DOCSLIB.ORG

Standardization of Spoken Tamil, a Diglossic Language for Tamil Diaspora

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Standardization of Spoken Tamil, a Diglossic Language for Tamil Diaspora JOURNAL OF CRITICAL REVIEWS ISSN- 2394-5125 VOL 7, ISSUE 19, 2020 STANDARDIZATION OF SPOKEN TAMIL, A DIGLOSSIC LANGUAGE FOR TAMIL DIASPORA Paramasivam Muthusamy1, Rajantheran Muniandy2, N.Nadaraja Pillai3, Silllalee S.Kandasamy4, Sivapalan Govindasamy5 1The author is a Professor in the Department of Foreign Languages, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia. 2Professor, Department of Indian Studies, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Malay, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 3Lecturer Central Institute of Indian Languages (Rtd), Mysore, India. 4Assistant Professor, Department of Modern Languages, Faculty of Creative Industries, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Sungai Long Campus, Bandar Sungai Long, Cheras 43000, Kajang, Selangor 5The author is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Indian Studies, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. E-mail: [email protected], [email protected], nadarajapillai@rediffmail3 . [email protected], [email protected] ABSTRACT: Tamil is one of the oldest languages and classical languages of the world. Because of its long history of 2500 or more years of continuous existence with an unbroken chain of language of the mass for communication, it has got diversified varieties, namely, a standard spoken and a written variety or a prestigious variety, with many idiosyncratic uses of the min designated fields. Hence, Tamil is considered as a diglossia language. Diglossia refers to a situation where two language varieties occur at the same time. The Tamil diaspora, on the other hand, is a very strong and vibrant community whose presence has been found in at least 188 countries all over the world. Migration to these countries was in wave after wave in different periods, of which two dominant waves of migration were during the later Chola period and the period of English and French colonization. The Tamil diaspora, though separated by great distances, live with a life-force of oneness and togetherness along with the language and cultural features. They are deeply rooted in a common unique ancient heritage, possessing a glorious culture and distinguished language. The language use is in differentt stages, from language loss to renowned development of literature. In this context, there is a need for a common standard spoken variety to be suggested for better development of the language and communication as well. This article aims at bringing in a common standardized spoken form so that communicability and comprehensibility is maintained, which will help in the production of literature also throughout the diaspora. Since the spoken variety has crept into the educational system, standardization is inevitable. Therefore, this research has an important role to play to set a model for other languages. KEYWORDS: Tamil Diaspora, spoken Tamil, diglossic language, Phonological changes . Morphological changes I. INTRODUCTION Tamil Language Tamil is one of the oldest languages and classical languages of the world. Because of its long history of 2500 or more years of continuous existence with an unbroken chain of heritage of culture and language of written literature and the language of mass for communication, it has got diversified varieties, namely, a written variety or a prestigious variety, a standard spoken and with many idiosyncratic uses of them in designated fields. The conspicuous originality in its literary traditions and the easy access to the various texts are all unique to the Tamil Language. However, the written and spoken varieties have not changed a lot at least for a period of 1500 years (Shanmugom, 2011). Grammar like Tholkapiyam; ecological literatures like Sangam classics dealing with nature, love, valour, etc.; ethical literature like Thirukkural; outstanding epics like Silappathikaram, Manimekalai, etc., the literary wealth of the classical period and the devotional songs such as Thevaram, Thiruvaasagam, Nalayiradivya prabadam, etc., of the middle period