Tamils
The Tamils, also known by their demonym Tamilar, are a Dravidian ethnic group who natively speak the Tamil language and trace their ancestry mainly to the southern part of the Indian subcontinent. Tamil is one of the longest-surviving languages, with over two thousand years of written history, dating back to the Sangam period. Tamils constitute about 5.7% of the Indian population and form the majority in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry. They also form significant proportions of the populations in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Singapore. Tamils have migrated world-wide since the 19th century CE and a significant population exists in South Africa, Mauritius, Fiji, as well as other regions such as the Southeast Asia, Middle East, Caribbean and parts of the Western World.
Archaeological evidence from Tamil Nadu indicates a continuous history of human occupation for more than 3,800 years. In the Sangam period, Tamilakam was ruled by the Three Crowned Kings of the Cheras, Cholas and Pandyas. Smaller Velir kings and chieftains ruled certain territories and maintained relationship with the larger kingdoms. Urbanisation and mercantile activity developed along the coasts during the later Sangam period with the Tamils influencing the regional trade in the Indian Ocean region. Artifacts obtained from excavations indicate the presence of early trade relations with the Romans. The major kingdoms to rule the region later were the Pallavas, and the Vijayanagara Empire.
The island of Sri Lanka often saw attacks from the Indian mainland with the Cholas establishing their influence across the island and across several areas in Southeast Asia in the 10th century CE. This led to the spread of Tamil influence and contributed to the cultural Indianisation of the region. Scripts brought by Tamil traders like the Grantha and Pallava scripts, induced the development of many Southeast Asian scripts. The Jaffna Kingdom later controlled the Tamil territory in the north of the Sri Lanka from 13th to 17th century CE. European colonization began in the 17th century CE, and continued for two centuries until the middle of the 20th century.
Due to its long history, the Tamil culture has seen multiple influences over the years and have developed diversely. The Tamil visual art consists of a distinct style of architecture, sculpture and other art forms. Tamil sculpture ranges from stone sculptures in temples, to detailed bronze icons. The ancient Tamil country had its own system of music called Tamil Pannisai. Tamil performing arts include the theatre form Koothu, puppetry Bommalattam, classical dance Bharatanatyam, and various other traditional dance forms. Hinduism is the major religion followed by the Tamils and the religious practices include the veneration of various village deities and ancient Tamil gods. A smaller number are also Christians and Muslims, and a small percentage follow Jainism and Buddhism. Tamil cuisine consist of various vegetarian and meat items, usually spiced with locally available spices. Historian Michael Wood called the Tamils the last surviving classical civilization on Earth, because the Tamils have preserved substantial elements of their past regarding belief, culture, music, and literature despite the influence of globalization.
Etymology
Tamil is derived from the name of the language. The people are referred to as in Tamil language, which is etymologically linked to the name of the language. The origin and precise etymology of the word Tamil is unclear with multiple theories attested to it. Kamil Zvelebil suggests that the term tamiz might have been derived from tam meaning "self" and "-iz" having the connotation of "unfolding sound". Alternatively, he suggests a derivation of tamiz < tam-iz < *tav-iz < *tak-iz, meaning "the proper process ". Franklin Southworth suggests that the name comes from tam-miz > tam-iz meaning "self-speak", or "our own speech".It is unknown whether the term Tamila and its equivalents in Prakrit such as Damela, Damila, or Tamira was first used as a self designation or by outsiders. The Hathigumpha inscription from Udayagiri in Eastern India dated to the second century BCE, describes a Tamira samghata, which was in existence for the previous 113 years. Epigraphical evidence from the second century BCE mentioning Damela or Dameda from ancient Sri Lanka have been found. In the Buddhist Jataka texts, there is a mention of a Damila-rattha. Greek historian Strabo mentions that the Roman Emperor Augustus received an ambassador from Pandyan of Dramira. An inscription from Amaravati dated to third century CE refers to a Dhamila-vaniya.
History
In India
Pre-historic period (before 4th century BCE)
suggests the region was first inhabited by hominids over 400 millennia ago. Artifacts recovered in Adichanallur by the Archaeological Survey of India indicate megalithic urn burials, dating from back to 1500 BCE. which are also described in early Tamil literature. Excavations at Keezhadi have revealed a large urban settlement, with the earliest artefact dated to 580 BCE, during the time of urbanization in the Indo-Gangetic plain. Epigraphical inscriptions found at Adichanallur and potsherds uncovered from Keezhadi use Tamil Brahmi, a rudimentary script dated to 6th century BCE.Sangam period (3rd century BCE–3rd century CE)
The Sangam period lasted from 3rd century BCE to 3rd century CE with the main source of history during the period coming from the various Sangam literature. Ancient Tamilakam was ruled by a triumvirate of monarchical states, Cheras, Cholas and Pandyas. These kings are referred to as Vāṉpukaḻ Mūvar in the Sangam literature. The Cheras controlled the western part of Tamilkam, the Pandyas controlled the south, and the Cholas had their base in the Kaveri delta. They are mentioned in the inscriptions from the Mauryan Empire dated to third century BCE. Kalinga inscriptions from the second century BCE refers to a confederacy of the Tamil kingdoms. The three kings called Vendhar ruled over several hill tribes headed by the Velir chiefs and settlements headed by clan chiefs called Kizhar. The rulers of smaller territories were referred to as Kurunilamannar, with Purananuru mentioning the names of many such chieftains.The Sangam period rulers patronized multiple religions including vedic religion, Buddhism and Jainism and sponsored some of the earliest Tamil literature with the oldest surviving work being Tolkāppiyam, a book of Tamil grammar. Purananuru describes the public life and various unique cultural practices that existed during the period. The text talks about the Vedic Sacrifices performed by the kings as described in the Vedas and the rituals performed for the dead.
