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

Aravan worshipped at Sri Mariamman Temple, Singapore. A cobra hood is sheltering Aravan's head.

Iravan also known as Iravat and Iravant, is a minor character from the Hindu epic Mahabharata. The son of Pandava prince Arjuna (one of the main heroes of the Mahabharata) and the Naga princess Ulupi, Iravan is the central deity of the cult of Kuttantavar (Kuttandavar) which is also the name commonly given to him in that tradition—and plays a major role in the sect of Draupadi. Both these sects are of Tamil origin, from a region of the country where he is worshipped as a village deity and is known as Aravan. He is also a patron god of well-known transgender communities called Alis (also Aravani in Tamil, and Hijra throughout South Asia).

The Mahabharata portrays Iravan as dying a heroic death on the 8th day of the 18-day Kurukshetra War (Mahabharata war), the epic's main subject. However, the South Indian traditions have a supplementary practice of honouring Aravan's self-sacrifice to the goddess Kali to ensure her favour and the victory of the Pandavas in the war. The Kuttantavar tradition focuses on one of the three boons granted to Aravan by the god Krishna in honour of this self-sacrifice. Aravan requested that he be married before his death. Krishna satisfied this boon in his female form, Mohini. In Koovagam, Tamil Nadu, this incident is re-enacted in an 18-day festival, first by a ceremonial marriage of Aravan to Alis (hijra) and male villagers (who have taken vows to Aravan) and then by their widowhood after ritual re-enactment of Aravan's sacrifice. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

General images

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

Selected biography - show another

Anton Balasingham Stanislaus (Tamil: அன்ரன் பாலசிங்கம் சிடானிசுலாசு, romanized: Āṇṭaṉ Pālaciṅkam Ciṭāṉisulās; 4 March 1938 – 14 December 2006) was a Sri Lankan Tamil journalist, rebel and chief political strategist and chief negotiator for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a separatist Tamil militant organisation in Sri Lanka. (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.