Editing Tamil script

{{Short description|Brahmic script}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2021}}
{{Infobox writing system
| name        = Tamil
| altname     = {{lang|ta|தமிழ்}}
| type        = [[Abugida]]
| time        = c. 580 BCE – present<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rajan |first=K. |title=Territorial Division as Gleaned from Memorial Stones |jstor=29757518 |journal=East and West |publisher=Istituto Italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente (IsIAO) |date=December 2001 |volume=51 |issue=3/4 |page=363 }} (table showing Tamil in row for the 601–800 period)</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Diringer |first1=David |title=Alphabet a key to the history of mankind |date=1948 |page=385}}</ref>
| languages   = [[Tamil language|Tamil]]<br/>[[Kanikkaran language|Kanikkaran]]<br/>[[Badaga language|Badaga]]<br/>[[Irula language|Irula]]<br/>[[Paniya language|Paniya]]<br/>[[Saurashtra language|Saurashtra]]
| fam1        = [[Egyptian hieroglyphs|Egyptian]]
| fam2        = [[Proto-Sinaitic]]
| fam3        = [[Phoenician script|Phoenician]]
| fam4        = [[Aramaic script|Aramaic]]
| fam5        = [[Brahmi script]]
| fam6        = [[Tamil Brahmi]]
| fam7        = [[Pallava script]]{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=212}}{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=213}}
| sisters     = [[Grantha script|Grantha]], [[Old Mon script|Old Mon]], [[Khmer alphabet|Khmer]], [[Cham script|Cham]], [[Kawi script|Kawi]]
| unicode     = {{ublist |class=nowrap |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0B80.pdf U+0B80–U+0BFF] {{smaller|Tamil}} |[https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U11FC0.pdf U+11FC0–U+11FFF] {{smaller|Tamil Supplement}}}}
| iso15924    = Taml
| sample      = Word Tamil.svg
| imagesize   = 250px
}}
{{Contains special characters|Indic}}
{{Tamil transliteration}}
{{brahmic}}
<!--
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The '''Tamil script''' (<big>{{lang|ta|தமிழ் அரிச்சுவடி}}</big> {{transliteration|ta|ISO|Tamiḻ ariccuvaṭi}} {{IPA-ta|tamiɻ ˈaɾitːɕuʋaɽi|}}) is an [[abugida]] script that is used by [[Tamils]] and [[Tamil language|Tamil]] speakers in [[India]], [[Sri Lanka]], [[Malaysia]], [[Singapore]], [[Indonesia]] and elsewhere to write the [[Tamil language]].<ref>{{Citation | title=The Unicode 5.0 Standard | edition=5 | publisher=Addison-Wesley | place=Upper Saddle River, NJ | year=2006 | isbn=0-321-48091-0 | last=Allen | first=Julie }} at p. 324</ref> It is one of the [[official scripts of the Indian Republic]]. Certain minority languages such as [[Saurashtra language|Saurashtra]], [[Badaga language|Badaga]], [[Irula language|Irula]] and [[Paniya language|Paniya]] are also written in the Tamil script.<ref>{{citation| editor-last=Lewis | editor-first=M. Paul | title=Ethnologue: Languages of the World | edition=16th| url=http://www.ethnologue.com/ | publisher=SIL International | location=Dallas, Tex. | year=2009 | access-date=28 August 2009}}</ref>[[Keezhadi excavation site|According to the Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department (TNAD), the cultural deposits found during excavations at Keeladi in Tamil Nadu's Sivaganga district date back to between the 6th century BCE and 1st century CE, or 2,600 years ago. This is about 300 years earlier than the third century BCE that was previously believed. In 2018, six carbon samples were collected from the fourth season of excavations and sent to Beta Analytic Lab in Miami, Florida for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) dating. One sample collected at a depth of 353 cm dated back to 580 BCE. The excavations at Keeladi have revealed artifacts that indicate the existence of an urban civilization in the Sangam age on the banks of the Vaigai River. The findings include evidence of weaving, dyeing, and glass bead industries, as well as gold ornaments, copper articles, and ivory combs. Other artifacts include terracotta and ivory dice, gamesmen, and evidence of hopscotch, which suggest the Keeladi people enjoyed hobbies like games. Some of the symbols found in Keeladi's pot sherds also resemble signs from the Indus Valley, which suggests the site may be part of the Vaigai Valley Civilization.]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|The Tamil-Brahmi script, also known as Dhamili or Tamil, is believed to be older than the Ashokan Brahmi script. The Tamil-Brahmi script is a variant of the Brahmi script that was used in southern India to write early Old Tamil inscriptions. The earliest known Brahmi inscriptions are the rock-cut edicts of Ashoka the Great, which date back to 250-232 BC. However, some say that new discoveries of Damili inscribed potsherds indicate that the script may have originated before the Ashoka era. The Tamil-Brahmi script differs from the Brahmi inscriptions found elsewhere in India in a few minor ways. For example, it adds diacritics to certain letters to represent sounds that are not found in Prakrit, such as ṉ, ṟ, ṛ, and ḷ. Kamil Zvelebil believes that the Tamil-Brahmi script was the parent script that eventually evolved into the Tamil and Vatteluttu scripts. The earliest Tamil writing has been found in potsherds and inscriptions from the 5th century BCE.]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|Noting that the oldest Tamil-Brahmi inscriptions found in Theni and Madurai districts dated back to 500 BCE, while the oldest Sanskrit inscription found in Rajasthan dated back to just 300 CE, Madurai MP and writer Su Venkatesan said the Tamil language is way older than Sanskrit.]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|The earliest Tamil writing is found in inscriptions and potsherds from the 5th century BCE. Here are some of the oldest Tamil inscriptions]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|Found in Mangulam village near Madurai, these inscriptions were deciphered in 1966 and date to the 2nd century BCE. They record the gift of a monastery by Pandyan king Nedunj Cheliyan to a Jain monk.]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|These stones are considered to be among the oldest Tamil Brahmi inscriptions found in Tamil Nadu. In 2023, the Times of India reported that a 300 BC memorial stone with Tamil Brahmi inscriptions was found in Thathapatty, but it was covered in vegetation.]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|The Tamil language is one of the oldest living languages in the world, with a recorded history that goes back over 2,000 years. The oldest known written records of Tamil date back to the 3rd century BCE, and the language has continued to evolve and develop over the centuries.]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|The earliest records in Old Tamil are short inscriptions from 300 BC to 700 AD, written in a variant of the Brahmi script called Tamil-Brahmi. The earliest long text in Old Tamil is the Tolkāppiyam, an early work on Tamil grammar and poetics, whose oldest layers could be as old as the late 2nd century BC. Many literary works in Old Tamil have also survived, including a corpus of 2,381 poems collectively known as Sangam literature, which are usually dated to between the 1st century BC and 5th century AD.Some archaeological evidence, such as a stone inscription in Modi script unearthed in Thanjavur, suggests that the Tamil language could date back to more than 10,000 years.]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|Some evidence suggests Tamil could be over 10,000 years old, and the oldest known written records date back to the 3rd century BCE. The Archaeological Survey of India has found about 60,000 Tamil inscriptions in Tamil Nadu, including epigraphic records on rock edicts and "hero stones". Tamil also has the oldest extant literature among Dravidian languages.]]

