Tamil for Better Language Understanding

(Written on June 26, 2013)

Tamil helps me to understand other languages better, because Tamil has the past, present, and future tenses of English, the flexibility of borrowing foreign language words like how Bahasa does, the nasal vowels of Portuguese, the sentence structure of Japanese with verbs at the end, the case endings of Russian, the respect language of Japanese, and a big difference between the formal written and colloquial spoken form like Cantonese. Tamil also trains phonetics because it has two R sounds and three L sounds, however it doesn't have F and Z sounds while J and H are marginal, and the writing doesn't distinguish between K and G or B and P. Vaalga Tamil Moli!

Reasons to be Proud of Tamil

Tamil produces great thoughts. The likes of Thiruvalluvar and Tolkappiyar. Thiruvalluvar wrote Thirukkural, a summary of Tamil wisdom covering lifestyle, ethics, and guidance in 1330 couplets in 133 chapters. Each couplet has 7 words, 4 on the 1st line and 3 on the 2nd line. Tolkappiyar wrote Tolkappiyam, the oldest surviving Tamil grammar book that prescribes the pronunciation and spelling of Tamil letters.

Tamil achievements that stood the test of time: Banana leaf rice, world's oldest buffet spread, environmentally friendly too. Olaichuvadi (palm leaf manuscripts), ancient Tamil publishing and SMS technology. Thaipusam, longest-running festival celebration. All these have been around for more than 2000 years. And yes, Tamil was spoken way back then and is still spoken today.

Vadivelu Tamil Comedy: Tar Road Joke

Tamil Comedy: Vadivelu Tamil Joke - Tar Road

மீண்டும் வடிவேலு, பார்த்திபன்..
miiNdum vadiveelu, paarththiban..

“பார்த்தி.. இது என்ன ரோடுப்பா?”
"paarththi.. idhu enna rooduppaa?"
“தார் ரோடு”
"thaar roodu"

“ம்க்க்ஹும்.. இந்த ரோடு எங்க போகுதுன்னு கேட்டேன்?”
"mkkhum.. inda roodu engga pooguthunnu keetteen?"
“எங்கேயும் போகலை.. இங்க தான் இருக்கு”
"engeeyum poogalai.. ingga thaan irukku"

“ம்ம்… சரி.. நான் தெளிவா கேக்கிறேன். இந்த ரோடு எந்த ஊர்களுக்கு நடுவுல இருக்கு?”
"mm... sari.. naan theLivaa keekkiReen. inda roodu enda uurgaLukku naduvula irukku?"
“உள்ளூருக்கும் வெளியூருக்கும் நடுவுல இருக்கு.”
"uurLuurukkum veLiyuurukkum naduvula irukku."

“ப்ப்ச்ச்… இந்த தார் ரோட்டுக்குன்னு ஒரு பேரு வச்சிருப்பாய்ங்கல்ல.. அதச் சொல்லுயா..”
"ppss... inda thaar roottukkunnu oru peeru vachchiruppaaynggalla.. adhas solluyaa.."
“அப்படித் தெளிவா கேளு.. அப்போதானே கரெக்டாச் சொல்ல முடியும்…”
"appadit theLivaa keeLu.. appoothaanee karektaas solla mudiyum..."

“அதத் தானே தெளிவா மொதல்லருந்து கேட்டுக்கிட்டு இருக்கேன்.”
"adhat thaanee theLivaa mothallarundu keettukkittu irukkeen."
“என்ன கேட்டே?”
"enna keettee?"

“இது என்ன ரோடு?”
"idhu enna roodu?"
"இது தார் ரோடு."
"idhu thaar roodu."

பா எத்தணை வகைப்படும்? அவையாவைன்னு சொல்லு?
paa eththaNai vagaippadum? avaiyaavainnu sollu?

ஐந்து வகைப்படும் சார் அவை ஆசிரியப்பா, கலிப்பா, வெண்பா, வஞ்சிப்பா, படையப்பா.
ainthu vagaippadum saar avai aasiriyappaa, kalippaa, vanjippaa, padaiyappaa.

Source:
http://www.facebook.com/notes/tamil-tamil/cirikka-cintikka-nakaiccuvaikal-funny-jokes/397168059709

Tamil Comedy & Astro Coincidence

By the power of Muruga, it can't be mere coincidence! I sent Ramesh a link on Facebook to a Sathyaraj & Vadivelu comedy about cricket player selection. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsHldlHmDQw

Immediately I got an SMS greeting from Ramesh. I replied and told him about the link. Io and behold, he replied saying he was watching Siri Siri Tamil Comedy on ASTRO and that exact comedy clip was playing! What a coincidence!

