The People’s Linguistic Survey of India provides an overview of the extant and dying languages of India. It is the culmination of a nationwide survey of languages that has been documented by linguists, writers, social activists, and members of different speech communities.

Volume 27, Part 1 (Hindi) documents the languages prevalent in the state of Tamil Nadu in Hindi. Critically, the book encapsulates the world view of the speakers of the discussed languages.

Bharatiya Bhasha Lok Sarvekshan: Tamilnadu ki Bhashayen (The Languages of Tamil Nadu) brings to the readers a wealth of information on Tamil, as also the languages spoken by other speech communities like Saurashtri and Thanjavur Marathi. It also provides a detailed study of scheduled languages such as Telugu and Malayalam and discusses linguistic features as well as literature. It also documents the languages of tribes like the Irula and Toda and nomadic communities such as Narikkuravar, many of whom are on the verge of extinction. 

The Editors

Ganesh Devy is the chief editor of the PLSI series. He taught at the Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda, till 1996 before leaving to set up the Bhasha Research Centre in Baroda and the Adivasi Academy at Tejgadh, where he worked towards conserving and promoting the languages and culture of indigenous and nomadic communities. Apart from being awarded the Padma Shree, he has received many awards for his work in literature and language conservation.

V. Gnanasundaram is former Professor cum Deputy Director of CIIL, Mysore. He has had a long and successful career in the field of linguistics and has worked primarily on endangered tribal languages. He has conducted a survey of indigenous mother tongues spoken in the tribal communities of Tamil Nadu. He has several publications to his credit.

K. Rangan is former Professor and Head of the Department of Linguistics, Tamil University, Thanjavur. His research interests include phonology and sociolinguistics. He has been a visiting scientist at the Department of Linguistics, MIT. He has publications in both English and Tamil.

The Translator

M. Gnanam is the chairman of Gandhi Mandram, Chidambaram, and a retired Regional Director and Professor at the Central Institute of Hindi, Mysore. He has published several  books in various languages.

विषयानुक्रम     CONTENTS
भारतीय भाषा लोक सर्वेक्षण     The People’s Linguistic Survey of India
राष्ट्रीय संपादक मंडल     The National Editorial Collective
भारतीय भाषा लोक सर्वेक्षण (ग्रंथमाला)     List of Volumes
आभार     Acknowledgements
भूमिका     Foreword
मुख्य संपादकीय     A Nation Proud of Its Language Diversity
संपादकीय     Introduction to the Volume
अनुवादकीय     Translator’s Note
पाठकों से निवेदन     An Appeal to Readers
भारतीय भाषा वितरण जनगणना 2011 के आधार पर     Census of India
तमिल भाषा की अन्य प्रमुख द्रविड़ भाषाओं से तुलना     Pie-Chart
तमिल वक्ताओं की अन्य अनुसूचित भाषाओं के वक्ताओं     Pie-Chart
से तुलना
तमिलनाडु की लिपियों का संक्षिप्त परिचय     A Note on the Scripts used in Tamil Nadu
प्रस्तुत खंड के संकलन की प्रक्रिया     The Process of Compilation of the PLSI Tamil Nadu
सहयोगी लेखकों की सूची     Contributors to the Volume
अकारादि क्रम में तमिलनाडु की भाषाओं के नाम     List of Languages Covered in this Volume

भाग I: अनुसूचित भाषा     PART I: SCHEDULED LANGUAGES

1. तमिल 1. Tamil

भाग II: गैर-अनुसूचित भाषाएँ     PART II: NON-SCHEDULED LANGUAGES

2. तंजाऊर मराठी     2. Thanjavur Marathi
3. सौराष्ट्री     3. Saurashtri

भाग III: आदिवासी भाषाएँ     PART III: TRIBAL LANGUAGES

4. इरुळा (एरुळा)     4. Irula (Ërula)
5. ऊराळी     5. Uraii
6. एरवल्ला (करुविनाळु)     6. Eravalla (Karinavilu)
7. कलरायन मलयाळी     7. Kalrayan Malayali
8. काट्टुनायक्कर     8. Kattunaickar
9. काडर     9. Kadar
10. काणक्कारन     10. Kanikkaran
11. कोता     11. Kota
12. कोल्ललिमलै तमिल बोली     12. Kollimala Tamil Dialect
13. तोडा     13. Toda
14. पच्चमलै मलयाली     14. Pachamalai Malayali
15. पालु कुरुंबा     15. Palu Kurumba
16. बडुगा     16. Baduga
17. बेट्ट कुरुंबा     17. Betta kurumba
18. मलई पुलयन     18. Malai Pulayan
19. मुदुवा     19. Muduva
20. मुल्लु कुरुंबा     20. Mullukurumba
21. वागरी बोली     21. Vagri Boli
22. विल्ललियन (इरुळा)     22. Villiyan (Irular)

परिशिष्ट
परिशिष्ट I : मानचित्र     Appendix I – Maps
परिशिष्ट II : लेखक-अनुवादक परिचय     Appendix II – Editors'-Translator’s Introduction

शब्द-अनुक्रमणिका     Index