[[Tamil inscriptions|This is a list of archaeological artefacts and epigraphs which have Tamil inscriptions. Of the approximately 100,000 inscriptions found by the Archaeological Survey of India (2005 report) in India, about 60,000 were in Tamil Nadu[1]]
==Characteristics==
[[File:Evolution of Vatteluttu and Tamil scripts.gif|thumb|350px|Diverging evolution of [[Tamil-Brahmi]] script (center column) into the [[Vatteluttu alphabet]] (leftmost column) and the Tamil script (rightmost column)]]
The Tamil script has 12 [[vowel]]s ({{lang|ta|உயிரெழுத்து}}, {{transliteration|ta|ISO|uyireḻuttu}}, "soul-letters"), 18 [[consonant]]s ({{lang|ta|மெய்யெழுத்து}}, {{transliteration|ta|ISO|meyyeḻuttu}}, "body-letters") and one special character, the {{lang|ta|ஃ}} ({{lang|ta|ஆய்த எழுத்து}}, {{transliteration|ta|ISO|āytha eḻuttu}}). {{lang|ta|ஃ}} is called "அக்கு", ''akku'' and is classified in Tamil orthography as being neither a consonant nor a vowel.<ref>[https://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/romadict.pl?table=tamil-lex&page=148&display=utf8 University of Madras Tamil Lexicon, page 148: "{{lang|ta|அலியெழுத்து}} [ {{transliteration|ta|ISO|aliyeḻuttu}} ] n {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ali-y-eḻuttu}} . < {{lang|ta|அலி}}¹ +. 1. The letter {{lang|ta|ஃ}}, as being regarded as neither a vowel nor a consonant; {{lang|ta|ஆய்தம்}}. ({{lang|ta|வெண்பாப். முதன்மொ. 6, உரை.}}) 2. Consonants; {{lang|ta|மெய்யெ ழுத்து. (பிங்.).}}"]</ref> However, it is listed at the end of the vowel set. The script is [[Syllabary|syllabic]], not [[alphabet]]ic. It is written from left to right.