Tamil Numbers

Tamil numbers in colloquial spoken Tamil.

0 (zero)
பூச்சியம்
puucciyam

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
ஒண்ணு ரெண்டு மூணு நாலு அஞ்சு ஆறு ஏழு எட்டு ஒம்பது பத்து
oNNu reNdu muuNu naalu anJu aaRu eeḻu ettu ombadu pattu

11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19
பதிநொண்ணு பனிரெண்டு பதிமூனு பதிநாலு பதினஞ்சு பதினாறு பதினேழு பதினெட்டு பத்தொம்பது
padinoNNu panireNdu padimuunu padinaalu padinanJu padinaaRu padineeḻu padinettu pattombadu

20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
இருவது முப்பது நாப்பது அம்பது அறுவது எழுவது எம்பது தொண்ணூறு
iruvadu muppadu naappadu ambadu aRuvadu eḻuvadu embadu toNNuuRu

100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900
நூறு எரனூறு முன்னூறு நானூறு ஐனூறு அறுனூறு எழுனூறு எண்ணூறு தொள்ளாயிரம்
nuuRu eranuuRu munnuuRu naanuuRu ainuuRu aRunuuRu eḻunuuRu eNNuuRu toLLaayiram

1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 9000
ஆயிரம் ரெண்டாயிரம் மூணாயிரம் நாலாயிரம் அஞ்சாயிரம் ஆறாயிரம் ஏழாயிரம் எட்டாயிரம் ஒம்பதாயிரம்
aayiram reNdaayiram muuNaayiram naalaayiram anJaayiram aaRaayiram eeḻaayiram ettaayiram ombadaayiram

100,000 (lakh = one hundred thousand)
லட்சம்
latcham

10,000,000 (crore = ten million)
கோடி
koodi

தொள் toL is a prefix for the nine stuff
reNdu is two, iruvadu is twenty, eranuuRu is two hundred, reNdaayiram is two thousand

Korean & Tamil Corresponding Letters

Korean & Tamil Corresponding Letters

Unaspirated Consonants
k/g ㄱ க்
n ㄴ ந்
d/t ㄷ த்
r/l ㄹ ர்/ல்
m ㅁ ம்
b/p ㅂ ப்
s ㅅ ச்/ஸ்
no sound (front), ng (end) ㅇ ங் (end only)
j ㅈ ஜ் (approximate)

Aspirated Consonants
ch ㅊ ச்/ச்ச்
k ㅋ க்
t ㅌ த்
p ㅍ ப்
h ㅎ ஹ்

Doubled Consonants
kk ㄲ க்க்
tt ㄸ ட்ட்
pp ㅃ ப்ப்
ss ㅆ ஸ்ஸ்
jj ㅉ ஜ்ஜ்

Vowels
a ㅏ அ
i ㅣ இ
u ㅜ உ
e ㅔ எ
o ㅗ ஒ

Diphthongs

ya ㅑ ய
yu ㅠ யு
ye ㅖ யெ
yo ㅛ யொ
ui ㅢ உய்

The following Korean sounds have no Tamil equivalent

ae ㅐ
yae ㅒ
eo ㅓ
yeo ㅕ
oe ㅚ
wae ㅙ
wa ㅘ
wi ㅟ
eu ㅡ
wo ㅝ
we ㅞ

Tamil Revision: Grantha Letters ஜ ஸ்ரீ ஸ ஹ ஷ க்ஷ

In addition to the vowels, consonants and aytam of the Tamil alphabet, there are several additional letters used mainly in writing loanwords from Sanskrit and other languages. These letters are called Grantha letters and aren't considered part of the original Tamil alphabet. Some writers try to avoid using them whenever possible. Even my Tamil dictionary published by Fajar Bakti doesn't have a listing of these letters.

To recap, these letters are ja, Srii, Sa, ha, sha and ksha. ஜ ஸ்ரீ ஸ ஹ ஷ க்ஷ. If a Tamil word has any one of these letters it's most likely a loanword, mainly from Sanskrit but some are from English and Arabic.

Quite a number of common words use Grantha letters, such as janangal ஜனங்கள் (people), juram ஜுரம் (fever), juulai ஜூலை (July), kashtam கஷ்டம் (trouble), varusham வருஷம் (year), rishi ரிஷி (no exact English translation, an approximation would be divine scribe or poet-sage through which the Vedas flowed), kshatriya க்ஷத்ரிய (warrior), nimisham நிமிஷம் (minute as a measure of time), puujai பூஜை (prayer), roojaa ரோஜா (rose), raajaa ராஜா (king), hatiiS ஹதீஸ் (hadith), hindi ஹிந்தி (Hindi), hoottal ஹோட்டல் (hotel), puStakam புஸ்தகம் (book), Staanam ஸ்தான (place, position), jananaayagam ஜனநாயகம் (democracy).

