Tamil Nadu History: A French-Tamil Perspective

[tamilnadu]

I am a French born Tamil student brought up and living in France. I am 21.

I have just read the article "Health of the Tamil language: An American Perspective" by Mr. Gerard Pelletier [Reference 1]. I understand perfectly well what he must have felt. The first time that I came across these English words modified by Tamil pronunciation I was surprised, but not shocked in the sense that we are doing the same thing here in France. We are "borrowing" English words and adding a French accent to it. It sounds ridiculous for any English native speaker or even people like me studying English. And as Mr. Pelletier says it can be dangerous if a language looses its integrity.

One has to bear in mind that India underwent 400 years of colonization by the British. And contrary to other states such as Bengal or Punjab, Tamil Nadu came up with few martyrs like Tilak just to quote one. I know that Tamil nationalists will hate me but Tamil people were too "loyal" and "too passive" toward the British. Moreover few mutinies, rebellions took place in Tamil Nadu.

This is, according to me, one of the reasons why English language has such an undue influence on Tamil language.

I do not want to hurt anyone but this needed to be said.

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Read Dr. Thajai Nalankilli's response to this provocative letter from a Tamil born in France.

http://www.geocities.com/tamiltribune/04/0501.html[/url]