Well written 👏🏽. Thank you. As a Tamilian who grew up in Bombay or Mumbai as it is known now, we spoke Tamil at home, but never exposed outside. Imagine our surprise as newly weds, living in Singapore, we experienced the same feeling you express so well in your article. My wife grew up in Chennai and is fluent in writing and speaking and reading Tamil and I, who could only speak the language and read very slowly, experienced joy, which I had not even experienced, even within India.
Well written. Full of positive energy. I have attended your wedding at Kanchi hotel in 1983 or 84. I don't remember the correct year but it is during that time. All the best. Please be safe.
Thank you for this well researched article. Size of the country, Government initiatives and density of Tamil speaking residents may have helped Tamil language flourish in Singapore.
The size of the country will make it difficult to replicate it in the US.
Excellent article Kalpana. The working class that moved Srilanka, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa and a few places to the homeland early centuries had assimilated themselves with the local people, yet could preserve their own culture, in some places frozen in time, other places growing, morphing with times and generations. SIngapore government had committed to preserve the ratio of ethnic fabric in tact and that has helped the local communities to keep the language and culture with pride. Your observations about many facets of this in Singapore are simply awe-inspiring. Loved reading it Kalpana!
I think the reason Tamil rather than Hindi was favored in SG was because the Tamils established themselves as expert port workers. As we know, SG's success is due in large part to its history as a "free" port, which the country leveraged into a vital ship repair and ship refueling spot. As a fairly new country, shipbuilders from the physically larger and generally more blue collar Tamil community would have been considered more valuable than generally more "academic" Hindus. (Side note: I have always wondered why SG lacks a significant Sikh population compared to Malaysia.)
BTW, I am also from the SF Bay Area, near San Jose, California.
Hi Kalpana, it was really fascinating to read about the Tamil life in Singapore. You mentioned that Tamils make up only a third of the Indian diaspora. Could you please help me out by letting me know the other major Indian ethnicities present? I'm not able to find amy proper data regarding this.
Well written 👏🏽. Thank you. As a Tamilian who grew up in Bombay or Mumbai as it is known now, we spoke Tamil at home, but never exposed outside. Imagine our surprise as newly weds, living in Singapore, we experienced the same feeling you express so well in your article. My wife grew up in Chennai and is fluent in writing and speaking and reading Tamil and I, who could only speak the language and read very slowly, experienced joy, which I had not even experienced, even within India.
Raghu Raghuraman
Great write up! Felt so nostalgic! Makes me want to be in chennai right now!
Missing sweet home !! nice write up K.
Well written. Full of positive energy. I have attended your wedding at Kanchi hotel in 1983 or 84. I don't remember the correct year but it is during that time. All the best. Please be safe.
Thank you for this well researched article. Size of the country, Government initiatives and density of Tamil speaking residents may have helped Tamil language flourish in Singapore.
The size of the country will make it difficult to replicate it in the US.
Excellent article Kalpana. The working class that moved Srilanka, Singapore, Malaysia, South Africa and a few places to the homeland early centuries had assimilated themselves with the local people, yet could preserve their own culture, in some places frozen in time, other places growing, morphing with times and generations. SIngapore government had committed to preserve the ratio of ethnic fabric in tact and that has helped the local communities to keep the language and culture with pride. Your observations about many facets of this in Singapore are simply awe-inspiring. Loved reading it Kalpana!
I think the reason Tamil rather than Hindi was favored in SG was because the Tamils established themselves as expert port workers. As we know, SG's success is due in large part to its history as a "free" port, which the country leveraged into a vital ship repair and ship refueling spot. As a fairly new country, shipbuilders from the physically larger and generally more blue collar Tamil community would have been considered more valuable than generally more "academic" Hindus. (Side note: I have always wondered why SG lacks a significant Sikh population compared to Malaysia.)
BTW, I am also from the SF Bay Area, near San Jose, California.
Hi Kalpana, it was really fascinating to read about the Tamil life in Singapore. You mentioned that Tamils make up only a third of the Indian diaspora. Could you please help me out by letting me know the other major Indian ethnicities present? I'm not able to find amy proper data regarding this.