ending 900 A.D. have contributed a lot to the development of the language and its literature (Pakkiyamary, 2008). Tamil also has a very long writing tradition with „Tamizhi‟ as the script from sixth century B, C. onwards, which is proved by the recent excavation in Keeladi, near Madurai in Tamil Nadu (Department of 40 JOURNAL OF CRITICAL REVIEWS ISSN- 2394-5125 VOL 7, ISSUE 19, 2020 Archaeology, 2019). Writing provides a way of extending human memory by imprinting information in the human brain as quickly as possible. In past centuries, scientists had used writing as one of the "markers" of civilization (Tiroumale Chetty, 1999). It is true that writing systems appear to develop in agricultural and urban cultures, but by no means is it a requirement for civilization. With a long history of literature and spoken tradition, it is but natural that varieties happen to occur in the language in due course, especially in the modern period. Tamil Diaspora Substantial number of people from many parts of the world have migrated to other countries or continents for a variety of reasons. Among these, some of them had the desire to rule over other regions to establish an extended empire, political or religious pursuit, intension to protect the business communities, the trading possibilities, forced migration of people under colonial power seeking indentured labour, a wish for a better life with improved employment, and increased prosperity, etc. Among them, Tamils form part of this migration in an unrestricted way (Asher, 2014). The Tamil diaspora is a very strong and vibrant community whose presence has been in Asia, Greece, Rome and Europe from the very early days of history, when the Tamil people developed commercial ties with various countries all over the world and these have been attested in Sangam Tamil literatures. The Tamils who had a glorious past as seafarers ventured boldly across the world (Daniel Jeyaraj, 2014) since they believed in the philosophy of the Sangam poet, Kaniyan PuungunRanaar‟s „yaadum uuree yaavarum keelir‟ „Every country is mine and all citizens are my kinsmen‟ (PuranaanuuRu, 192). Their civilizational heritage remains engrained in them despite settling in many countries of the world. Their connection with their trade with the western and eastern worlds has been documented from the pre-Christian era (Nadaraja Pillai, 2018). This early commercial trade, followed by the travel of Buddhist monks, Saivite and Vaishnavite saints to East and South-east Asia, the trade and religious domination during the Pallavas, and then the conquering of Southeast Asian countries by the mighty „later Chola‟ kings of Tamilnadu, etc., resulted in early Tamil settlements in various countries (NadarajaPillai, 2018 & Sarma, 2014). Migrations of the above type changed into contract and indentured labour migrations, in far off western countries and islands during the early colonial periods of British and the French, which especially, materialized after the abolition of slavery in the British Empire in 1834 (Kadrivel Sornum, 2016). In due course, this changed into the migration of professionals and other working groups in search of job opportunities, as well as refugees and asylum seekers owing to political and social pressures. This phenomenon, which continued over centuries on a small scale, has in the recent past resulted in mass migration with a common identity on a global level. The two countries where the Tamils are of the natives and continue using Tamil in the day-to-day communication are Tamil Nadu, India with 90% of the population and Sri Lanka, where 25% of the population speak Tamil as mother tongue (Jeevendran Chemen, 2012). Significant Tamil populations are found over a wide range of continents: 1. Asia: Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, China, Myanmar (Burma) Vietnam, Cambodia, etc. 2. Africa: South Africa, Mauritius, Réunion, etc. 3. America: Canada, United States, Guyana, etc. 4. Caribbean: The Bahamas, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Trinidad, etc. 5. Australia and New Zealand. 