Portal:Tamils

Portal topics: Activities; Culture; Geography; Health; History; Mathematics; Nature; People; Philosophy; Religion; Society; Technology; Random portal

The Tamils portal

The Tamils (/ˈtæmɪlz, ˈtɑː-/ TAM-ilz, TAHM-), also known as the Tamilar, 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.

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...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Selected article - show another

A postcard image of a Sri Lankan Tamil woman, 1910.

Sri Lankan Tamils (Tamil: இலங்கை தமிழர், ilankai tamiḻar or ஈழத் தமிழர், īḻat tamiḻar), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, form the plurality in the Eastern Province and are in the minority throughout the rest of the country. 70% of Sri Lankan Tamils in Sri Lanka live in the Northern and Eastern provinces.

Modern Sri Lankan Tamils descend from residents of the Jaffna Kingdom, a former kingdom in the north of Sri Lanka and Vannimai chieftaincies from the east. According to the anthropological and archaeological evidence, Sri Lankan Tamils have a very long history in Sri Lanka and have lived on the island since at least around the 2nd century BCE. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

General images

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

Selected biography - show another

Ashwin in 2015

Ravichandran Ashwin (pronunciation) (born 17 September 1986) is an Indian international cricketer. He is a right-arm off spin bowler and a lower order batter. Widely regarded as one of the most prolific off spinners of all time, he represents the Indian cricket team and was part of the Indian team that won the 2011 Cricket World Cup and the 2013 Champions Trophy. He plays for Tamil Nadu and South Zone in domestic cricket and for Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Ashwin has 500 wickets in Tests and is the fastest bowler to reach 300 wickets in terms of number of innings. He has won ten Man of the Series awards in Tests, which is the highest by an Indian cricketer and the second highest overall. As an all-rounder in Test cricket, he bats down the order, has scored five Test centuries and is one of the only three players to have scored 3000 runs and taken 500 wickets in Tests. As of February 2024, Ashwin is the highest-ranked bowler in the ICC men's player rankings and the highest rated Indian bowler ever in Tests. (Full article...)

List of selected biographies

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

Related portals

WikiProjects

Things to do

Add {{portal|Tamil People}} to the See also section of Tamil People-related articles.
Tag the talk pages of Tamil People-related articles with {{WikiProject Tamil civilization/Welcome}}
Join WikiProject Tamil civilization and list yourself as a Participant in the project.