Sri Lankan Tamil slang
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Sri Lankan Tamil slang used by the Tamil minority of Sri Lanka and in the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora.
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[edit] Sri Lankan Tamil dialects
Sri Lankan Tamil dialects is a group of dialects that are distinct from Tamil dialects used in Tamil Nadu and Kerala states of India. Within Sri Lankan Tamil dialects, there are number variations. The dialect used in Jaffna is the oldest and most archaic, where as Batticaloa and surrounding area dialect is relatively closer to some Indian Tamil dialects. Dialect used in Negambo area has undergone major morphological changes due to contact with the Indo-Aryan Sinhalese language.
Tamil is a Dravidian language and exhibits a marked diglossia between the spoken and written forms. As such, it is also difficult to find instances of colloquial slang in any form of literature.
[edit] Slang and swear words
Each dialect and within each dialect; regional, class, caste, age and gender differences would lead to unique slangs and swear words. Following is a list of all potential slang by different categories up until 2006. Words that are shared with Indian Tamil dialects are marked with an asterisk(*).
Due to the effect of Kollywood cinema, many unique Indian Tamil slang are also finding their way into day to day speech of the Sri Lankan Tamils. They are not listed here.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- A study of pronouns in Batticaloa Tamil, Anthropological Linguistics (Bloomington, IN) 15, no.4 (Apr 1973) 172-182 by Prof. Suseendirarajah, S
- Jaffna Tamil by S. Suseendirarajah. ISBN 955-9194-03-8 Dewey : 494/.8117 20 LCCN : PL4759.5.J35 S87 1993 Volume Details: (v. 1) v. <1 > : maps ; 23 cm.
