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The Tamil language is spoken by native Sri Lankan Tamils and is also spoken by Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka and by most Sri Lankan Moors. Tamil speakers number around 4.8 million (29% of the population), making it the second largest language in Sri Lanka.
- Sinhalese, One of The Official Languages of Sri Lanka
- Tamil, The Second Official Language of Sri Lanka
- Creole Languages, Minority Languages Spoken in Sri Lanka
- Foreign Languages of Sri Lanka
One of the official languages of Sri Lanka is Sinhalese. It is the Sinhalese people's native language, who total approximately 16 million. An additional 4 million speak Sinhalese as a second language. This language belongs to the Indo-European language family. Within that category, is part of the Indo-Aryan branch. It is written with the Sinhalese ...
Within Sri Lanka, there are thought to be approximately 4.7 million Tamil speakers; although worldwide, there are 70 million. The language belongs to the Dravidian language family and is one of the oldest continuously spoken classical languages in the world. Researchers have discovered writings that date back to around 500 BC and its literary works...
Besides the two official languages in Sri Lanka, several minority languages are also spoken. Sri Lankan Creole Malay is the native language of around 46,000 speakers. It is considered an Austronesian language and is made up of a mix of Sinhalese, Tamil, and Malay. The language originally developed with the arrival of Malay immigrants, who came as l...
The principal foreign language spoken on this island nation is English. It is spoken by around 10% of the population. Its primary use is for business purposes.
- Amber Pariona
Sinhala (spoken by the majority Sinhalese) and Tamil (spoken by the Tamils) are the national languages and official languages of Sri Lanka. Sinhala, the language of Sinhalese, is an Indo-European language like English, Hindi, Urdu and Persian. Tamil is a Dravidian language similar to the Tamil spoken by Tamils in Tamil Nadu in southern India.
Tamils in Sri Lanka are linguistically and culturally related to the Tamil- and Malayalam-speaking people of southern India, particularly the 70 million residents of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, just 32 kilometers miles across the Palk Strait, which separates northern Sri Lanka from southern India.
The Tamil language is spoken by native Sri Lankan Tamils and is also spoken by Indian Tamils of Sri Lanka and by most Sri Lankan Moors. Tamil speakers number around 5 million, making it the second largest language in Sri Lanka. There are more than 40,000 speakers of the Sri Lankan Malay language.
Tamils in Sri Lanka were very upset when Sinhalese-controlled government made Sinhala the official language of government affairs in 1956 and elevated it the national language in 1973, fueling tensions that ultimately led to civil war.
Tamil. Status: Official Language, National Language. Speakers: Approximately 18% of the population. Script: Tamil script. Overview: Tamil is spoken primarily by the Tamil ethnic group, which includes Sri Lankan Tamils, Indian Tamils, and a significant number of Moors (Muslims).
