Tamil is one of the very few classical languages in the world spoken by approximately 80 million people globally and has one of the oldest literary and written traditions with traceable beginnings to over 4,500 years.
Tamil literature represents a robust culture and tradition of a language and people providing a blueprint of human civilization.
Despite many foreign occupations of the Tamil country and other outside influences over the Melania the Tamil language and its vibrant tradition have survived through to the modern world since its beginning.
Tamil literature amounts to rich political and social history and has accorded with a prestigious recognition as one of the seven classic languages in the world, alongside Greek, Sanskrit, Latin, Hebrew, Persian, and Chinese.
It holds official language status in Tamil Nadu in India, Sri Lanka, and Singapore, and has significant numbers of speakers in Malaysia, Mauritius, Fiji, and South Africa.
In recent times, there has been an influx by thousands of Tamils who have migrated to the UK, Canada, USA, Australia, and many parts of Western Europe creating one of the largest groups of diasporas.
