Tamil (தமிழ) belongs to the Dravidian languages and is spoken in Sri Lanka, Singapore, South Indian state Tamil Nadu, and 15 enclaves in India known as Puducherry (formerly Territoire de Pondichéry, a French colony). The language is also spoken by groups of minorities in South Indian states Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, and on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Tamil is usually first associated with Sri Lanka, but of its 68 million native speakers, 62 million live in South India. In total, 77 million people speak Tamil.

One of the oldest surviving classical languages

Tamil, with texts that are over 2,500 years old, is one of the oldest surviving classical languages in the world. What is also striking is that Tamil has barely changed over the centuries. The 2,000 year old Tirukkuṛaḷ, a book about ethics and morals, can be read with fairly little effort by those who speak contemporary Tamil.

Dutch loan words in Tamil

The United East Indian Company managed a number of factories in Sri Lanka between 1640 and 1796 (a factory consisted of warehouses, homes, a head office and a church, and would sometimes have a garrison and a fortress). As a result of that Dutch period in Sri Lanka (Ceylon at the time), Tamil adopted quite a few loan words from Dutch, including: aardappel, commandeur, diaconie, duiker (pearl diver), gouvernement, kakhuis (toilet), kasteel, kermis, koffie, luitenant, pistool, plakkaat, rekje, schipper, strijken, and stuiver. Ceylon Portuguese-Dutch, a Dutch Creole language that emerged at the time, has since all but died out.

In-country translators

When we do something, we do it right – so we ensure that your text is not only translated perfectly, but it also connects seamlessly to the intended target audience. The latter requires extensive cultural knowledge. That is why we work with in-country translators, Tamil translators who speak Tamil as a native language and live in the area for which your translation is intended.

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