most common order is subject-object-verb or object-subject-verb.
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In Tamil, you can make simple sentences by putting two nouns or noun phrases together. You don't need to use a verb! In this case, the first noun acts as the subject and the second noun is the predicate (or the part that says something about the subject and acts as a verb).
For example, you could say is read as Angavai is read pal vaiththiyar to say “Angavai is a dentist”. To negate this type of sentence, add the word read illai which means "no" at the end of the sentence
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Command sentences in Tamil are generally used to make requests and give orders. There are two ways: the informal or intimate way, and the formal or polite way. Your social context will determine which form is more appropriate. For example, never use informal language with parents, public figures, or other people who are respected by many.
- Informal or familiar variety uses only basic words without any inflection. For example, which is read by Paar means “to see” (singular). Use this variety with close friends and small children. Usually, you won't use this variety when you're conversing with people you don't really know. If you use it, you can offend them.
- Formal or polite forms have a plural inflection on the root word of the verb you are using. For example, which is read as paarunkal is the plural form of paar. This form is used in formal or polite conversation, even if you are only talking to one person.
- If you want to be really polite, you can add the question word which reads een which means “why” to the polite imperative. For example, which reads paarunkaleen means “Why don't you see…?” or “Would you like to see…..?”
Step 4. Start with simple words
Tamil is an ancient and complex language. So, it's almost impossible for you to speak and master Tamil fluently right away. You can learn the general vocabulary of this language to help you communicate with other people, even if you don't really know the grammar.
- The ability to order food is one of the most enjoyable reasons to learn a new language when you travel. The most common Tamil foods are pronounced choru (rice), pronounced sambar (lentil soup), pronounced rasam (tamarind soup), pronounced tayir (yogurt or curd) and read vada (cake). You may also see which is pronounced caampaar caatam (curried rice) or which is pronounced miin kulampu (fish curry), which is a popular dish from southern India. There's also, pronounced oputtu, which is a sweet, pizza-like dish made from coconut. Check if the dish is, pronounced kaaram, which means spicy before you order it! If you like coffee, there is a signature drink in Tamil Nadu which is read kaapi. You can also order which is read as teeniir which means tea. Your waiter may say which reads Magizhnthu unnungal or happy eating.
- Bargaining on prices is common in Indian culture. If you want to buy something, start bidding with which is read as paati vilai which means half price. Then, you and the seller can discuss the appropriate price. Maybe you want to look for items that are read malivaanatu which means cheap, while sellers want you to buy items that read vilai atikamaanatu which means expensive. You can also check if the store accepts read as kata attai which means credit card or only reads as panam which means cash.
- If you are sick, these words will help you: read maruttuvar (doctor), read maruttuvuurti (ambulance).
Step 5. Learn to ask questions
In Tamil, you can create questions by adding a question word at the end of a sentence. However, you must be careful because the placement of word stress in the questioner can affect the meaning. Common question words include which is read enna (what), which is read edu (which), which is read engkee (where), which is read yaar (who) and எப்பொழுது/எப்போது which is read eppozhutu/eppoodu (when).
- For example, you could say ? which reads Unga peru enna?. The question means “what is your name?”. The correct answer is which is read En peyar _, meaning "my name is …".
- The affirmative is placed at the end of a noun or sentence to form a yes or no question. For example, placing at the end of the noun, pronounced Paiyaṉaa (boy), will turn it into a question that reads “Is he a boy?”
- Other common questions you may want to study include ? the one that reads "Enakku Udavi seivienkalaa"? which means “Can you help me?”. ?, read Putiya eṉṉa?, which means “What's the news?”. ? which reads ''Niinkal eppati irukkiriirkal? which means "How are you?". ? read That enna? which means “What is this?”
Step 6. Learn some common phrases
You may want to learn some common phrases to help you start a conversation in Tamil. You can start with பேச ?, read Tamiḻ peeca muṭiyumaa?, which means “Do you speak Tamil?” and is read as Naan tamil karral which means “I am learning Tamil”.
- You can also learn to say pronounced Kaalai vanakkam which means “Good morning!” and is read as Nalla iravu which means “Good night!”
