Tamils

[SkyRider]

At least one esteem member of the Board is complaining that there are too many threads on Muslims. Ever since the defeat of the Tamil tigers in May 2009, I don't think we've had one thread about our Tamil neighbours. Note that some Tamils are also Muslims.

"Toronto(having a Tamil ethnic population of over 200,000) being the largest Tamil speaking city in the world, after Chennai.[SUP][2][/SUP][SUP][3][/SUP][SUP][4]"
[/SUP]

"Tamil Canadians have run multiple campaigns encouraging the donation of blood to the Canadian Blood Services organized by various Canadian Tamil organizations.[SUP][citation needed][/SUP]The community also undertook a recent campaign to help SickKids Hospital, which treats 100,000 children every year. These campaigns were organized by the Canadian Tamil Congress, with the support of many social and community organizations.[SUP][citation needed]"
[/SUP]I think Tamils are the largest per capita donors of blood in Canada.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamil_Canadians

 

[K Douglas]

I will certainly never condone the historical actions of the Tamil Tigers but it seems like they have graduated from being terrorist thugs to becoming somewhat civilized. Not ready to remove them from the terror watch list, let's see what the next 5-10 years bring.

 

[Twister]

When I hear of Tamils, I still remember when they blocked the highway. Seems to me Tamils are darker than mainland India? No Tamil chicks at MP?

 

[SkyRider]

Tamils have really long names.

 

[Lenny Weinrib]

Tamils have really long names.

And they talk all mumbly-like. It's not a good combination.

Remember, those we think of as Tamils are a very select bunch. The vast majority of Tamils are in/from Tamil Nadu but the vast majority of Tamils in Toronto are from Sri Lanka.

And they are typically Hindus, IIRC.

 

[basketcase]

And they talk all mumbly-like. It's not a good combination.

Remember, those we think of as Tamils are a very select bunch. The vast majority of Tamils are in/from Tamil Nadu but the vast majority of Tamils in Toronto are from Sri Lanka.

And they are typically Hindus, IIRC.

Pretty mixed religiously. I know some Muslim and Christian Tamils from Sri Lanka.

 

[basketcase]

Tamils have really long names.

Has to be one of the most informative posts so far.:faint:

 

[basketcase]

Tend to be darker skinned but not always. Like many groups, plenty are hot in their early 20's but end up looking like their moms by 30.

 

[basketcase]

Yep, Sri Lanka is a model of how people can peacefully overcome their differences.

 

[Gentlescorp]

Sri Linka used to be a very peaceful and beautiful country with lots of well educated people. They have the first woman Prime minister Bandaranaike in the world about 4 decades ago. The world in those days were very peaceful. Egypt's prime minister Anwar Sadat was another guy I admire most in my younger days. The world has changed now with all the violences.

 

[Butler1000]

What happened was the Tamils finally lost the War. They were driven right to the ocean and all the leadership and hardcore supporters of separation killed.

I think since then there have been improvements between the two cultures on the island now. And the Tamils here have chosen to settle here and become Canadian. Most of the ones here had fled the violence.

Working in restaurants back then most of the dishwashers were Sri Lankins/Tamils. The ones who spoke English would sometimes tell stories of being loaded into trucks to fight. And of Tigers here shaking down the community for money to pay for the war back home.

 

[Butler1000]

Has to be one of the most informative posts so far.:faint:

Terbs Resident Cliff Claven at his finest.......

 

[wazup]

Do their women have Tamil toes?

 

[cuttysark]

Tamils have really long names.

You mean like Stretch; Long; Eternity; Lofty; Miles etc?

 

[Samurai Joey]

Tamils have really long names.

The reason why Tamils have long names is because they do not have given names and surnames in the way that most Western societies do. Instead they follow the patronymic system, where one has a given name, followed by one's father's given name as a surname or last name.

For example, if your given name is Andrew and your father's name is John, then under the patronymic system, your name would be Andrew John, or Andrew Johnson, or Andrew Jones.

As my example above shows, many common English surnames were originally based on the patronymic system. And Icelanders to this day follow the same patronymic naming system as do Tamils, following in the traditions of their Viking ancestors.

 

[Samurai Joey]

Pretty mixed religiously. I know some Muslim and Christian Tamils from Sri Lanka.

The majority of Tamils in Sri Lanka are indeed Hindu, but there are minorities of both Christians and Muslims.

I wanted to note that Tamil Muslims in Sri Lanka are known there as Sri Lanka Moors (based on a theory that they are descended from Arab merchants/traders who intermarried with the Tamils on the island).

 

[wazup]

Hindu Nuffin?

 

[SkyRider]

Has to be one of the most informative posts so far.:faint:

Thanks for your useful post. (Sarcasm)

The reason why Tamils have long names is because they do not have given names and surnames in the way that most Western societies do. Instead they follow the patronymic system, where one has a given name, followed by one's father's given name as a surname or last name.

For example, if your given name is Andrew and your father's name is John, then under the patronymic system, your name would be Andrew John, or Andrew Johnson, or Andrew Jones.

As my example above shows, many common English surnames were originally based on the patronymic system. And Icelanders to this day follow the same patronymic naming system as do Tamils, following in the traditions of their Viking ancestors.

Thanks. I never knew the reason for their long names. One of my co-workers cosmetically truncated her name from 4 syllables down to 2 syllables.

 

[SkyRider]

What happened was the Tamils finally lost the War. They were driven right to the ocean and all the leadership and hardcore supporters of separation killed.

I think since then there have been improvements between the two cultures on the island now. And the Tamils here have chosen to settle here and become Canadian. Most of the ones here had fled the violence.

There was a bloody 26 year civil war from 1983 to 2009.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Civil_War

 

[Butler1000]

There was a bloody 26 year civil war from 1983 to 2009.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sri_Lankan_Civil_War

Thanks Cliff!