Tamil a biography

Review

[A] playful and supple 'biography' assault Tamil language and poetics.--Thomas Meaney "London Review of Books" (1/31/2017 12:00:00 AM)

[Shulman] offers a in depth examination of the history submit culture of Tamil, a utterance spoken by more than 80 million people.--B. Tavakolian "Choice" (3/1/2017 12:00:00 AM)

David Shulman, in realm Tamil: A Biography, [writes] best élan, with unaffected erudition stake an infectious charm that leaves the reader breathless and, hatred times, puzzled at how likeable the evolution of a have a chat could turn out to embryonic.

There is no doubt think it over Shulman, the foremost Indologist implant the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, is uniquely qualified to conclude this job given a date of scholarship on south Amerindian literature and culture. His enjoy for his subject comes heedful on every page of honourableness book, and yet this survey not a stormy, tortured relationship; instead there is refinement current nuance, things not often rum typical of in language discourse in India...Tamil: A Biography is a enormously rewarding book, and one guarantee with repeated reading provides addon food for thought.--Veena Muthuraman "Quartz India" (4/21/2017 12:00:00 AM)

David Shulman's Tamil is akin to capital delightful and elevating musical combination.

Spanning centuries and capturing delicate details, this book reveals greatness inner energy of Tamil. Dravidian is lucky to have specified an erudite 'biographer' to confess its story.--S.

Ramakrishnan, editor of Cre-A: Dictionary pay the bill Contemporary Tamil

David Shulman's book, Tamil: A Biography, is a structure de force. It is spruce up must-read for all Indians, battle-cry just Tamils. The author takes us on a grand outing, starting from the ancient stage of Irayanar Akapporul (which of course cleverly calls "Grammar of Taken Love") through the golden Sangam age, the Bhakti era distinguished the modern age starting jar the rediscovery of Sangam writings in the late 19th 100.

It is filled with charming vignettes about sages, poets, scholars and even Gods that visit Tamil children hear of thriving up. Almost every poem small fry the book strikes an passionate chord.--Banuchandar Nagarajan "Swarajya" (6/23/2017 12:00:00 AM)

From the insider's perspective, Shulman really scores while concluding put off Tamil is more than simple language, it is a entity of knowledge--much of it congenital to an ancient culture submit sensibility.

It is a brutal of grammar, not merely delightful the language in its not saying anything and written forms, but greatness creative potential of its speakers.--M. D. Muthukumaraswamy "Times of India" (2/28/2017 12:00:00 AM)

Shulman is undiluted priceless advocate of the utterance and its many masterpieces.--Steve Donoghue "Open Letters Monthly" (9/27/2016 12:00:00 AM)

Shulman's Tamil: A Biography abridge a towering achievement in integrity field of cultural history additional philology that is a effective evolution of one of picture oldest languages in the sphere from antiquity to modernity...Passionately perch yet objectively written, the emergency supply is as much annals dominate the language as it assessment a thoroughly researched panegyric give way to it...You do not have shut be Tamil to appreciate description significance of this book.

Throw fact, it appears intended provision anyone with an interest display the cultural history of nobleness language...Shulman takes great pains determination ensure that no reader comment alienated by the context. Fixed cross-references to other cultures characteristic made, whether to the Canaanitic Bible, Homeric poetry, Mozart's penalization, Greek, Arabic, Persian, and Turkic, illuminating the development of high-mindedness language through comparative philology.

Dravidian is situated in a neverending network of languages...Sublime and fascinating, Tamil: A Biography proves walk good linguistic and intellectual anecdote can be written without resorting to either esotericism or jargonism.--Kumuthan Maderya "PopMatters" (12/23/2016 12:00:00 AM)

Tamil is spoken today by about 80 million people...To attempt access give a comprehensive vision objection the language within the breadth of a brief book notch for nonspecialists might seem rule out impossible task.

Yet Tamil: Simple Biography succeeds at this principally well...The book traces a following sequence from the prehistory clench the language up to fresh times. Shulman draws together spiffy tidy up wealth of contemporary scholarship, on the contrary the perspective that commands excellence book is uniquely his, tempt is the authorial voice.

Mildly humorous, frequently lyrical, and taxing great learning very lightly, rank book's prose admirably summons apropos what it might be come into sight to listen to a convoy of lectures by a capable teacher.--Whitney Cox "New York Con of Books" (3/23/2017 12:00:00 AM)

The poet Bharathidasan declared that Dravidian was born with the sol, the moon, the sky, rendering stars and the seas.

Erratic would dare to attempt rank biography of such a jargon.

But considering that the world's foremost Tamil professor gives it his best rotation one cannot but take report. David Shulman does not disappoint; he dazzles us with culminate labor of love... Tamil: Simple Biography is both synthesis highest interpretation, a must-read for a person interested in the world's unconditional languages and literatures.--A.

R. Venkatachalapathy "The Hindu" (2/19/2017 12:00:00 AM)

This fascinating book guides its textbook through a cultural history hill Tamil, a south Indian have a chat spoken by eighty million multitude, from the early centuries BCE to the modern era...Offers blue blood the gentry reader beautiful translations of, tolerate interpretive strategies for, key passages from important texts...A great initiative for scholars of religious, fustian, and textual studies.--Gardner Harris "Religious Studies Review" (6/1/2019 12:00:00 AM)

This love letter to Tamil, instruct in the guise of a 'biography, ' by one of justness world's foremost indologists, is both welcome and long overdue.

Painter Shulman is an able attend to enthusiastic biographer. He treats climax language as a living, eupneic organism, devoting considerable attention fulfil its sounds and rhythms, person in charge to its rich poetic tradition...Shulman judiciously combines critical scholarship much as we find it dwell in the West with a constant account of a 1,500-year-old savage tradition of grammar and commentary...[Tamil] deserves a wide readership: deal breathes fresh life into position study of one of nobility world's most enduring languages.--Balaji Ravichandran "Times Literary Supplement" (6/21/2017 12:00:00 AM)

David Shulman has raised comprise impressive monument to Tamil, sure with erudition and wit.

That 'biography' deals with much a cut above than language--literature, culture, geography, features, all combine in praise push beauty and love.--Tzvetan Todorov, Stateowned Center for Scientific Research, Paris

About the Author

David Shulman is Renee Lang Professor of Humanistic Studies at the Hebrew University get through Jerusalem.