Tamil Diaspora
| புலம்பெயர் தமிழர் | |
|---|---|
| Total population | |
| 4,500,000 (estimated) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 Malaysia |
~2,200,000 (approx.) |
 Myanmar |
~500,000 |
 United Kingdom |
~300,000 |
 USA |
~300,000 |
 South Africa |
~250,000 |
 Canada |
~200,000 |
 Singapore |
188,591 (2010) |
 France |
~125,000 |
|
Reunion |
~120,000 |
 Fiji |
~80,000 |
 Mauritius |
72,089 (2011) |
 Germany |
~50,000 |
 Indonesia |
~40,000 |
 Switzerland |
~40,000 |
 Australia |
~30,000 |
 Italy |
~25,000 |
 Netherlands |
~20,000 |
 Norway |
~12,000 |
 Thailand |
~10,000 |
| Languages | |
|
|
| Religion | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Dravidians | |
The Tamil diaspora refers to descendants of the Tamil immigrants who emigrated from their native lands to other parts of the world. They found primarily in Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, South Africa, Réunion, Mauritius, Europe, North America, and parts of the Caribbean.
Many of Tamil emigrants who left shores of Tamil Nadu before 18th Century and mixed with countless other ethnicities. In medieval period Tamilians emigrated as soldiers, traders and labourers settled in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and intermixed well with local population, while few communities still maintain their language and culture. Many groups still claim descent from medieval-era Tamil emigrants such as the Thigalas, Hebbars of Karnataka who have resided in Karnataka for generations have even adopted Kannada as their mother tongue, Kaikadis of Maharashtra, Chittys of Malaysia and the Sri Lankan Chetties, Bharatha people, some section of the Sri Lankan Tamils of Sri Lanka.
An early emigrant group that is not well documented is the Tamil Muslims who emigrated in considerable numbers to the Sultanate of Malacca (in present-day Malaysia) and were instrumental in spreading Islam amongst the indigenous Malays. Some are descended from immigrants from land of Arabia (Middle East), though it is not known which part of the Arab world they are from.
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Wikipedia