6. Europe: United Kingdom, Germany, France, Switzerland, Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, etc. 7. Indian Ocean: Seychelles, etc. 8. Pacific: Fiji, Philippines, Indonesia and 9. The Middle East: United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, etc. Out of these countries, Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada are some of the countries where Tamil is recognized officially in one-way or the other (Sarma, 2014). 41 JOURNAL OF CRITICAL REVIEWS ISSN- 2394-5125 VOL 7, ISSUE 19, 2020 The rich Tamil culture and spirit of oneness is a solidarity endowed with dynamism and growth, consolidated struggle, and continuous suffering. This solidarity has assumed a purpose and direction by the aspiration of a people for the future in which they and their progenies may live in equality and freedom in an emerging one-world society. The era of digital revolution has strengthened the bonds of the Tamil diaspora, developed new cultural, economic, and political togetherness, and deep-rooted kinship ties. In the era of Internet, diasporic groups started to communicate about their homeland, their national identity, their ethnic, social, cultural, linguistic identity, etc., regardless of the time and distance. The Tamil Diaspora‟s passion and love for their language and culture is fast growing and recognized as an international force. Language and culture are two facets of the same identity (Arokianathan, 2012). There are, currently estimated to be, at least one-hundred million Tamil people spread across distant seas, living in more than
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Multilingual English Users’ Linguistic Innovation
    DOI: 10.1111/weng.12457 PAPER Multilingual English users’ linguistic innovation Li Wei UCL Centre for Applied Linguistics, UCL Institute of Education, University College London, UK Abstract Can ‘non-native’ speakers of English innovate in English? This seemly Correspondence simple question bothers sociolinguists and sociolinguistic research Li Wei, UCL Institute of Education, University because we feel uncertain whether the ‘inventive’ productions by College London, London, UK. Email: [email protected] ‘non-native’ speakers should be treated as evidence of creativity or mistakes. This article aims to tackle this question from a translan- guaging perspective, using data from social media communication amongst multilingual English users in the Sinophone world. Exam- ples include a range of creative expressions that mix elements of English with those from other languages and semiotic means. A translanguaging perspective raises questions about the very notion of named languages and offers a radically different way of analysing these expressions as socio-politically meaningful linguistic innovations. The theoretical and methodological implications of the translanguaging approach for the study of linguistic innovation by multilingual language users and for the study of world Englishes are discussed. 1 INTRODUCTION The poster in Figure 1, ‘How to have a civil discourse’, was posted on 4th July 2017 by the Singaporean artist Andrea Lau on her Facebook page. Two questions: Is it in English? If yes, what kind of English? It certainly looks like English and an English reader could understand quite a bit, but crucially, not all of it. And since I have said that the creator of the poster is Singaporean, anyone who has heard of the notion of Singaporean English, or Singlish, might assume that this must be Singaporean English/Singlish.
    [Show full text]
  • The Languages of the Jews: a Sociolinguistic History Bernard Spolsky Index More Information
    Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-05544-5 - The Languages of the Jews: A Sociolinguistic History Bernard Spolsky Index More information Index Abu El-Haj, Nadia, 178 Alliance Israélite Universelle, 128, 195, 197, Afrikaans, 15, 243 238, 239, 242, 256 learned by Jews, 229 Almohads, 115 Afrikaaners forced conversions, 115 attitude to Jews, 229 Granada, 139 Afro-Asiatic persecution, 115, 135, 138 language family, 23 alphabet Agudath Israel, 252 Hebrew, 30 Yiddish, 209 Alsace, 144 Ahaz, 26, 27 became French, 196 Akkadian, 20, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30, 36, 37, expulsion, 125 39, 52 Alsace and Lorraine borrowings, 60 Jews from East, 196 Aksum, 91 al-Yahūdiyya, 85 al-Andalus, 105, 132, 133 Amarna, 19 emigration, 