Tamil is a member of the Dravidian language family, it is spoken primarily in India. It is the official language of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry (Pondicherry).
Tamil is also the official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore, it also has speakers in Malaysia, Fiji and South Africa.
As an official language of India, Tamil met three of the criteria which was an ancient origin, it has an independent tradition and it possesses a considerable body of ancient literature.
The earliest writing of Tamil is found in inscriptions dating from the 5th century BCE, Tamil has been has been distinguished in three periods, Old Tamil ( from 450 to 700 CE), Middle Tamil (700 - 1600s) and Modern Tamil from the 1600s to modern day.