==History==
{{See also|Tamil-Brahmi|Vatteluttu alphabet|Grantha script|Pallava script|Kolezhuthu|Arwi|}}
[[File:History of Tamil script.jpg|thumb|350px|Historical evolution of Tamil writing from the earlier [[Tamil-Brahmi]] near the top to the current Tamil script at bottom]]
[[File:Tirukkural manuscript.jpg|thumb|350px|[[Tirukkural]] [[palm leaf manuscript]]]]
The Tamil script, like the other [[Brahmic scripts]], is thought to have evolved from the original [[Brahmi script]].{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=173}} The earliest inscriptions which are accepted examples of Tamil writing date to the [[Ashoka]]n period.  The script used by such inscriptions is commonly known as the [[Tamil-Brahmi]] or "Tamili script" and differs in many ways from standard Ashokan Brahmi. For example, early Tamil-Brahmi, unlike Ashokan Brahmi, had a system to distinguish between pure [[consonant]]s (''m'', in this example) and consonants with an inherent [[vowel]] (''ma'', in this example). In addition, according to [[Iravatham Mahadevan]], early Tamil Brahmi used slightly different vowel markers, had extra characters to represent letters not found in [[Sanskrit]] and omitted letters for sounds not present in Tamil such as voiced consonants and aspirates.{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=173}} Inscriptions from the 2nd century use a later form of Tamil-Brahmi, which is substantially similar to the writing system described in the ''[[Tolkāppiyam]]'', an ancient Tamil grammar. Most notably, they used the ''puḷḷi'' to suppress the inherent vowel.{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=230}} The Tamil letters thereafter evolved towards a more rounded form and by the 5th or 6th century, they had reached a form called the ''early vaṭṭeḻuttu''.{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=211}}

The modern Tamil script does not, however, descend from that script.{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=209}} In the 4th century,<ref name="griffiths">{{cite web |last1=Griffiths |first1=Arlo |title=Early Indic Inscriptions of Southeast Asia |date=2014 |url=https://www.academia.edu/6301451 |url-access=registration}}</ref> the [[Pallava dynasty]] created a new script called [[Pallava script]] for Tamil and the [[Grantha alphabet]] evolved from it, adding the Vaṭṭeḻuttu alphabet for sounds not found to write Sanskrit.{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=213}} Parallel to [[Grantha alphabet]] a new script (Chola-Pallava script, which evolved to modern Tamil script) again emerged in Pallava and Chola territories resembling the same glyph development like Grantha, however, heavily reduced in its shapes and not overtaking non-native Tamil sounds. By the 8th century, the new scripts supplanted Vaṭṭeḻuttu in the Pallava and [[Chola dynasty|Chola]] kingdoms which lay in the north portion of the Tamil-speaking region. [[Chola dynasty|However]], Vaṭṭeḻuttu continued to be used in the southern portion of the Tamil-speaking region, in the [[Chera dynasty|Chera]] and [[Pandyan dynasty|Pandyan]] kingdoms until the 11th century, when the Pandyan kingdom was conquered by the Cholas who inherited while being feudatory of Pallavas for a short time.{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=212}}{{sfn|Mahadevan|2003|p=213}}

With the fall of Pallava kingdom, the Chola dynasty pushed the Chola-Pallava script as the de facto script. Over the next few centuries, the Chola-Pallava script evolved into the modern Tamil script. The Grantha and its parent script influenced the Tamil script notably. The use of [[palm-leaf manuscript|palm leaves]] as the primary medium for [[writing]] led to changes in the script. The scribe had to be careful not to pierce the leaves with the stylus while writing because a leaf with a hole was more likely to tear and decay faster. As a result, the use of the ''puḷḷi'' to distinguish pure consonants became rare, with pure consonants usually being written as if the inherent vowel were present. Similarly, the vowel marker ({{lang|ta|ஃ}}) called: {{Langx|ta|குற்றியலுகரம்|lit=short 'u'-sound|translit=kuṟṟiyal-ukaram}}, a half-rounded ''u'' which occurs at the end of some words and in the medial position in certain compound words, marking a shortened ''u'' sound, also fell out of use and was replaced by the marker for the simple ''u'' ({{lang|ta|ு}})''.'' The ''puḷḷi'' ({{lang|ta|ஂ}}) did not fully reappear until the introduction of [[printing]], but the marker ''kuṟṟiyal-ukaram'' ({{lang|ta|ஃ}}) never came back for this purpose into use although its usage is retained in certain grammatical conceptual words whereas the sound itself still exists and plays an important role in Tamil [[prosody (linguistics)|prosody]].