135 American English Jews a minority, 133 Yiddish influence, 225 Jews’ languages, 133 Amharic, 5, 8, 9, 90, 92 languages, 136 Amoraim, 60 Aleppo, 102 Amsterdam emigration, 225 Jewish publishing, 169 Jewish Diasporas, 243 Jewish settlement, 198 Jewish settlement, 243 multilingualism, 31 Alexander the Great, 46 Anglo-Israelite beliefs, 93 Alexandria, 47, 59, 103 anti-language, 44 Hebrew continuity, 48 Antiochus, 47, 56 Jews, 103 Antipas, 119 Alfonso X, 137 Antwerp Algeria, 115 Anusim, 199 consistories, 236 multilingualism, 199 emigration, 197, 236, 237 Yiddish maintained, 199 French rule, 234 Antwerpian Brabantic, 18 French schools, 236 Anusim, 132, 139, 232 Jews acquire French, 236 Algeria, 115 Vichy policy, 236 Belgium, 199 342 © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-05544-5 -
    [Show full text]
  • The Un/Selfish Leader Changing Notions in a Tamil Nadu Village
    The un/selfish leader Changing notions in a Tamil Nadu village Björn Alm The un/selfish leader Changing notions in a Tamil Nadu village Doctoral dissertation Department of Social Anthropology Stockholm University S 106 91 Stockholm Sweden © Björn Alm, 2006 Department for Religion and Culture Linköping University S 581 83 Linköping Sweden This book, or parts thereof, may be reproduced in any form without the permission of the author. ISBN 91-7155-239-1 Printed by Edita Sverige AB, Stockholm, 2006 Contents Preface iv Note on transliteration and names v Chapter 1 Introduction 1 Structure of the study 4 Not a village study 9 South Indian studies 9 Strength and weakness 11 Doing fieldwork in Tamil Nadu 13 Chapter 2 The village of Ekkaraiyur 19 The Dindigul valley 19 Ekkaraiyur and its neighbours 21 A multi-linguistic scene 25 A religious landscape 28 Aspects of caste 33 Caste territories and panchayats 35 A village caste system? 36 To be a villager 43 Chapter 3 Remodelled local relationships 48 Tanisamy’s model of local change 49 Mirasdars and the great houses 50 The tenants’ revolt 54 Why Brahmans and Kallars? 60 New forms of tenancy 67 New forms of agricultural labour 72 Land and leadership 84 Chapter 4 New modes of leadership 91 The parliamentary system 93 The panchayat system 94 Party affiliation of local leaders 95 i CONTENTS Party politics in Ekkaraiyur 96 The paradox of party politics 101 Conceptualising the state 105 The development state 108 The development block 110 Panchayats and the development block 111 Janus-faced leaders? 119
    [Show full text]
  • “Lost in Translation”: a Study of the History of Sri Lankan Literature
    Karunakaran / Lost in Translation “Lost in Translation”: A Study of the History of Sri Lankan Literature Shamila Karunakaran Abstract This paper provides an overview of the history of Sri Lankan literature from the ancient texts of the precolonial era to the English translations of postcolonial literature in the modern era. Sri Lanka’s book history is a cultural record of texts that contains “cultural heritage and incorporates everything that has survived” (Chodorow, 2006); however, Tamil language works are written with specifc words, ideas, and concepts that are unique to Sri Lankan culture and are “lost in translation” when conveyed in English. Keywords book history, translation iJournal - Journal Vol. 4 No. 1, Fall 2018 22 Karunakaran / Lost in Translation INTRODUCTION The phrase “lost in translation” refers to when the translation of a word or phrase does not convey its true or complete meaning due to various factors. This is a common problem when translating non-Western texts for North American and British readership, especially those written in non-Roman scripts. Literature and texts are tangible symbols, containing signifed cultural meaning, and they represent varying aspects of an existing international ethnic, social, or linguistic culture or group. Chodorow (2006) likens it to a cultural record of sorts, which he defnes as an object that “contains cultural heritage and incorporates everything that has survived” (pg. 373). In particular, those written in South Asian indigenous languages such as Tamil, Sanskrit, Urdu, Sinhalese are written with specifc words, ideas, and concepts that are unique to specifc culture[s] and cannot be properly conveyed in English translations.