Agriculture was an important occupation during the period, and there is evidence that networks of irrigation channels were built as early as the 3rd century BCE. The Sangam literature describe fertile lands and people organised into various occupational groups. The governance of the land was through hereditary monarchies, although the sphere of the state's activities and the extent of the ruler's powers were limited through the adherence to an established order.
The kingdoms had significant diplomatic and trade contacts with other kingdoms to the north and with the Romans. Roman coins and other epigraphical evidence from South India and potsherds with Tamil writing found in excavations along the Red Sea indicate the presence of Roman commerce with the ancient Tamilakam. Much of the commerce from the Romans and Han China were facilitated via seaports including Muziris and Korkai with spices being the most prized goods along with pearls and silk. There is evidence of emissaries sent to the Roman Emperor Augustus by the Pandya kings. An anonymous Greek traveler's account from first century CE, Periplus Maris Erytraei, describes the ports of the Pandya and Chera kingdoms in Damirica and their commercial activity in detail. It also describes that the chief exports of the ancient Tamils were pepper, malabathrum, pearls, ivory, silk, spikenard, diamonds, sapphires, and tortoiseshell.
Medieval era (4th–13th century CE)
From the fourth century CE, the region was ruled by the Kalabhras, warriors belonging to the Vellalar community, who were once feudatories of the three ancient Tamil kingdoms. The Kalabhra era is referred to as the "dark period" of Tamil history, and information about it is generally inferred from any mentions in the literature and inscriptions that are dated many centuries after their era ended. Around the seventh century CE, the Kalabhras were overthrown by the Pandyas and Cholas. Though they existed previously, the period saw the rise of the Pallavas in the sixth century CE under Mahendravarman I, who ruled parts of South India with Kanchipuram as their capital. The Pallavas were noted for their patronage of architecture. Throughout their reign, the Pallavas remained in constant conflict with the Cholas, the Pandyas and other kingdoms of Chalukyas of Badami and the Rashtrakutas. The Pandyas were revived by Kadungon towards the end of the sixth century CE and with the Cholas in obscurity in Uraiyur, the Tamil country was divided between the Pallavas and the Pandyas. The area west of the Western Ghats became increasingly distinct from the eastern parts. A new language Malayalam evolved from Tamil in the region and the socio-cultural transformation was altered further by the migration of Sanskrit-speaking Indo-Aryans from Northern India in the eighth century CE.File:Rajendra map new.svg|thumb|left|The Chola Empire at its greatest extent, during the reign of Rajendra Chola I in 1030
The Cholas were revived in the ninth century CE by Vijayalaya Chola and the last Pallavas ruler Aparajitavarman was defeated by the Chola prince Aditya I. After the defeat of the Pallavas, the Cholas became the dominant kingdom with the capital at Thanjavur. The Chola influence expanded subsequently with Rajaraja I conquering the entire Southern India and parts of present-day Sri Lanka and Maldives, and increased Chola influence across the Indian Ocean in the eleventh century CE. Rajaraja brought in administrative reforms including the reorganisation of Tamil country into individual administrative units. Under his son Rajendra Chola I, the Chola empire reached its zenith and stretched as far as Bengal in the north and across the Indian Ocean. He defeated the Eastern Chalukyas and the Chola navy invaded the Srivijaya Empire in South East Asia. The Cholas had trade links with the Chinese Song Dynasty and across Southeast Asia. The Cholas built many temples with the most notable being the Brihadisvara Temple at Thanjavur. The latter half of the eleventh century saw the union of Chola and Vengi kingdoms under Kulottunga I. The Cholas repulsed attacks from the Western Chalukyas and maintained its influence over the various kingdoms of Southeast Asia. According to historian Nilakanta Sastri, Kulottunga avoided unnecessary wars and had a long and prosperous reign characterized by unparalleled success that laid the foundations of the empire for the next 150 years.
The eventual decline of Chola power began towards the end of Kulottunga III's reign in the thirteenth century CE. The Pandyas again reigned supreme under Maravarman Sundara I and defeated the Cholas under Rajaraja III. Though the Cholas were revived briefly with the aid of Hoysalas, civil war between Rajaraja and Rajendra III weakened them further. With the Hoysalas later siding with the Pandyas, the Pandyas consolidated control over the region. The Pandya empire reached its zenith in the thirteenth century CE under Jatavarman Sundara Pandyan I after he defeated the Hoysalas, the Kakatiyas and captured parts of Sri Lanka. The Pandyas ruled from their capital of Madurai and expanded trade links with other maritime empires. Venetian explorer Marco Polo mentioned the Pandyas as the richest empire in existence. The Pandyas also built a number of temples including the Meenakshi Amman Temple at Madurai. In the fourteenth century CE, the Pandyan empire was engulfed in a civil war and also faced repeated invasions by the Delhi Sultanate. In 1335, the Pandyan capital was conquered by Jalaluddin Ahsan Khan and the short-lived Madurai Sultanate was established.