The forms of some of the letters were simplified in the 19th century to make the script easier to typeset. In the 20th century, the script was [[Simplified Tamil script|simplified even further]] in a series of reforms, which regularised the vowel markers used with consonants by eliminating special markers and most irregular forms.

==Relationship with other Indic scripts==
The Tamil script differs from other Brahmi-derived scripts in a number of ways. Unlike every other Brahmic script, it does not regularly represent voiced or aspirated [[stop consonant]]s as these are not [[phoneme]]s of the Tamil language even though voiced and fricative [[allophone]]s of stops do appear in spoken Tamil. Thus the character {{lang|ta|க் }} ''k'', for example, represents {{IPAslink|k}} but can also be pronounced [{{IPA|g}}] or [{{IPA|x}}] based on the rules of [[Tamil phonology]]. A separate set of characters appears for these sounds when the Tamil script is used to write Sanskrit or other languages.

Also unlike other Brahmi scripts, the Tamil script rarely uses [[typographic ligature]]s to represent conjunct consonants, which are far less frequent in Tamil than in other Indian languages. Where they occur, conjunct consonants are written by writing the character for the first consonant, adding the ''puḷḷi'' to suppress its inherent vowel, and then writing the character for the second consonant. There are a few exceptions, namely {{lang|ta|க்ஷ}} ''kṣa'' and {{lang|ta|ஶ்ரீ}} ''śrī''.

[[ISO 15919#Overview|ISO 15919]] is an international standard for the transliteration of Tamil and other Indic scripts into Latin characters. It uses diacritics to map the much larger set of Brahmic consonants and vowels to the Latin script.

== Letters ==
[[File:Mangulam inscription.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Mangulam]] Tamili inscription in Mangulam, [[Madurai district]], Tamil Nadu dated to Tamil [[Sangam period]] c. 400 BCE to c. 200 CE.]]
[[File:Tamil Inscriptions.jpg|thumb|200px|Explanation for [[Mangulam]] Tamil Brahmi inscription in Mangulam, [[Madurai district]], Tamil Nadu dated to Tamil [[Sangam period]] c. 400 BCE to c. 200 CE.]]
{{multiple image
| align = 
| direction = 
| width = 100
| footer = Left: ''Tampiran Vanakkam'' (''Doctrina Christum'') was the first book in Tamil, printed on 20 October 1578. Right: A book in Tamil printed in 1781.
| image1 = Thambiran Vanakkam 1578.JPG
| alt1 = 
| caption1 = 
| image2 = CHRISTIAN BOOK-printed1781-Tamil nadu-India41.jpg
| alt2 = 
| caption2 = 
}}

===Basic consonants===
Consonants are called the "body" (''mei'') letters. The consonants are classified into three categories: ''vallinam'' (hard consonants), ''mellinam'' (soft consonants, including all [[Nasal stop|nasals]]), and ''itayinam'' (medium consonants).

There are some lexical rules for the formation of words. The ''[[Tolkāppiyam]]'' describes such rules. Some examples: a word cannot end in certain consonants, and cannot begin with some consonants including r-, l- and ḻ-; there are six [[nasal consonants]] in Tamil: a [[velar nasal]] ங், a [[palatal nasal]] ஞ், a [[retroflex nasal]] ண், a [[dental nasal]] ந், a [[bilabial nasal]] ம், and an [[alveolar nasal]] ன்.

The order of the alphabet (strictly [[abugida]]) in Tamil closely matches that of the nearby languages both in location and linguistics, reflecting the common origin of their scripts from Brahmi.

Tamil language has 18 consonants - ''mey eluttukkal''. Traditional grammarians have classified these 18 into three groups of 6 letters each. This classification is done based on the method of articulation and hence the nature of these letters. ''Vallinam'' (hard group), ''mellinam'' (soft group) and ''idaiyinam'' (medium group). All consonants are pronounced for a half unit (māttirai) time length when isolated (consonants combined with vowels will be pronounced with the time length of the vowel).<ref>{{wikiversity inline |Tamil Language/Letters}}</ref>

