Tamil diaspora

The Tamil diaspora is a demographic group of Tamil people of Indian and Sri Lankan origin who have settled in other parts of the world. Significant Tamil diaspora populations can be found in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, the Middle East, Réunion, South Africa, Mauritius, Seychelles, Fiji, Guyana, Burma, Trinidad and Tobago, the French West Indies, Europe, Australia, Canada and the United States.

Early migrations

Many are descendants of emigrants who left thousands of years ago and mixed with countless other ethnicities, while others are recently moved from Tamil Nadu. The diaspora's identity is rooted in an ancient heritage, the rich Tamil language and literature and a vibrant culture that many still retain. Many groups claim descent from medieval-era Tamil emigrants such as the Chitty, Vellalars of Malaysia and the Colombo Chetty, Vellalar of Sri Lanka.

An early emigrant group that is not well documented is the Tamil Muslims who emigrated in considerable numbers to the Sultanate of Malacca (in present-day Malaysia) and were instrumental in spreading Islam amongst the indigenous Malays. Some are descended from immigrants from land of Arabia (Middle East), though it is not known which part of the Arab world they are from.

Tamil

Tamil may refer to:

See also

Tamil language

Tamil /ˈtæmɪl/ (தமிழ், tamiḻ, [t̪ɐmɨɻ] ^?) is a Dravidian language predominantly spoken by the Tamil people of India and northern Sri Lanka, and also by the Tamil diaspora. Tamil is an official language of two countries, Singapore and Sri Lanka, and has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the Indian Union Territory of Puducherry. It is also used as one of the languages of education in Malaysia, along with English, Malay and Mandarin. In India, outside of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, Tamil is also spoken in the states of Kerala, Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar Islands as a secondary language and by minorities in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and was the first Indian language declared as a classical language, which was done by the Government of India in 2004. The language is also spoken by Tamil minorities in Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, United Kingdom, Mauritius, Canada,South Africa,Fiji,Germany, the Philippines, the Netherlands, Indonesia and France, as well as smaller emigrant communities elsewhere.

Tamil Eelam

Tamil Eelam (Tamil: தமிழீழம் tamiḻ īḻam, generally rendered outside Tamil-speaking areas as தமிழ் ஈழம்) is a proposed independent state that Tamils in Sri Lanka and the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora aspire to create in the north and east of Sri Lanka. Tamil Eelam has no official status or recognition by world states though sections of the Eelam were under de facto control of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for most of the 2000s. The name is derived from the ancient Tamil name for Sri Lanka, Eelam.

History

Ancient period

Evidence of a settlement of people with burial practices similar to that found in the Tamil Nadu region in India and further North was excavated at megalithic burial sites at Pomparippu in the western coast and in Kathiraveli in the eastern coast. These are dated between 2nd century BC and 2nd century AD. Although it is not known when ethnic Tamils first settled in Sri Lanka. Tamil royal dynasties in this period are known to have patronized Tamil Saivite culture in the east that paralleled the growth of the community in the area, and by the 6th century, a special coastal route by boat was functioning to the Koneswaram temple of Trincomalee and Thirukkovil Sithira Velayutha Swami Kovil in Batticaloa. It wasn't until the 13th century that there was firm evidence of the rise of a significant Tamil Hindu social formation in the Jaffna Peninsula, the Jaffna Kingdom, in the aftermath of the collapse of the classical Sinhala Dry Zone civilisations. By the 11th and 12th centuries AD the upper half of the eastern province had a large Tamil community.

Diaspora

A diaspora (from Greek διασπορά, "scattering, dispersion") is a scattered population whose origin lies within a smaller geographic locale. Diaspora can also refer to the movement of the population from its original homeland. Diaspora has come to refer particularly to historical mass dispersions of an involuntary nature, such as the expulsion of Jews from Judea, the fleeing of Greeks after the fall of Constantinople, the African Trans-Atlantic slave trade, the southern Chinese or Hindus of South Asia during the coolie trade, the deportation of Palestinians in the 20th century and the exile and deportation of Circassians.

Recently, scholars have distinguished between different kinds of diaspora, based on its causes such as imperialism, trade or labor migrations, or by the kind of social coherence within the diaspora community and its ties to the ancestral lands. Some diaspora communities maintain strong political ties with their homeland. Other qualities that may be typical of many diasporas are thoughts of return, relationships with other communities in the diaspora, and lack of full integration into the host country.