How Centamil Differs From Koduntamil

Page 172 of Colloquial Tamil by R. E. Asher and E. Annamalai has a dialogue that shows how a speech is in Tamil with English translation. I have compiled the information here in the following order: English, Tamil writing, centamil and koduntamil.

English translation:

A doctor's profession is one of serving people. It's now becoming commercialised. I don't say doctors shouldn't make money. One shouldn't say, I'll give the treatment only if I've been paid.

Now all sorts of new diseases are coming. So much research is being done on them. If we study them, we can get a full understanding of the new diseases; we can make use of the new methods of treatment. For that a doctor must set aside time, must make an effort.

Whatever new treatment there is in any medical system to cure diseases, one must take it up.

Tamil writing in formal centamil:

டாக்டர் தொழில் மக்களுக்கு சேவை செய்கிற தொழில். அது இப்போது வியாபாரமாக ஆகிக்கொண்டிருக்கிறது. டாக்டர் பணம் பண்ண(க்) கூடாது என்று சொல்லவில்லை. பணத்தை எடுத்துவைத்தால்தான் வைத்தியம் பார்ப்பேன் என்று சோல்ல(க்) கூடாது.

இப்போது புது(ப்) புது வியாதி எல்லாம் வருகிறது. அதை(ப்) பற்றி எவ்வளவோ ஆராய்ச்சி நடக்கிறது. அதை(ப்) படித்து தெரிந்துகொண்டால் புது வியாதிகளை முழுதாக புரிந்துகொள்ள முடியும்; புது சிகிச்சை முறைகளை(ப்) பயன்படுத்த முடியும் என்று நினைக்கிறேன். அதற்கு டாக்டர் நேரம் ஒதுக்க வேண்டும்; முயற்சி எடுக்க வேண்டும்.

வியாதியை(க்) குணப்படுத்த எந்த மருத்துவ முறையில் நல்ல வழி இருந்தாலும் அதை எடுத்துக்கொள்ள வேண்டும்...

Centamil pronunciation:

daaktar toḻil makkaLukku seevai seykiRa toḻil. adu ippoodu viyaabaaramaaka aagikkoNdirukkiRadu. daaktar paNam paNNa(k) kuudaadu enRu sollavillai. paNattai eduttuvaittaaldaan vaittiyam paarppeen enRu soolla(k) kuudaadu.

ippoodu pudu(p) pudu viyaadi ellaam varukiRadu. adai(p) paRRi evvaLavoo aaraaycci nadakkiRadu. adai(p) padittu terintukoNdaal pudu viyaadigaLai muḻutaaga purindukoLLa mudiyum; pudu sigiccai muRaigaLai(p) payanpadutta mudiyum enRu ninaikkiReen. adaRku daaktar neeram otukka veeNdum; muyaRci edukka veeNdum.

viyaadiyai(k) kuNappadutta enda maruttuva muRaiyil nalla vaḻi irundaalum adai eduttukkoLLa veeNdum...

Koduntamil pronunciation:

daaktar toḻil makkaLukku seeve seyra toḻil. adu ippa viyaabaaramaa aagikitturukku. daaktar paNam paNNa kuudaadu-nnu sollale. paNatte eduttuvaccaadaan vayttiyam paappeen-nu solla kuudaadu.

ippa pudu pudu viyaadi ellaam varudu. ade patti evLavoo aaraaycci nadakkudu. ade padiccu terinjikittaa pudu viyaadigaLe muḻusaa purinjikida mudiyum; pudu sigicce moregaLe payanapadutta mudiyum-nu nenekkireen. adukku daaktar neeram odukkaNum; muyarci edukkaNum.

viyaadiye koNapadutta enda maruttuva morele nalla vaḻi irundaalum ade eduttukidaNum...

Sarakku In Malaysian Tamil சரக்கு

One of the first Tamil words I picked up was "sarakku சரக்கு". It means goods, commodity, or merchandise. It could refer to items in a shop, products being imported, or things being traded.

But only in Malaysia (and Singapore) the meaning has changed. In colloquial speech "sarakku" also means "girl" or "girls" as in "kaaleej sarakku" (college girls) or "anda kilaable romba sarakku irukku" (lots of girls in that club). You could say "Are you trying to hit on some random 'sarakku'?"