<!---
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--->
{| class="sortable wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Tamil consonants{{sfn|Steever|1996|p=426-430}}
|-
! Consonant !! [[ISO 15919]] !! Category !! [[help:IPA|IPA]]
|-
| {{lang|ta|க்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|k}} || vallinam || {{IPA|/k/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ங்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ṅ}} || mellinam || {{IPA|/ŋ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ச்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|c}} || vallinam || {{IPA|/t͡ʃ, s/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஞ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ñ}} || mellinam || {{IPA|/ɲ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ட்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ṭ}} || vallinam || {{IPA|/ʈ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ண்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ṇ}} || mellinam || {{IPA|/ɳ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|த்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|t}} || vallinam || {{IPA|/t̪/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ந்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|n}} || mellinam || {{IPA|/n̪/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ப்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|p}} || vallinam || {{IPA|/p/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ம்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|m}} || mellinam || {{IPA|/m/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ய்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|y}} || idaiyinam || {{IPA|/j/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ர்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|r}} || idaiyinam || {{IPA|/ɾ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ல்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|l}} || idaiyinam || {{IPA|/l/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|வ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|v}} || idaiyinam || {{IPA|/ʋ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ழ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ḻ}} || idaiyinam || {{IPA|/ɻ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ள்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ḷ}} || idaiyinam || {{IPA|/ɭ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ற்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ṟ}} || vallinam || {{IPA|/r/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ன்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ṉ}} || mellinam || {{IPA|[n]}}
|}

===Extra consonants used in Tamil===
The Tamil speech has incorporated many phonemes that were not part of the [[Tolkāppiyam]] classification. The letters used to write these sounds, known as '''Grantha''', are used as part of Tamil. These are taught from elementary school and incorporated in [[Tamil All Character Encoding|Tamil All Character Encoding (TACE16)]].

<!---
NOTE:
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--->
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Grantha consonants in Tamil{{sfn|Steever|1996|p=426-430}}
|-
! Consonant !! [[ISO 15919]] !! IPA
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஜ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|j}} || {{IPA|/d͡ʒ/}}
|-
|{{lang|ta|ஶ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ś}} || {{IPA|/ʃ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஷ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ṣ}} || {{IPA|/ʂ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஸ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|s}} || {{IPA|/s/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஹ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|h}} || {{IPA|/h/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|க்ஷ்}} || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kṣ}} || {{IPA|/kʂ/}}
|}

There is also the compound {{lang|ta|ஶ்ரீ}} ({{transliteration|ta|ISO|śrī}}), equivalent to {{lang|inc-Deva|श्री}} in [[Devanagari]].

Combinations of consonants with {{lang|ta|ஃ}} ({{lang|ta|ஆய்த எழுத்து}}, {{transliteration|ta|ISO|āyda eḻuttu}}, equivalent to [[nuqta]]) are occasionally used to represent phonemes of foreign languages, especially to write [[Islamic]] and [[Christian]] texts. For example: asif = {{lang|ta|அசிஃப்}}, azārutīn̠ = {{lang|ta|அஃஜாருதீன்}}, [[Genghis Khan]] = {{lang|ta|கெங்கிஸ் ஃகான்}}.{{citation needed|date=October 2014}}

A nuqta-like diacritic is used while writing the [[Badaga language]] and double dot nuqta for the [[Irula language]] to transcribe its sounds.<ref>The Unicode Standard Version 13.0 – Core Specification, South and Central Asia-I, Official Scripts of India pg. 498</ref>

There has also been effort to differentiate voiced and voiceless consonants through subscripted numbers – two, three, and four which stand for the unvoiced aspirated, voiced, voiced aspirated respectively. This was used to transcribe Sanskrit words in Sanskrit–Tamil books, as shown in the table below.<ref name="Sharma2010a">Sharma, Shriramana. (2010a). [https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2010/10256r-extended-tamil.pdf ''Proposal to encode characters for Extended Tamil''.]</ref><ref name="Sharma2010c">Sharma, Shriramana. (2010c). [https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2010/10407-ext-tamil-follow2.pdf ''Follow-up #2 to Extended Tamil proposal''.]</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|-
| {{lang|ta|க}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ka}} || {{lang|ta|க₂}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kha}} || {{lang|ta|க₃}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ga}} || {{lang|ta|க₄}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|gha}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ச}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ca}} || {{lang|ta|ச₂}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|cha}} || {{lang|ta|ஜ}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ja}} || {{lang|ta|ஜ₂}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|jha}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ட}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ṭa}} || {{lang|ta|ட₂}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ṭha}} || {{lang|ta|ட₃}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ḍa}} || {{lang|ta|ட₄}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ḍha}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|த}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ta}} || {{lang|ta|த₂}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|tha}} || {{lang|ta|த₃}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|da}} || {{lang|ta|த₄}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|dha}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ப}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|pa}} || {{lang|ta|ப₂}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|pha}} || {{lang|ta|ப₃}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ba}} || {{lang|ta|ப₄}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|bha}}
|}
The Unicode Standard uses superscripted digits for the same purpose, as in {{lang|ta|ப²}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|pha}}, {{lang|ta|ப³}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ba}}, and {{lang|ta|ப⁴}} {{transliteration|ta|ISO|bha}}.<ref>Unicode Consortium (2019). Tamil. In [https://www.unicode.org/versions/Unicode12.0.0/ch12.pdf ''The Unicode Standard Version 12.0'' (pp. 489–498)].</ref>

