Tamil belongs to which ancient language family?

Question

Here is the question : TAMIL BELONGS TO WHICH ANCIENT LANGUAGE FAMILY?

Option

Here is the option for the question :

  • Latin
  • Celtic
  • Dravidian
  • Slavic

The Answer:

And, the answer for the the question is :

DRAVIDIAN

Explanation:

The Dravidian language family now consists of around 70 languages primarily located in South Asia, with origins stemming back to the second millennium BCE. In the Rigveda, remnants of over a dozen different Dravidian languages have been found (an ancient Sanskrit text from around 1500 BCE). Tolkappiyam, a work of ancient literature that dates back to some time between the first and fourth century CE, is considered to be the first known example of written Tamil.

Tamil belongs to which ancient language family?
Tamil is part of the Dravidian language family, a group of over 200 languages spoken mainly in southern India and Northeastern Pakistan. Dravidian languages are ancient, with origins predating Indo-Aryan languages like Sanskrit. They are linguistically distinct, with different vocabulary, grammar, and syntax.

The Dravidian language family gets its name from ‘Dravidam’, one of the early names for southern India. Dravidian languages descend from a common proto-Dravidian language, with linguistic divergence over thousands of years. Key branches of Dravidian languages include North Dravidian, South Dravidian, and Central Dravidian. Tamil belongs to the South Dravidian branch.

Tamil is one of the oldest and longest surviving classical languages, with a history spanning over 2000 years. It has a rich literary tradition, with works of poetry, grammar, medicine, philosophy, law and history. Important Tamil texts include Sangam literature, Tevaram hymns, philosophical works of Alvars and Nayanars, and Tirukkural.

Tamil script evolved from the Brahmi script used to write Ashoka’s edicts. It consists of 12 vowels, 18 consonants and one additional symbol. Tamil has official status as a classical language of India, with over 70 million speakers worldwide. Most Tamils live in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, South Africa and Mauritius.

The Dravidian language family and Tamil language are important for understanding ancient Indian culture and history. They represent a distinct non-Indo-Aryan cultural and linguistic heritage. The origins and development of Dravidian languages in South Asia form an important chapter of human linguistic prehistory. Study of Dravidian languages also provides insights into early agriculture, society and civilization in southern India.

Although Dravidian languages have different scripts and vocabulary, they share features like agglutination, postpositions, and a subject-object-verb word order. Tamil grammar includes eight cases, three genders, and complex rules for euphony, meter and ornamental rhetoric. Tamil culture, literature, architecture, sculpture, painting, music, dance and philosophy have also been tremendously influential.

Tamil and Dravidian languages represent a very ancient language family, distinct from the Indo-Aryan languages that would later predominate in northern India. They have a long, rich and complex history as well as culture. Although linguistically separate, Tamil and other Dravidian languages have shaped and reflected Dravidian society for millenia. They continue to thrive today as vibrant, living languages with a multitude of speakers and an immense cultural heritage.