Culture 

And Traditions Of Tamil Nadu. ... Known to be one of the oldest civilisations in the
world, the people of Tamil Nadu belong to the prestigious Dravidian Family. Tamilians also,
like other South Indians, take much pride in their rooted Tamil culture and
make great efforts to protect their 2000 years old history.

Tamil Culture
 Tamil arts include Bharatanatyam dance, still performed in temples, south Indian classical
music, which is very complex and has its origins in the Middle Ages. The karagam is the most
common folk dance in Tamil Nadu. Dedicated to Mariamman, the goddess of health and rain, it is
performed by men with pots of uncooked rice balanced on their heads and surrounded by a tall
conical bamboo frame covered with flowers. The dance is accompanied by music from a drum
and long pipe.
 Tamil women perform three closely related dances, which are commonly performed during
festivals. The simplest is the Kummi which features dancers gathered in a circle, clapping their
hands as they dance. The Kolayyam is similar expect the dancers strike small wooden sticks
against each other instead of clapping their hands.
 Tamil temples feature large soaring towers above gateways. Large temples have tanks,
housand-pillared halls of stone, passages for circumambulating images of deities and a multitude
of sculpted images and figures, all made in accordance with ancient rule books.
 Movie stars have traditionally been held in high esteem in Tamil Nadu. Many of its leader have
been actors or actress (See Politics, Film). Village entertainment include all-night musical
narrations of the Tamil verison of the Ramayana by itinerant drama troupes. Traveling
transvestite dancers, fortunetellers and magician entertainers also travel from village to village.
Tamil has a great literary tradition but little of it has been translated. One famous verse from the
ancient Tamil poet Tiruvalluvar. goes: “With a good wife, what is lacking?/ Lacking that wife, what
is good?

Tamil Character
 Tamils have a reputation for being friendlier and more relaxed and easy going than other
Indians. They place a premium on hospitality and avoiding conflict. From an early age, Tamils
learn a large variety of emotional expressions, body language and gestures. Many Tamils enjoy
teasing another and being purposely ambiguous. In general, people from southern India have a
reputation of being friendlier and more excitable than Indians from the north.
 Paul Theroux wrote in the Great Railway Bazaar, "Tamils are also modest. Before they change
their clothes, each makes a toga of his bed sheet, and, hopping up an down, and working his
elbows, he kicks his shoes and trousers off, all the while babbling in that rippling speech.
 Tamils and people from Madras in particular are regarded as hard workers, tolerant, pragmatic,
down to earth. They tend to put their faith in science rather than idealism and greatly value
humility. Although the vast majority of them are Hindu there have been few incidents of violence
directed at Muslims.
Thamizh language dates back to 100000 B.C
It is the only language and the oldest language to having a well structured grammar -
tholkaappiam
All the letters in Tamizh have a meaning.
Kumarikandam- the lost land of lemuria , once thamizh people ruled there with
advanced civilization. ( like the Atlantis, land of Mu)
Those times literature flourished..but we lost all of our valuable literature works due to
submergence of lemuria.

What are some mind blowing facts about Tamil culture?

Sharanya Sunderamoorthy
·
Updated February 28, 2017
Lives in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

Culture is a way of life. Religious practice of moral value by ancient Tamilians is what
makes Tamil culture unique. There was only a thin line separating religion and language.
A lot of self help prose and poetry were very popular those days. As a sample, I am
going to quote Athichudi by Oovaiyar here, just to emphasize the moral code that was
deeply wound with the day to day activities of the ancient Tamilians. -அறஞ்செய விரும்பு-
first and fore most do good/dhanam where ever possible.. -ஆறுவது சினம்-try not to
loose your temper over silly things.. -இயல்வது கரவேல்-when there is a chance to help
people ,dont overlook it or try avoiding it..each and every situations, even in hardships
look out for chance where you can help others.. -ஈவது விலக்கேல்-when someone is trying
to help others ,dont try
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Is Tamil culture overrated?

Makesh Balasubramani
·
April 28, 2017
Lived in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India (2002–2016)

Yes Tamil culture has been overrated in recent days. Before going deeper into the rating
of Tamil culture let's see the minute details of Tamil and its culture how and where it
evolved in detail. * Tamil civilization has been evolved much before the Indus valley
civilization. Civilization evolved as nomadic groups settling on the banks of river with
well planned cities, irrigation systems, drainage systems and an own religion. Ever
dreamt about an industrial settlement in 3rd century BC, Tamils had such settlements in
Keezhadi, Keeladi - Wikipedia on the banks of Vaigai river, Adichanallur, Adichanallur -
Wikipedia on the banks of Thamiraparani river, and Kodumanal, on the banks of the
Noyyal river Kodumanal - Wikipediatraded beryl to Europeans from which Damascus
steel was made. * Tamils have
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What is Tamil culture?