===Vowels===
Vowels are also called the 'life' (''uyir'') or 'soul' letters. Together with the consonants (''mei'', which are called 'body' letters), they form compound, syllabic ([[abugida]]) letters that are called 'living' or 'embodied' letters (''uyir mei'', i.e. letters that have both 'body' and 'soul').

Tamil language has 12 vowels which are divided into short and long (five of each type) and two [[diphthong]]s.<!---:
NOTE:
Before editing this page for Unicode errors please check your OS configuration for complex character support. You can check it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WP:INDIC
--->
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|+ Tamil vowels{{sfn|Steever|1996|p=426-430}}
|-
! Independent 
!Vowel sign!! [[ISO 15919]] !! IPA
|-
| {{lang|ta|அ}} 
|{{N/A}}|| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|a}} || {{IPA|/ɐ/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஆ}} 
|ா
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ā}} || {{IPA|/aː/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|இ}} 
|ி
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|i}} || {{IPA|/i/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஈ}} 
|ீ
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ī}} || {{IPA|/iː/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|உ}} 
|ு
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|u}} || {{IPA|/u/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஊ}} 
|ூ
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ū}} || {{IPA|/uː/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|எ}} 
|ெ
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|e}} || {{IPA|/e/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஏ}} 
|ே
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ē}} || {{IPA|/eː/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஐ}} 
|ை
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ai}} || {{IPA|/ɐi̯/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஒ}} 
|ொ
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|o}} || {{IPA|/o/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஓ}} 
|ோ
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ō}} || {{IPA|/oː/}}
|-
| {{lang|ta|ஔ}} 
|ௌ
| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|au}} || {{IPA|/ɐu̯/}}
|-
|}

====Compound form====
Using the consonant 'k' as an example:
<!---
NOTE:
Before editing this page for unicode errors please check your OS configuration for complex character support. You can check it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WP:INDIC
--->
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! Formation !! Compound form !! [[ISO 15919]] !! IPA
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + அ || lang="ta"| க || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ka}} || {{IPA|/kɐ/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + ஆ || lang="ta"| கா || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kā}} || {{IPA|/kaː/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + இ || lang="ta"| கி || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ki}} || {{IPA|/ki/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + ஈ || lang="ta"| கீ || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kī}} || {{IPA|/kiː/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + உ || lang="ta"| கு || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ku}} || {{IPA|/ku/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + ஊ || lang="ta"| கூ || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kū}} || {{IPA|/kuː/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + எ || lang="ta"| கெ || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ke}} || {{IPA|/ke/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + ஏ || lang="ta"| கே|| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kē}} || {{IPA|/keː/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + ஐ || lang="ta"| கை || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kai}} || {{IPA|/kɐi̯/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + ஒ || lang="ta"| கொ || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|ko}} || {{IPA|/ko/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + ஓ || lang="ta"| கோ|| {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kō}} || {{IPA|/koː/}}
|-
| lang="ta"| க் + ஔ || lang="ta"| கௌ || {{transliteration|ta|ISO|kau}} || {{IPA|/kɐu̯/}}
|-
|}

The special letter {{lang|ta|ஃ}}, represented by three dots, is called {{transliteration|ta|ISO|āyta eḻuttu}} or ''aḵ''. It originally represented an archaic Tamil retention of the Dravidian sound ḥ, which has been lost in almost all modern Dravidian languages, and in Tamil traditionally serves a purely grammatical function, but in modern times it has come to be used as a diacritic to represent foreign sounds. For example, {{lang|ta|ஃப}} is used for the English sound ''f'', not found in Tamil. It also served before palm leaves became the primary writing medium for words ending with an inherent consonsant-vowel ''u'' as a pronouncing rule for a short ''u'', called''{{Dash}}''{{Langx|ta|குற்றியலுகரம்|lit=short 'u'-sound|translit=kuṟṟiyal-ukaram}}. Following consonants rendered this behaviour: {{lang|ta|கு}}, {{lang|ta|சு}}, {{lang|ta|டு}}, {{lang|ta|து}}, {{lang|ta|பு}}, {{lang|ta|று}}. Instead of writing like in modern days without any markers, for example ({{Langx|ta|அது|translit=Atu}}), it was written with a preceding {{lang|ta|ஃ}}, like {{Dash}} {{Langx|ta|அஃது|translit=Aḥtu}}.