    [Show full text]
  • The Status of Arabic in the United States of America Post 9/11 and the Impact on Foreign Language Teaching Programs
    Advances in Language and Literary Studies ISSN: 2203-4714 Vol. 5 No. 3; June 2014 Copyright © Australian International Academic Centre, Australia The Status of Arabic in the United States of America post 9/11 and the Impact on Foreign Language Teaching Programs Abdel-Rahman Abu-Melhim Department of English Language and Literature Irbid University College, Al-Balqa' Applied University, Al-Salt, Jordan 19117 E-mail: [email protected] Doi:10.7575/aiac.alls.v.5n.3p.70 Received: 06/04/2014 URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.7575/aiac.alls.v.5n.3p.70 Accepted: 13/05/2014 This work has been carried out during sabbatical leave granted to the author, (Abdel-Rahman Abu-Melhim), from Al-Balqa' Applied University, (BAU), during the academic year 2013/2014. Abstract This study aims at investigating the status of Arabic in the United States of America in the aftermath of the 9/11 World Trade Center events. It delves into this topic and identifies the main reasons for the increased demand for learning Arabic. It also determines the impact of the renewed interest in Arabic on foreign language teaching programs. Furthermore, the study identifies the main Arabic language programs established in the U.S. after the events of 9/11, 2001 at various institutions of higher education. The process of data collection relied primarily on information and statistics provided by several authorized professional linguistic organizations based in the U.S. as well as a number of telephone interviews conducted by the researcher. Since September 11, 2001, Arabic language teaching and learning has become the focus of much more attention from the educational community in the United States.
    [Show full text]
  • Funding Peace and Dignity a Response to HRW Report "Funding the Final War"
    “..The will of the Tamil Diaspora to stay on track to sup- port the LTTE and other life-saving institutions includ- ing the TRO, never needed any coercion. To them, it is voluntary, obligatory and spontaneous; moral and spiri- tual; it is an ongoing process.. A canadian Tamil Rally Funding Peace and Dignity A Response to HRW report "Funding the final war" International Federation of Tamils Geneva - [email protected] he International Federation Of Tamils, IFT, wishes to assure the TTamil diaspora at the very outset itself that it could be proud of its determined and continued dedication to sustain the healthy exis- tence of the Tamil community in Sri Lanka for over two decades. Jo Becker Report - “Funding the Final war”(dt.15.03.06) - using the high pedestal of Human Rights Watch, a great organisation, to hurl abuse and insult at the Tamil diaspora as a nation responding to LTTE demands out of fear, need not hurt its susceptibilities as a freedom-llov- ing breed. Tamil’s rally in Greater Toronto city; Over 50 000 Tamil people gathered to show their strength and support to Tamil struggle At the dawn of the twenty first century, there's no nation in the world other than the Tamil diaspora that knows more the value of peace and freedom, independence, fear of oppression, persecution, the loss of loved ones, loss of home and uprooting from one's own tra- ditional homeland and yearns more for freedom from intimidation, whether from friend or foe. Tamils who fled their country had a shaky start in cocoons of limbo called refugee camps in whatever country they found refuge.
    [Show full text]
  • Language Ideologies, Schooling and Islam in Qatar
    Language in the Mirror: Language Ideologies, Schooling and Islam in Qatar Rehenuma Asmi Submitted in partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Doctorate of Philosophy under the executive committee of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 2013 © 2013 Rehenuma Asmi All rights reserved ABSTRACT Language in the Mirror: Language Ideologies, Schooling and Islam Rehenuma Asmi My study explores language ideologies in the capital city of Doha, Qatar, where school reform movements are placing greater emphasis on English language acquisition. Through ethnography and a revised theory of language ideologies, I argue that as languages come in greater contact in multi-lingual spaces, mediation must occur between the new and old relationships that are emerging as a result of population growth, policy changes and cross-cultural interactions. I interrogate the development concept of the “knowledge economy” as it is used to justify old and new language ideologies regarding Arabic and English. As Qataris change their education systems in response to the economic development framework of the “knowledge economy,” they are promoting language ideologies that designate English as useful for the economy and “global” citizenship and Qatari Arabic and Standard Arabic as useful for religious and cultural reasons. I argue that Standard English, through its association with the “knowledge economy,” becomes “de-localized” and branded an “international” language. This ideology presents English as a modern language free of the society in which it is embedded, to circulate around the globe. In contrast, Standard Arabic is represented as stiff, archaic language of religious traditions and Qatari Arabic is presented as the language of oral culture and ethnonationalism.