Strangely, guys aren't referred to as "sarakku". It's only one way. "sarakku" is strictly for referring to "pomblei" (colloquial pronunciation of "peNpiLLai", the Tamil word for girl). Guys are "amblei" (colloquial pronunciation of "aaNpiLLai").

Tamils from India, Sri Lanka, and outside Malaysia soon learn from the locals this other meaning of "sarakku". But formal writing and speaking still maintain the original meaning of "sarakku", which is goods. So you won't hear a news broadcast or public speech using "sarakku" to refer to girls, and neither will a sentence in a Tamil book, magazine, or newspaper.

Thoughts On Learning To Read Tamil

A little more than a year ago, I decided to learn how to read Tamil. I have now memorised the Tamil alphabet in Tamil alphabetical order. They're the letters ka nga cha/sa nya, da Na ta na, pa ma ya ra la va, ḻa La Ra na, and the Grantha letters ja, Srii, sha, Sa, ha, ksha.

Grantha letters are not considered part of the original Tamil alphabet and some writers try to avoid using them. But they're essential for spelling loanwords from other languages, people's names and place names. If a word contains a Grantha letter, it's a sure indicator that it's not a native Tamil word.

Learning Tamil helps build the understanding of how Indic scripts work. Every consonant letter carries an inherent vowel sound, which is "a". Vowels can appear after, before, or around the consonant letter. Vowels have their own independent symbols when written as standalone letters. To silence the inherent consonant, a "puLLi" (dot) is written above the consonant letter.

After comparing the Tamil writing system to other Indic scripts such as Devanagari, Malayalam, Gurmukhi, Thai, Tibetan, Burmese and Cambodian, I can say that Tamil is the most simple of them all. There are far fewer complex conjunct consonant glyphs. Tamil has the least number of letters. Tamil doesn't have different letters to indicate aspirated and unaspirated consonants. Instead, Tamil relies on grammar rules to differentiate them.

Knowing how to read Tamil doesn't mean that I can speak Tamil. It's just like someone with zero knowledge of English who studied the Roman alphabet from A to Z and can now read English but doesn't know the meaning of the words. Vocabulary acquisition is a totally different story, and it's often a long, long journey.

avaNNa kooyil romba kuuttam அவண்ண கோயில் ரொம்ப கூட்டம்

neeTRu raatiri aruLmigu Srii avaNNa kooyil romba kuuttam. romba baktiyar! nuuRu iruvadu reNdu peesu irundum. aattam paattu peNpiLLai aaNpiLLai elloorum irukkum.

நேற்று ராதிரி அருள்மிகு ஸ்ரீ அவண்ண கோயில் ரொம்ப கூட்டம். ரொம்ப பக்தியர்! நூறு இருவடு ரெண்டு பேசு இருந்தும். ஆட்டம் பாட்டு பெண்பிள்ளை ஆண்பிள்ளை எல்லோரும் இருக்கும்.

Tamil Comedy தமிழ் காமிடி: Senthil, Goundamani, Vadivelu and Vivek

Four famous Tamil comedy actors are Senthil, Goundamani, Vadivelu and Vivek. Thanks to Ramesh for introducing me to these comedians.

Senthil and Goundamani often act as a pair, something like Laurel and Hardy. They've been around since the early 1980s, making many people laugh with their comic antics and funny dialogues (in Tamil, of course).

Vadivelu comedies are more of action and slapstick. Even if you don't understand Tamil you'll laugh when watching his video clips. Poor Vadivelu always seems to get into trouble with baddies bashing him up at every corner.

Vivek's comedy relies a lot on wordplay, situations and dialogue. You really need to understand Tamil to catch the jokes and comedy in his videos. Satire's the keyword.

In Malaysia you can catch them on Siri Siri Tamil Comedy if you have Astro.

A Primer on Tamil Vowels

Tamil has ten vowels and two diphthongs.

The ten vowels are அ a, ஆ aa, இ i, ஈ ii, உ u, ஊ uu, எ e, ஏ ee, ஒ o, and ஓ oo. You can see (or hear) that they're five distinct sounds, each having a long and short version. Long vowels are "nedil" and short vowels are "kuril". Compare the vowels to "a e i o u" in English.

The two diphthongs are ஐ ai and ஔ au. However, spoken Tamil doesn't really use the diphthongs. Often ஐ ai becomes எ e and ஔ au becomes அவு avu.

So, char siew pau 叉燒包 will be spelled as char siyu pavu சர் சியு பவு instead of char siyu pau சர் சியு பௌ. You'll find au only in a few words like pauttam பௌத்தம் (Buddha) and saukkiyamaa (How are you?, literally "are you well / in good health?").