Keerthana
·
March 23, 2018
Knows Telugu

Tamil culture is very ancient..,its prominent one is sangam literature which dates back
300 BC -300AD,which has oldest extant literature among dravidian
languages. Tamil culture is expressed in language,literature,music,dance,folk
arts,sculpture,paintings etc.., People of tamil nadu have a very strong attachment to
the tamil language,which they often refer as “Tamil annai"
-means tamil mother. Tamil cultures are expressed in
“tholkappiyam,pathupaattu,ettuthokai “etc,these are the literatures. In tamil nadu,88%
people are Hindus.they worship thier ancestors as gods.. “Pongal"is the important
festival celebrated,which is the harvest festival celebrated by farmers,tamil nadu is an
agricultural state,and so you can see varieties of cattles,and this festival is celebrated for
cow,which we people wo
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What is the difference between ancient Tamil culture and modern Tamil culture?

Vijay Kiran (விஜய் கிரண்)

·
January 31, 2019
Lived in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India (2011–2016)

Since you didn't mention what time period the word ancient signifies, we will go all the
way to the point where humans first started identifying themselves as Tamils. The first -
heavily debated - evidence for Tamilakam as a distinct culture region is culled from a
variety of text-based sources and the most important are the Sangam anthologies
written in the first few centuries AD. People started some serious writing around this
time and it marked the beginning of the most original literary and poetic works revealing
the life of Tamils. Here it goes. We had some strong rulers like the Chera, Chola, Pandya
ruling Tamil Nadu and was greatly feared by the North. While the Sangam anthologies
mainly talk about elite rulers and warriors, it still gives us a glimpse into the lives of the
common m
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Is Yoga also from Tamil culture?

Athi S Sundar
·
September 18, 2015
Into helping school drop-outs for want of money .

The root of word' Yoga' is from Tamil word 'Ogam'which means 'Udaliyal Kalai' i.e. Body
Improvement Arts . This art was practised by 'Siddha Munivars 'who were roaming in the
forests of South India perfecting the Siddha medicinal receipes roughly 5000 years
ago.Each posture was called "Nilai'in Tamil.Much deeper knowledge in the field like
'Thodu Varmam'(Touch Techniques ) are still available in Tamil Nadu and
Kerala.Patanjali ,appropriated all the Siddha knowledge and gave the present Sanskrit
names much later.'Ayurveda' also branched from 'Siddha Medicine' and term 'Ayur' is
"Ayul" in Tamil ,which means'life'. It may be noted that all elements of Indian culture are
basically from Tamil culture only. Indian history and texts often mix myths with facts a
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How old is Tamil culture?

Tamizh (தமிழ்)
·
October 29, 2018
En thaai Tamizh Naadu(My Mother land)

In my opinion, it should be at least more than 5000 years old. Carbon dating of two
samples from Keezhadi excavation site on the banks of Vaigai River in Madurai, are
indeed 2200 years old. Special attention has to be paid to the fact that the Keezhadi
exploration revealed a urban civilization with advanced city planning. Several articles
such as * Stone celts found in the trenches. These were used for sharpening tools and,
according to ASI archaeologists. * Terracotta structures depicting earlobes * Circular and
square Chola- and Pandya-period coins. * Ivory structures depicting earlobes * Chess
games made of ivory. * A copper-antimony rod and a ring, bangles and beads made of
copper. * Arrowheads made of iron and bone. * Tiny bi-conical gold beads. * Iron
implements such as forceps/thongs, nails, spearheads,knives
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What are some of the Forgotten traditions of tamil culture?

Kaviya Raj Kamaraj

·
March 20, 2019
Founder and Chief Executive Officer at TBG Bridal Wedding Store (company) (2013–present)

There are many Tamil traditions that are fading away. But, the most
important culture and tradition is “thali”. Young generations are not aware of the cultural
importance and origin of the thali. I would like to share about this in detail. The Thaali is
one of the most sacred customs of a Hindu wedding. While we call it the
‘Thirumangalyam’ in South India, it is known as the Mangalsutra in the North. Unlike
other ornaments, thaali is of great ceremonial significance. The holy thread symbolizes
the real meaning of a Hindu marriage. Source So what does the thaali stand for? The
Thirumangalyam is a mark of love, respect, and dignity and is presented to the wife by
her husband at the auspicious hour of the marriage day. But do we know where this
thaali custom originated? Let’s take a look. In the
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Tamil History from Sangam literature: When exactly was Tamil culture annexed

with Aryan Hinduism?

How is Tamil culture different in India and Malaysia?

Vidya
·
Updated December 9, 2017
Lives in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

As a frequent traveller to Tamilnadu, I have observed Tamilians are the same across both
the countries. Ancestrally it's our folks from India who migrated from small towns and
villages of Tamilnadu (mostly, there are migrants from other south states also) to
Malaysia to work, about 40–50 years ago. Today the 3rd generation and 4th generation
are continuing their lineage in Malaysia as local Malaysian Indian. Temples : Lots of
temples in Malaysia are nowadays getting constructed with the raw materials coming
from India and they also try to bring out the similar architecture as in India. The
craftsmen come from various interior Tamil Nadu regions and help in the construction of
these temples. The temple priests or 'gurukkal' also are from India by virtue of them
being studied from a Veda path
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