The Department of Tamil is one of the oldest departments of the University of Peradeniya. The eminent Tamil scholar Swami Vipulananda was appointed as the first Professor of Tamil in 1943. He was succeeded by Professor K.Kanapathippillai who was the head of the department from 1947 to 1965. Prof. Kanapathipillai laid a strong foundation for Tamil studies at Peradeniya. After Prof. Kanapathipillai��s retirement, the Chair and Headship in Tamil was held successively by Professors V. Chelvanayakam, S.Vidyanandan, A. Veluppillai, A. Sathasivam, and S. Thillainathan. During this period the Department of Tamil developed into a reputed center of Tamil studies in Sri Lanka as well as in South Asia
Introduction to the Tamil Language and Writing Skills in Tamil
This course is intended to introduce to students the various aspects of the Tamil language and to develop the student��s skills in writing the Tamil language effectively. Course topics include: the distinctive features of human language, Tamil as a transnational language, dialect variations, Tamil diglossia, stylistic variations, and aspects of sentence formation and effective writing.
Introduction to Tamil Literature
This course is an introduction to Tamil literature in its socio-historical background. Course topics include: Literature as a verbal art; Literature, society and culture; Tamil literary history; Classical Tamil literature; Epic poetry in Tamil; Islamic and Christian Tamil literature; Modernization and the Tamil literary tradition; Modern Tamil poetry and fiction; and Tamil literature in a global context.
Grammar of Modern Tamil��Phonology and Morphology
This course deals with the phonological and morphological structure of modern literary Tamil in detail. It is a compulsory course for special and general degree students. Course topics include: Tamil phonetics and phonology; Noun and verb morphology; The adjective; The adverb; Particles; and Morphophonemics.
The Development of Modern Tamil Poetry
This course deals with the development of modern Tamil poetry in Tamilnadu and Sri Lanka in its socio-historical perspective. Course topics include: Definition of modern poetry; Origin and development of modern Tamil poetry; The impact of the Freedom Movement; The impact of the Dravidian movement and the Marxist movement on the development of modern Tamil poetry; and The modern Tamil poetry of Sri Lanka.
Practical Criticism and Literary Appreciation
This course deals with the principles of literary criticism and literary appreciation, with the aim of (among other things) developing critical approaches among the students. Course topics include: An introduction to literary criticism; Principles of literary criticism; and Aspects of the practical criticism of poetry and fiction.
The Short Story in Tamil��Its Origin and Development
This course aims to provide a detailed account of the development of the short story in Tamil in Tamilnadu and Sri Lanka. Course topics include: A brief outline of short stories in general; The pioneers of the Tamil short story; The Freedom Movement and the Tamil short story; The Tamil short story after Independence; and The Tamil short story in Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Singapore.
Modern Tamil Syntax
This course provides a detailed account of modern Tamil syntax with special reference to literary Tamil. Course topics include: An introduction to syntax, syntactic categories, syntactic constructions, the structure of simple and complex sentences, sentential co-ordination and subordination, anaphora in Tamil syntax, and cleft sentence formation.
Landmarks in the Development of the Tamil Novel
This course deals with the development of the Tamil novel in Tamilnadu and Sri Lanka in its socio-historical background. Major authors and their works will be dealt with. Course topics include: The origin of the novel in Tamil; The Tamil novel after Independence; Historical and regional novels in Tamil; and Translations and adaptations.
Tamil Drama and Theatre
This course provides a detailed account of the origin and development of drama and theatre in Tamilnadu and Sri Lanka. Course topics include: Concepts of drama and theatre; A brief history of drama and theatre in Tamil; Folk theatre in Tamil; and Translations and adaptations.
Folk Literature and Folk Literary Studies in Tamil
This course deals with Tamil folk literature and folk literary studies in Tamil. Course topics include: The concept of folklore and folk literature; The history of folk literary studies; Folklore theories; Folk literary forms; and Field methods in folk literary studies.
Cankam Poetry and Poetics
This course deals with classical Tamil poetry and poetical tradition through a study of selected texts from eight anthologies and ten longer poems of the Cankam Period. The conventions of Akam and Puram poems and their sociohistorical background will be studied in detail. Course content: An introduction to the Cankam period and Cankam literature��Cankam legend; The Cankam period as a heroic age and the conditions of this period; The corpus of Cankam poems (Ettuttokai and Pattuppattu); The process of anthologization and the problems of periodization; The twofold division of Cankam poetry (Akam and Puram); The conventions of Cankam poetry (style, diction, metrical system, and the division of land and time to suit the experiences expressed); Life, political and social conditions, customs and beliefs portrayed in Cankam poetry; A study of selected Akam and Puram lyrics; and Modern studies in Cankam poetry and poetics.
Modern Literary and Critical Theories
The course introduces students to literary and critical theories dominant in contemporary literary discourse.
Didactic Literature in Tamil
This course deals mainly with the origin and development of didactic literature in Tamil during the Post-Sangam Period, through the study of selected