Sri Lankan Tamil | |
---|---|
Native to | Sri Lanka |
Ethnicity | Sri Lankan Tamils |
Native speakers | 2 million[citation needed] (2012 census) |
Early forms | |
Dialects | |
Tamil script, Vatteluttu | |
Language codes | |
ISO 639-3 | – |
Glottolog | sril1244 |
The Sri Lankan Tamil dialects or Ceylon Tamil or commonly in Tamil language Eelam Tamil (Tamil: ஈழத் தமிழ், īḻat tamiḻ) are a group of Tamil dialects used in Sri Lanka by its native Tamil speakers that is distinct from the dialects of Tamil spoken in Tamil Nadu. It is broadly categorized into three sub groups: Jaffna Tamil, Batticaloa Tamil, and Negombo Tamil dialects. But there are a number of sub dialects within these broad regional dialects as well. These dialects are also used by ethnic groups other than Tamils and Muslims such as Sinhalese people, Portuguese Burghers and the indigenous Coastal Vedda people.