    [Show full text]
  • Engaging the Tamil Diaspora in Peace-Building Efforts in Sri Lanka Michael Potters
    Undergraduate Transitional Justice Review Volume 1 | Issue 3 Article 5 2010 Engaging the Tamil Diaspora in Peace-Building Efforts in Sri Lanka Michael Potters Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/undergradtjr Recommended Citation Potters, Michael (2010) "Engaging the Tamil Diaspora in Peace-Building Efforts in Sri Lanka," Undergraduate Transitional Justice Review: Vol. 1 : Iss. 3 , Article 5. Available at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/undergradtjr/vol1/iss3/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in Undergraduate Transitional Justice Review by an authorized editor of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Potters: Engaging the Tamil Diaspora in Peace-Building Efforts in Sri Lank ENGAGING THE TAMIL DIASPORA IN PEACE-BUILDING EFFORTS IN SRI LANKA Michael Potters Refugees who have fled the conflict in Sri Lanka have formed large diaspora communities across the globe, forming one of the largest in Toronto, Canada. Members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have infiltrated these communities and elicited funding from its members, through both coercion and consent, to continue the fight in their home country. This paper will outline the importance of including these diaspora communities in peace-building efforts, and will propose a three-tier solution to enable these contributions. On the morning of October 17, 2009, Canadian authorities seized the vessel Ocean Lady off the coast of British Columbia, Canada. The ship had entered Canadian waters with 76 Tamil refugees on board, fleeing persecution and violence in the aftermath of Sri Lanka’s long and violent civil war.
    [Show full text]
  • The Dravidian Languages
    THE DRAVIDIAN LANGUAGES BHADRIRAJU KRISHNAMURTI The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, United Kingdom The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 2RU, UK 40 West 20th Street, New York, NY 10011–4211, USA 477 Williamstown Road, Port Melbourne, VIC 3207, Australia Ruiz de Alarc´on 13, 28014 Madrid, Spain Dock House, The Waterfront, Cape Town 8001, South Africa http://www.cambridge.org C Bhadriraju Krishnamurti 2003 This book is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2003 Printed in the United Kingdom at the University Press, Cambridge Typeface Times New Roman 9/13 pt System LATEX2ε [TB] A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 0521 77111 0hardback CONTENTS List of illustrations page xi List of tables xii Preface xv Acknowledgements xviii Note on transliteration and symbols xx List of abbreviations xxiii 1 Introduction 1.1 The name Dravidian 1 1.2 Dravidians: prehistory and culture 2 1.3 The Dravidian languages as a family 16 1.4 Names of languages, geographical distribution and demographic details 19 1.5 Typological features of the Dravidian languages 27 1.6 Dravidian studies, past and present 30 1.7 Dravidian and Indo-Aryan 35 1.8 Affinity between Dravidian and languages outside India 43 2 Phonology: descriptive 2.1 Introduction 48 2.2 Vowels 49 2.3 Consonants 52 2.4 Suprasegmental features 58 2.5 Sandhi or morphophonemics 60 Appendix. Phonemic inventories of individual languages 61 3 The writing systems of the major literary languages 3.1 Origins 78 3.2 Telugu–Kannada.