- ? read Atu evvalavu celavaakum? means "How much does it cost?". This phrase can be used when you are shopping. reads as Nanri means “Thank you!” and ! read Varaveerkireen which means "You're welcome!". There is also read Mannikkanum which means "excuse me" or "sorry". These two phrases can be very useful.
- is read as Naan nooyvaayppattavaaru unarukireen which means “I am not feeling well”. You can ask the nearest pharmacy by asking ? read Maruntuk dwarf arukil enku ullatu?
- If you want to toast a friend, you can say pronounced Nal aarokkiyam peruga, which roughly means “Hope you get better”
- If something is too complicated for you, you can learn to say which is read as Puriyavilai (for boys) or which is read as Purila (for girls) which means “I don't understand”. is read as Medhuvaaga pesungal (for men) or is read as Medhuvaa pesunga (for women). It means, "Please speak slowly". You can also ask, _ ? which is read by Adhai _ thamizhil eppadi solluveergal? and means “What's the Tamil….”
- ! read Kaappathunga means "Help!".
Part 3 of 4: Expanding Your Knowledge
Step 1. Check if there is a Tamil language class in your area of residence
There are many universities, especially those focused on South Asian studies, offering Tamil language classes. Usually these classes are open to the public. It is also possible that there are community language classes if you live in an area with a large South Asian or Indian population.
Step 2. Read it in Tamil
You can learn a lot of common vocabulary if you read blogs and newspapers. Children's books can also be a perfect start as they are intended for readers who are still learning the Tamil language. In addition, these books also often use pictures and various other educational aids.
- The Ministry of Education of Tamil Nadu maintains a website with several textbooks which can be downloaded for free. These books are used from elementary to high school in state schools in Tamil Nadu.
- ''TamilCube'' also has a comprehensive collection of free stories in Tamil.
Step 3. Listen to the spoken variety of Tamil
Look for YouTube videos, films in Tamil, popular music and songs, and listen to as much variety of spoken Tamil as you can. It's even better if you can practice with a friend who can speak Tamil.
- ''Omniglot'' has examples of recorded Tamil texts.
- Tamil spoken variety sites also include many lessons and voice recordings.
Part 4 of 4: Practicing Your Skills
Step 1. Find someone to chat with you
Get to know someone who speaks Tamil and ask them to talk to you. You can ask them to teach you a few words and check your vocabulary with them. They can also teach you the grammar and culture!
Step 2. Watch Tamil movies with English subtitles
There are plenty of Tamil films available, although there are not as many as Hindi films (Indian Bollywood films). Check Netflix, YouTube, and DVD rental shops in your area.
Whatever your taste is, there's sure to be a Tamil film to satisfy it. There is a film called Poriyaalan which has a spooky genre. There is also Appuchi Gramam which is an epic film about a science fiction type disaster. In addition, there is a film called Burma which is a black comedy genre about car theft and Thegidi which is a romance genre
Step 3. Join a language group
Ideally, you can find them around your home area from the internet or from a bulletin board. You can create your own group if you don't have one. Discussion groups like this can help you meet other people who are interested in learning about the Tamil language and its culture.
Meetup.com is a public place where you can create and search for language groups. However, you can also contact universities or colleges near your home as they may have more information
Step 4. Visit the cultural center
In big cities, there is usually a Tamil cultural center set up to serve the Tamils living there. However, in small towns, there are usually Indian cultural events and centers as well. You can find someone who speaks Tamil and is willing to share their knowledge with you here. You will also learn a lot about their culture and customs.
Step 5. Go to a country that speaks Tamil
Travel the world when you have mastered the basics of Tamil. This language is very commonly spoken in India, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Malaysia. There are also large groups of immigrants living in Canada, Germany, South Africa and Indonesia. read Nalla atirstam -Good luck!
Tips
- Hospitality and courtesy are highly valued in Indian culture. Tamil speakers will almost always greet you, even if you are a foreigner. So, get ready to smile and return the greeting! Men may shake hands, but women usually don't do this.
- Tamil culture values its guests very much. So often times a host will go out of his way to make his guests feel comfortable. It is also important to sample a bit of food from all the dishes provided. If you don't, you will come across as rude and embarrass your host. Never say "I don't want or don't need any more" when you are served food. If you are full, say read Pootum which means enough. Continue by saying is pronounced Nanri which means thank you.
