Portal:Tamils

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The Tamil people, also known as Tamilar (Tamil: தமிழர், romanized: Tamiḻar, pronounced [t̪amiɻaɾ] in the singular or தமிழர்கள், Tamiḻarkaḷ, [t̪amiɻaɾɡaɭ] in the plural), Tamilians, or simply Tamils (/ˈtæmɪlz, ˈtɑː-/ TAM-ilz, TAHM-), are a Dravidian ethnolinguistic group who natively speak the Tamil language and trace their ancestry mainly to India's southern state of Tamil Nadu, to the union territory of Puducherry, and to Sri Lanka. The Tamil language is one of the world's longest-surviving classical languages, with over 2000 years of Tamil literature, including the Sangam poems, which were composed between 300 BCE and 300 CE. People who speak Tamil as their mother tongue and are born in are considered Tamils.

Tamils constitute 5.9% of the population in India (concentrated mainly in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry), 15% in Sri Lanka (excluding Eelam Moors), 7% in Malaysia, and 5% in Singapore.

From the 4th century BCE, urbanisation and mercantile activity along the western and eastern coasts of Tamilakam -- what is today Kerala and Tamil Nadu -- led to the development of four large Tamil empires, the Cheras, Cholas, Pandyas, Pallavas, and velirs and a number of smaller states, all of whom were warring amongst themselves for dominance. The Jaffna Kingdom, and vanni chieftaincies inhabited by Eelam Tamils, was once one of the strongest kingdoms of Sri Lanka and controlled much of the north of the island. (Full article...)

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Colonial era Map of the Jaffna kingdom c. 1619

The Portuguese conquest of the Jaffna kingdom occurred after Portuguese traders arrived at the rival Kotte kingdom in the southwest of modern Sri Lanka in 1505. Many kings of Jaffna, such as Cankili I, initially confronted the Portuguese in their attempts at converting the locals to Roman Catholicism, but eventually made peace with them.

By 1591, the king of Jaffna Ethirimanna Cinkam was installed by the Portuguese. Although he was nominally a client, he resisted missionary activities and helped the interior Kandyan kingdom in its quest to get military help from South India. Eventually, a usurper named Cankili II resisted Portuguese overlordship only to find himself ousted and hanged by Phillippe de Oliveira in 1619. The subsequent rule by the Portuguese saw the population convert to Roman Catholicism. The population also decreased due to excessive taxation, as most people fled the core areas of the former kingdom. (Full article...)

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General images

Image 1Two Tamil girls who follow Vaishnavaite Hinduism (from Tamils)
Image 2Tamiḻakam during Sangam Period (from Tamils)
Image 3The New York City Metropolitan Area, including Central New Jersey, as well as Long Island and Staten Island in New York, is home to the largest Tamil American population. (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 4Megalithic sarcophagus burial from Tamil Nadu (from Tamils)
Image 5The golden Vimana over the sanctum at Srirangam midst its gopurams, its gable with Paravasudeva image. (from Tamils)
Image 6 Virampatnam jewelry from funerary burial, 2nd century BCE, Tamil Nadu (from Tamils)
Image 7The Tamil Chola Empire at its height, 1030 CE (from Tamils)
Image 8Erwadi durgah in Ramanathapuram district is a major pilgrimage shrine of the Tamil Muslims. (from Tamils)
Image 9Aiyanar, guardian folk deity of Tamil Nadu (from Tamils)
Image 10Batu Caves temple built by Tamil Malaysians in c. 1880s. (from Tamils)
Image 11A Megalithic burial jar from north-western Sri Lanka, 5th-2nd century BCE, similar to South Indian and Deccan jars of the time. (from Tamils)
Image 12One of the most popular overseas branches of Chennai-based Saravanaa Bhavan, the world's largest Indian vegetarian restaurant chain, is located in Edison, New Jersey, U.S. (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 13Bharatanatyam dancers (from Tamils)
Image 14Grey pottery with engravings, Arikamedu, 1st century CE (from Tamils)
Image 15Expatriate Sri Lankan Tamil children in traditional clothes in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 16Tamil woman in traditional attire, c. 1880, Sri Lanka. (from Tamils)
Image 17Distribution of Tamil speakers in South India and Sri Lanka (1981). (from Tamils)
Image 18Tamil people in Medan, Indonesia (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 19Meenakshi Amman temple, dedicated to Goddess Meenakshi, tutelary deity of Madurai city (from Tamils)
Image 20The Mahishasuramardhini cave bas relief at Mahabalipuram from 7th century CE (from Tamils)
Image 21Katar, Tamil dagger which was popular throughout South Asia (from Tamils)
Image 22Celebrations of Murugan by the Sri Lankan Tamil community in Paris, France (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 23Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health in Velankanni, Tamil Nadu (from Tamils)
Image 24 Souttoukeny jewelry, 2nd century BCE, Tamil Nadu (from Tamils)
Image 25Sri Kandaswamy Temple, Brickfields, Malaysia. (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 26The Brihadeshswar Temple at Thanjavur, also known as the Great Temple, built by Rajaraja Chola I (from Tamils)
Image 27A 400 years old hero stone in Salem depicting bull-taming sport Jallikattu. (from Tamils)
Image 28 Map of ancient oceanic trade, and ports of Tamilakam (from Tamils)
Image 29The hall in front of Ranganayaki's shrine, Srirangam, where Kambar is said to have recited his works on Kamba Ramayanam (from Tamils)
Image 30Sage Agathiyar, one of the contributors of Old Tamil literature. (from Tamils)
Image 31Krishna with his consorts Rukmini and Satyabhama and his mount Garuda, Tamil Nadu, India, late 12th-13th century (from Tamils)
Image 32Murugan Temple, Sydney (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 33A Malbar temple in Réunion. (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 34Sri Kamakshi Ambaal temple in Hamm, Germany (from Tamil diaspora)
Image 35The Om symbol in Tamil script (from Tamils)
Image 36Tamil girls dressed in traditional attire, ca. 1870, Tamil Nadu, India. (from Tamils)
Image 37Tamil girls in Malaysia (from Tamil diaspora)

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Ilaiyaraaja in 2017

Ilaiyaraaja (born R. Gnanathesigan, 3 June 1943) is an Indian musician, composer, arranger, conductor, orchestrator, multi-instrumentalist, lyricist and singer, popular for his works in Indian cinema, prominently in Tamil and Telugu films. Reputed to be one of the most prolific composers, in a career spanning over forty-eight years, he has composed over 7,000 songs and provided film scores for over 1,000 films, apart from performing in over 20,000 concerts. He is nicknamed "Isaignani" (the musical sage) and is often referred to as "Maestro", the title conferred to him by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, London.

Ilaiyaraaja was also one of the earliest Indian film composers to use Western classical music harmonies and string arrangements in Indian film music, and the first South Asian to compose a full symphony. In 1986, he became the first Indian composer to record a soundtrack with computer for the film Vikram. He also composed Thiruvasagam in Symphony (2006), the first Indian oratorio. (Full article...)

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Topics

Tamil People

Tamil People Countrywide: India • Sri Lanka • Canada • Malaysia • Singapore • South Africa • England

Related Ethnic Groups: Brahui • Gond • Kannadiga • Khonds • Kodava • Oraon • Malayali • Telugus • Tuluvas

Related indigenous Groups: Badagas • Toda • Kuruba

Tamil Nadu

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