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Protecting the sanctity of the Tamizh language has always been a concern and cornerstone in the evolution of the Tamizh culture worldwide.

With the spread of the language extending to all four corners of the planet, the colloquial evolution of Tamizh has been subjected to dialects spoken in various parts of the world, as different languages lend to the vocabulary and slangs of spoken Tamizh in different countries.

Resulting from this evolution, Tanglish (a rough mixture between Tamizh and English) has emerged as the most spoken form of Tamizh on planet earth. With the rising spread of Tanglish, many Tamizh scholars and lovers of the language are of the opinion that this will lead to the destruction of the language completely in the years to come. However, an important question to ask would be: How much truth is there to this notion?

Observing the evolution of the language from Old Tamizh to Modern Tamizh, one thing is certain; change is the only constant on this plane of time. History stands witness, time and again, that the survival of Tamizh has always relied on the spread of the language rather than keeping to the roots of its origin. 

Like a tree, this ancient Dravidian tongue has grown from the root; pass the trunk to form many branches and eventually leaves of slangs. A prime example of this would be the situation in the Bigg Boss House in Bigg Boss Tamil Season 3, which features contestants from India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia. The Tamizh spoken by contestants from outside of India is quite different from the Tamizh that is spoken by those from the Motherland. 

However, when it comes to Tanglish in Malaysia, it is those who studied in SK schools that majorly use it compared to vernacular school graduates. Many resort to this alternative in conversations, be it online or in real life, to better express themselves due to their limited vocabulary from the Tamizh lexicon. Is this really killing the language?

In a recent poll conducted by RAAGA, a majority (52%) of Tamizh speakers voted Tanglish to be the cause of destruction of the Tamizh language. We are however choosing to sit on the fence when it comes to this for the following reasons:

1.    Languages evolve with time. No one can stop that. As a community, we can seek to continue to keep the written form of a language as close to its roots as possible. However, the same can’t be said for any language in its spoken form. All we can do is evolve along with it.

2.    To ensure the Tamizh language stays alive, shaming Tanglish speakers is not going to keep the language going. If anything at all, telling people not to speak in Tamizh if they can’t speak it ‘right’ only serves to kill the interest of those wanting to learn the language and practice speaking it.

3.    The solution to this, we believe is to continue spreading the knowledge of Tamizh by organizing free language classes for those who are interested to learn the language.

4.    Another step in the right direction would be to make learning one’s mother tongue mandatory, alongside History and Bahasa Malaysia, to count in the public examination scheme.

What are your thoughts on this? Are you in agreement or in total disagreement? Let us know your thoughts in the comments and stay tuned with RAAGA!