Another archaic Tamil letter {{lang|ta|ஂ}}, represented by a small hollow circle and called {{transliteration|ta|ISO|Aṉuvara}}, is the ''[[Anusvara]]''. It was traditionally used as a [[homorganic]] nasal when in front of a consonant, and either as a bilabial nasal ({{IPA|m}}) or alveolar nasal ({{IPA|n}}) at the end of a word, depending on the context.

The long ({{transliteration|ta|ISO|nedil}}) vowels are about twice as long as the short ({{transliteration|ta|ISO|kuṟil}}) vowels. The [[diphthong]]s are usually pronounced about one and a half times as long as the short vowels, though some grammatical texts place them with the long ({{transliteration|ta|ISO|nedil}}) vowels.

As can be seen in the compound form, the vowel sign can be added to the right, left or both sides of the consonants. It can also form a [[Ligature (typography)|ligature]]. These rules are evolving and older use has more ligatures than modern use. What you actually see on this page depends on your font selection; for example, [[Code2000]] will show more ligatures than [[Latha (typeface)|Latha]].

There are proponents of script reform who want to eliminate all ligatures and let all vowel signs appear on the right side.

Unicode encodes the character in logical order (always the consonant first), whereas legacy 8-bit encodings (such as [[TSCII]]) prefer the written order. This makes it necessary to reorder when converting from one encoding to another; it is not sufficient simply to map one set of code points to the other.

==== Compound table of Tamil letters ====
The following table lists vowel ({{transliteration|ta|ISO|uyir}} or life) letters across the top and consonant ({{transliteration|ta|ISO|mei}} or body) letters along the side, the combination of which gives all Tamil compound ({{transliteration|ta|ISO|uyirmei}}) letters.

{| class="wikitable" lang="ta" style="text-align: center"
|-
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" scope="col" | {{lang|en|Tolkāppiyam<br/>consonants}}
! colspan="12" scope="col" | {{lang|en|Vowels}}
|-
! scope="col" | ∅
a
! scope="col" | ா 
ā
! scope="col" | ி<br/>i
! scope="col" | ீ<br/>ī
! scope="col" | ு<br/>u
! scope="col" | ூ<br/>ū
! scope="col" | ெ<br/>e
! scope="col" | ே<br/>ē
! scope="col" | ை<br/>ai
! scope="col" | ொ<br/>o
! scope="col" | ோ<br/>ō
! scope="col" | ௌ<br/>au
|-
! colspan="2" |∅ (Independent)
|அ
|ஆ
|இ
|ஈ
|உ
|ஊ
|எ
|ஏ
|ஐ
|ஒ
|ஓ
|ஔ
|-
!க்
!k
|க
|கா
|கி
|கீ
|கு
|கூ
|கெ
|கே
|கை
|கொ
|கோ
|கௌ
|-
!ங்
!ṅ
|ங
|ஙா
|ஙி
|ஙீ
|ஙு
|ஙூ
|ஙெ
|ஙே
|ஙை
|ஙொ
|ஙோ
|ஙௌ
|-
!ச்
!c
|ச
|சா
|சி
|சீ
|சு
|சூ
|செ
|சே
|சை
|சொ
|சோ
|சௌ
|-
!ஞ்
!ñ
|ஞ
|ஞா
|ஞி
|ஞீ
|ஞு
|ஞூ
|ஞெ
|ஞே
|ஞை
|ஞொ
|ஞோ
|ஞௌ
|-
!ட்
!ṭ
|ட
|டா
|டி
|டீ
|டு
|டூ
|டெ
|டே
|டை
|டொ
|டோ
|டௌ
|-
!ண்
!ṇ
|ண
|ணா
|ணி
|ணீ
|ணு
|ணூ
|ணெ
|ணே
|ணை
|ணொ
|ணோ
|ணௌ
|-
!த்
!t
|த
|தா
|தி
|தீ
|து
|தூ
|தெ
|தே
|தை
|தொ
|தோ
|தௌ
|-
!ந்
!n
|ந
|நா
|நி
|நீ
|நு
|நூ
|நெ
|நே
|நை
|நொ
|நோ
|நௌ
|-
!ப்
!p
|ப
|பா
|பி
|பீ
|பு
|பூ
|பெ
|பே
|பை
|பொ
|போ
|பௌ
|-
!ம்
!m
|ம
|மா
|மி
|மீ
|மு
|மூ
|மெ
|மே
|மை
|மொ
|மோ
|மௌ
|-
!ய்
!y
|ய
|யா
|யி
|யீ
|யு
|யூ
|யெ
|யே
|யை
|யொ
|யோ
|யௌ
|-
!ர்
!r
|ர
|ரா
|ரி
|ரீ
|ரு
|ரூ
|ரெ
|ரே
|ரை
|ரொ
|ரோ
|ரௌ
|-
!ல்
!l
|ல
|லா
|லி
|லீ
|லு
|லூ
|லெ
|லே
|லை
|லொ
|லோ
|லௌ
|-
!வ்
!v
|வ
|வா
|வி
|வீ
|வு
|வூ
|வெ
|வே
|வை
|வொ
|வோ
|வௌ
|-
!ழ்
!ḻ
|ழ
|ழா
|ழி
|ழீ
|ழு
|ழூ
|ழெ
|ழே
|ழை
|ழொ
|ழோ
|ழௌ
|-
!ள்
!ḷ
|ள
|ளா
|ளி
|ளீ
|ளு
|ளூ
|ளெ
|ளே
|ளை
|ளொ
|ளோ
|ளௌ
|-
!ற்
!ṟ
|ற
|றா
|றி
|றீ
|று
|றூ
|றெ
|றே
|றை
|றொ
|றோ
|றௌ
|-
!ன்
!ṉ
|ன
|னா
|னி
|னீ
|னு
|னூ
|னெ
|னே
|னை
|னொ
|னோ
|னௌ
|}

