| Signed Tamil | |
| Official status | |
|---|---|
Official language in
| |
Recognised minority
language in | |
The Tamil language is an official language in Sri Lanka and Singapore. In Singapore announcements on the trains are in the four official languages, English, Chinese (Mandarin), Malay (which is almost the same as Indonesian) and Tamil. Tamil is also used in countries and areas with large Tamil populations, such as parts of Malaysia and South Africa.
Story
On the train every day in Singapore I hear the English announcement ending with the word thank you, then the Tamil announcement ending with the word nandri. Now that I can recognize that, I am interested in learning more.
Problem
The Tamil language looks so strange and unrelated to English. If you type a word in English into Google translate, you get a translation in squiggly writing. How can I get over the psychological barrier and start learning it?
Answer
Start with a couple of words you already know.
I have extracted this information from a long complicated article in Wikipedia
Tamil Words Used in English
English - original meaning in English
(For example in German and English kindergarten - comes from the German word child garden)
Tamil Words Used in English
- cash - money
- catamaran - tied wood
- cheroot - roll
- Mulligatawny - pepper water
- patchouli - green leaf
- talent - natural aptitude
Knowing the origin of the word is handy. Now when I see Mulligatawny on a menu in an Indian restaurant I will know it is a spicy dish, something some friends will love, but which I will avoid!
Tamil Words Used in Malay and Indonesian (which are the same languages with a few variations in vocabulary, a bit like British English and American English)
Kota - fort (also town or city) as K o t a B h a r u, Kota T i n g g i, Kota K e m u n n g
Kota K i n a b u l a in Malaysia
Kota Kinabalu is named after Mount Kinabalu, which is situated about 50 kilometres east-northeast of the city. Kinabaluis derived from the name Aki Nabalu meaning the "revered place of the dead." Aki means "ancestors" or "grandfather", and Nabalu is a name for the mountain in the Dusun language.[10] There is also a source claiming that the term originated from Ki Nabalu, Ki meaning "have" or "exist", and Nabalu meaning "spirit of the dead".[11]
Kota is a Malay word for a "fort", "town", or a "city". It is also used formally in a few other Malaysian towns and cities, for example, Kota Bharu, Kota Tinggi, and Kota Kemuning. It can also be used informally to refer to any towns or cities. Hence, a direct translation of the name Kota Kinabalu into English would be "City of Kinabalu" or "Kinabalu City".
Knowing that helps geography. Now if I or you hear that a friend is going to Kota Kinabalu, we know they are going to a city or fort near a mountain.
Grammar
Sentence Word Order
Wikipedia tells us:
AuthorGrammar
Sentence Word Order
Wikipedia tells us:
Syntax
Tamil is a consistently head-final language. The verb comes at the end of the clause, with a typical word order of subject–object–verb (SOV).[113][114] However, word order in Tamil is also flexible, so that surface permutations of the SOV order are possible with different pragmatic effects. Tamil has postpositions rather than prepositions. Demonstratives and modifiers precede the noun within the noun phrase. Subordinate clauses precede the verb of the matrix clause.
Tamil is a null-subject language. Not all Tamil sentences have subjects, verbs, and objects. It is possible to construct grammatically valid and meaningful sentences which lack one or more of the three. For example, a sentence may only have a verb—such as muṭintuviṭṭatu ("completed")—or only a subject and object, without a verb such as atu eṉ vīṭu ("That [is] my house"). Tamil does not have a copula (a linking verb equivalent to the word is). The word is included in the translations only to convey the meaning more easily.
Now I understand more easily the speech of Indians who I meet at Toastmaster International meetings or in shops and restaurants in Singapore. They are translating into English their sentence construction in Tamil. They are not merely missing out verbs which they don't know. They are translating word for word a correct sentence structure in their own language. Every time I hear them Speak English, I will be reminded of Tamil language sentence structure.
Finally, here's a quick and easy set of words for way making different.
Tamil's Easy Word Endings
A prefix is a syllable added on the front of a word. Easy to remember. (A suffix is a syllable added on the end.)
You say the name of a city, or building, or station or airport or hotel, and raise your eyebrows and shrug and point in both directions, meaning, in sign language, 'which way do I take to such and such a place?'
Tamil's Easy Word Endings
A prefix is a syllable added on the front of a word. Easy to remember. (A suffix is a syllable added on the end.)
You say the name of a city, or building, or station or airport or hotel, and raise your eyebrows and shrug and point in both directions, meaning, in sign language, 'which way do I take to such and such a place?'
You get an answer.
For example, the word vazhi (வழி) meaning "way" can take these to produce ivvazhi (இவ்வழி) "this way", avvazhi (அவ்வழி) "that way", uvvazhi (உவ்வழி) "the medial (middle) way" and evvazhi (எவ்வழி) "which way".
Incidentally, let's finish with a couple of easy to remember and easy to recognize words and signs. Hello in English is halo in tamil. The number zero is written the same, a circle.
For information on Kota Kinabalu, in Malaysian Borneo, see next post.
For information on Kota Kinabalu, in Malaysian Borneo, see next post.
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker, teacher of languages.
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