Tamil ( ; ) is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people, originating on the Indian subcontinent. It is one of the oldest languages in the world. It has official status in India, Sri Lanka and Singapore. Tamil is also spoken by significant minorities in Malaysia, Mauritius, and Réunion, as well as emigrant communities around the world. It is the administrative language of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, and the first Indian language to be declared as a classical language by the government of India in 2004, followed by Sanskrit.
Tamil literature has existed for over two thousand years. The earliest epigraphic records found date from around the third century BCE and the Tolkāppiyam (தொல்காப்பியம்), the oldest known treatise in Tamil, has been dated variously between 2nd century BCE and 10th century CE. Similarly, the earliest period of Tamil literature, Sangam literature, is dated to between the 2nd century BCE and 10th century CE.
Tamil employs agglutinative grammar,...
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