In brief
Main language: Tamil. Glottolog classifies it in the Dravidian family.
Official figures from other countries
Figures from different countries do not add up: censuses define belonging differently (self-identification, citizenship, mother tongue, ancestry). The type is shown on each figure.
India · 2011
69,026,881
Category as printed: «Tamil»mother tongue
[1] Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India
Sri Lanka · 2012
2,269,266
Category as printed: «Sri Lankan Tamil»ethnicity / nationality
[2] Department of Census and Statistics, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka · 2012
839,504
Category as printed: «Indian Tamil»ethnicity / nationality
[2] Department of Census and Statistics, Sri Lanka
Languages and their lineage
Tamil
- Dravidiandrav1251
- South Dravidiansout3133
- South Dravidian Isout3138
- Tamil-Kannadatami1291
- Tamil-Kotatami1292
- Tamil-Todatami1293
- Tamil-Irulatami1294
- Tamil-Kodagutami1297
- Tamil-Malayalamtami1298
- Tamiloidtami1299
- Tamil-Paliyantami1300
- Tamiltami1289
People-to-language links: Wikidata (properties P103 and P2936), checked against ISO 639-3 codes. Language classification: Glottolog 5.3.
Peoples of the same language family
Sources
- Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Census of India 2011, Language, India, States and Union Territories (Table C-16), Statement 4. https://cdn.downtoearth.org.in/library/0.58521300_1530794876_census-of-india-2011.pdf
- Department of Census and Statistics, Sri Lanka. Population by Ethnic group and District, Census 1981, 2001, 2012 (Statistical Abstract 2024, table 2.11). https://www.statistics.gov.lk/abstract2024/CHAP2/2.11.pdf
- Hammarström H., Forkel R., Haspelmath M., Bank S. (2026). Glottolog 5.3. Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. glottolog.org (CC BY 4.0)