    [Show full text]
  • GRAMMAR of OLD TAMIL for STUDENTS 1 St Edition Eva Wilden
    GRAMMAR OF OLD TAMIL FOR STUDENTS 1 st Edition Eva Wilden To cite this version: Eva Wilden. GRAMMAR OF OLD TAMIL FOR STUDENTS 1 st Edition. Eva Wilden. Institut français de Pondichéry; École française d’Extrême-Orient, 137, 2018, Collection Indologie. halshs- 01892342v2 HAL Id: halshs-01892342 https://halshs.archives-ouvertes.fr/halshs-01892342v2 Submitted on 24 Jan 2020 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. GRAMMAR OF OLD TAMIL FOR STUDENTS 1st Edition L’Institut Français de Pondichéry (IFP), UMIFRE 21 CNRS-MAE, est un établissement à autonomie financière sous la double tutelle du Ministère des Affaires Etrangères (MAE) et du Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS). Il est partie intégrante du réseau des 27 centres de recherche de ce Ministère. Avec le Centre de Sciences Humaines (CSH) à New Delhi, il forme l’USR 3330 du CNRS « Savoirs et Mondes Indiens ». Il remplit des missions de recherche, d’expertise et de formation en Sciences Humaines et Sociales et en Écologie dans le Sud et le Sud- est asiatiques. Il s’intéresse particulièrement aux savoirs et patrimoines culturels indiens (langue et littérature sanskrites, histoire des religions, études tamoules…), aux dynamiques sociales contemporaines, et aux ecosystèmes naturels de l’Inde du Sud.
    [Show full text]
  • Between Convergence and Divergence: Reformatting Language Purism in the Montreal Tamil Diasporas
    ᭿ Sonia Neela Das UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN Between Convergence and Divergence: Reformatting Language Purism in the Montreal Tamil Diasporas This article examines how ideologies of language purism are reformatted by creating inter- discursive links across spatial and temporal scales. I trace convergences and divergences between South Asian and Québécois sociohistorical regimes of language purism as they pertain to the contemporary experiences of Montreal’s Tamil diasporas. Indian Tamils and Sri Lankan Tamils in Montreal emphasize their status differences by claiming that the former speak a modern “vernacular” Tamil and the latter speak an ancient “literary” Tamil. The segregation and purification of these social groups and languages depend upon the intergen- erational reproduction of scalar boundaries between linguistic forms, interlocutors, and decentered contexts. [Tamils, Quebec, diaspora, linguistic purism, spatiotemporal scales] ontreal is situated within the Canadian province of Quebec, a self- identifying francophone nation that seeks to be recognized as a “distinct Msociety” within North America1 (Lemco 1994). This society’s ever-present fear of being engulfed by a demographically expanding, English-speaking populace has contributed to a heightened level of metalinguistic awareness among French- speaking Québécois citizens. For the residents of Montreal, this metalinguistic aware- ness appears to be even more acute. Often characterized by scholars, politicians, and media as an inassimilable, globalizing element located within the otherwise
    [Show full text]
  • Identity and Language of Tamil Community in Malaysia: Issues and Challenges
    DOI: 10.7763/IPEDR. 2012. V48. 17 Identity and Language of Tamil Community in Malaysia: Issues and Challenges + + + M. Rajantheran1 , Balakrishnan Muniapan2 and G. Manickam Govindaraju3 1Indian Studies Department, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2Swinburne University of Technology, Sarawak, Malaysia 3School of Communication, Taylor’s University, Subang Jaya, Malaysia Abstract. Malaysia’s ruling party came under scrutiny in the 2008 general election for the inability to resolve pressing issues confronted by the minority Malaysian Indian community. Some of the issues include unequal distribution of income, religion, education as well as unequal job opportunity. The ruling party’s affirmation came under critical situation again when the ruling government decided against recognising Tamil language as a subject for the major examination (SPM) in Malaysia. This move drew dissatisfaction among Indians, especially the Tamil community because it is considered as a move to destroy the identity of Tamils. Utilising social theory, this paper looks into the fundamentals of the language and the repercussion of this move by Malaysian government and the effect to the Malaysian Indians identity. Keywords: Identity, Tamil, Education, Marginalisation. 1. Introduction Concepts of identity and community had been long debated in the arena of sociology, anthropology and social philosophy. Every community has distinctive identities that are based upon values, attitudes, beliefs and norms. All identities emerge within a system of social relations and representations (Guibernau, 2007). Identity of a community is largely related to the race it represents. Race matters because it is one of the ways to distinguish and segregate people besides being a heated political matter (Higginbotham, 2006).
    [Show full text]