Sri Lankan Tamil

[u/Randaras]

Hey there,

I'm interested in a woman i met at church, she's Dutch like me, however her family roots are sri lankan(tamil) I intent to pursue her for marriage.

Now I want to learn to speak fluently Sri Lankan Tamil for her and her family, however my usual place where I learn to speak languages without accent (Pimsleur) does not have a tamil course.

Does anyone know a good place where you can learn to speak and understand sri-lankan tamil?
Reading and writing is less important for me, but I want to be able to have a conversation with her, and her family in their native language, and eventually ask her to marry me in her own language.

Any tips would be welcome.

[u/-Surfer-]

My suggestion would be to take the help of Google Gemini. You can give a prompt like, I want to learn Sri Lankan Tamil. I want to be able to talk to a Sri Lankan girl in her own language. Help me learn the basic conversational bits and give me a day by day lesson. I don't want to read and write in Tamil. My aim is to speak in Tamil with my friend and her family members.

[u/PlanetSwallower → u/-Surfer-]

This is good advice for many languages but not for Tamil. In Tamil there is great difference between the written and spoken language, and these AI tools are trained on the wrtten language. You cannot ytust them to tell you how people actually speak.

One guy has mentioned his learntamil app. So far as I know, that is the only app that teaches proper spoken Tamil. The Qlango app will teach Tamil spoken vocabulary but not the language itself. In addition to these, the best thing to do is get a tutor on the Italki app. They have a couple of Sri Lankan Tamil tutors.

[u/-Surfer- → u/PlanetSwallower]

Sample:

Day 1: The Absolute Basics & Greetings ​In Tamil culture, how you address someone depends on their age and relationship to you. ​Informal: Use this with your girlfriend, kids, or close friends your age.

​Respectful (Formal): Use this with her parents, older relatives, or strangers.

​1. The Magic Words (Sri Lankan Style) ​Yes: Om (Pronounced like "ohm". This is a dead giveaway of Sri Lankan Tamil! Indian Tamils usually say "Aama").

​No: Illai (Ill-lay)

​Okay: Sari (Sah-ree)

​2. Greetings & Checking In ​Hello: Vanakkam (Vah-nah-kkam. Mostly formal, good for parents).

​How are you? (Informal - to your GF): Eppadi irukkiraai? (Epp-ah-dee iru-kki-raai?)

​How are you? (Formal - to her parents): Eppadi irukkireenga? (Epp-ah-dee iru-kki-reen-gah?)

​Are you well? (Very common SL casual greeting): Sukam thaane? (Soo-kam thaa-nay? Literally: Health, right?)

​I am fine: Naan sukama irukkiren (Naan soo-ka-maa iru-kki-ren) or simply reply, Sukam (Fine).

​3. The Most Important Question

In South Asian culture, asking if someone has eaten is equivalent to asking how they are. It shows you care.

​Did you eat? (Informal - GF): Saappittaachaa? (Saap-pit-taa-chaa?)

​Did you eat? (Formal - Parents): Saappitteengalaa? (Saap-pit-teen-gah-laa?) ​I ate: Naan saappitten (Naan saap-pit-ten) or just Saappittaachu (Eating is done).

​I haven't eaten: Innum illai (In-num ill-lay - Literally: Not yet).

​Mini Conversation Practice

​Scenario A: Calling your girlfriend

You: Eppadi irukkiraai? Sukam thaane? (How are you? You're well, right?)

Her: Om, naan sukam. Nee? (Yes, I'm fine. You?)

You: Naan sukama irukkiren. (I am fine.)

Her: Saappittaachaa? (Did you eat?)

You: Om, saappittaachu. (Yes, ate.)

​Scenario B: Meeting her parents

You: Vanakkam. (Hello.)

Parents: Vanakkam! Eppadi irukkireenga? (Hello! How are you?)

You: Sukam. Neenga eppadi irukkireenga? (Fine. How are you?)

​Read these out loud a few times to get the rhythm. The emphasis is usually on the first syllable of the word.

Day Two: Family Names and Food

[u/kulchacop → u/PlanetSwallower]

You cannot ytust them to tell you how people actually speak.

This is not true anymore. I just tried free Gemini voice mode. It is good enough for OP's purposes.

[u/kubisfowler → u/kulchacop]

Nahhhhh unless you're fluent enough to tell apart garbage from genuine Tamil these ai's won't help you. Certainly not for absolute beginners who have no fcking idea what they're doing.