Chennai Tamil
The Chennai-area variety of Tamil that forms the basis of the modern spoken standard. Tamil itself has one of the longest continuous literary traditions in the world.
Sri Lankan Tamil
Also known as: Jaffna Tamil, Eelam Tamil
The Tamil of northern and eastern Sri Lanka. Often described as more conservative than Indian Tamil, retaining several features lost in the Chennai variety.
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Frequently asked questions
What language is Sri Lankan Tamil?
Sri Lankan Tamil is a dialect of the Tamil language.
Where is Sri Lankan Tamil spoken?
Sri Lankan Tamil is primarily spoken in Sri Lanka.
Which region is Sri Lankan Tamil associated with?
Sri Lankan Tamil is part of the South Asia region on DialectAtlas.
Is Sri Lankan Tamil known by other names?
Yes — Sri Lankan Tamil is also referred to as Jaffna Tamil, Eelam Tamil.
What are the other dialects of Tamil?
Tamil also includes Standard Tamil, Madurai Tamil. Each variety has its own vocabulary, pronunciation, and cultural context.
Other Tamil dialects
See on the atlas →The Tamil of Madurai and the broader southern Tamil Nadu region. Carries a distinctive lexicon and intonation widely featured in Tamil cinema.
Nearby dialects
See on the atlas →210 km away
The Tamil of Madurai and the broader southern Tamil Nadu region. Carries a distinctive lexicon and intonation widely featured in Tamil cinema.
304 km away
An Indo-Aryan language and the majority language of Sri Lanka, descended from settlers from northern India in the 1st millennium BCE. Geographically far removed from its closest Indo-Aryan relatives.
381 km away
The Chennai-area variety of Tamil that forms the basis of the modern spoken standard. Tamil itself has one of the longest continuous literary traditions in the world.
765 km away
The Telugu of the coastal Andhra region around Vijayawada. Forms the basis of the literary standard and of much of Telugu cinema.
875 km away
The Telugu of Telangana, centred on Hyderabad. Distinguished from Coastal Telugu in lexicon and shaped by long contact with Dakhini Urdu.
942 km away
An Indo-Aryan language and the official language of the Maldives. Closest living relative of Sinhala, with which it shares a 12th-century separation date.