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" lang="ta"
|+{{lang|en|Grantha compound table}}
|-
! rowspan="2" colspan="2" scope="col" | {{lang|en|Grantha<br/>consonants}}
! colspan="12" scope="col" | {{lang|en|Vowels}}
|-
! scope="col" | ∅
a
! scope="col" | ா 
ā
! scope="col" | ி<br />i
! scope="col" | ீ<br />ī
! scope="col" | ு<br />u
! scope="col" | ூ<br />ū
! scope="col" | ெ<br />e
! scope="col" | ே<br />ē
! scope="col" | ை<br />ai
! scope="col" | ொ<br />o
! scope="col" | ோ<br />ō
! scope="col" | ௌ<br />au
|-
!ஶ்
!ś
|ஶ
|ஶா
|ஶி
|ஶீ
|ஶு
|ஶூ
|ஶெ
|ஶே
|ஶை
|ஶொ
|ஶோ
|ஶௌ
|-
!ஜ்
!j
|ஜ
|ஜா
|ஜி
|ஜீ
|ஜு
|ஜூ
|ஜெ
|ஜே
|ஜை
|ஜொ
|ஜோ
|ஜௌ
|-
!ஷ்
!ṣ
|ஷ
|ஷா
|ஷி
|ஷீ
|ஷு
|ஷூ
|ஷெ
|ஷே
|ஷை
|ஷொ
|ஷோ
|ஷௌ
|-
!ஸ்
!s
|ஸ
|ஸா
|ஸி
|ஸீ
|ஸு
|ஸூ
|ஸெ
|ஸே
|ஸை
|ஸொ
|ஸோ
|ஸௌ
|-
!ஹ்
!h
|ஹ
|ஹா
|ஹி
|ஹீ
|ஹு
|ஹூ
|ஹெ
|ஹே
|ஹை
|ஹொ
|ஹோ
|ஹௌ
|-
!க்ஷ்
!kṣ
|க்ஷ
|க்ஷா
|க்ஷி
|க்ஷீ
|க்ஷு
|க்ஷூ
|க்ஷெ
|க்ஷே
|க்ஷை
|க்ஷொ
|க்ஷோ
|க்ஷௌ
|}

=== Writing order ===
{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
|+Vowels (''uyireḻuttu'')
!Letter
!Animation
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">அ (a)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 2.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஆ (ā)</span>
|[[File:Tamil writng 3.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">இ (i)</span>
|[[File:Tamil writing 4.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஈ (ī)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 5.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">உ (u)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 6.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஊ (ū)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 7.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">எ (e)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 8.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஏ (ē)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 9.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஐ (ai)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 10.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஒ (o)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 11.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஓ (ō)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 12.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஔ (au)</span>
|[[File:Tamil writing 13.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஃ (aḵ)*</span>
|[[File:Learn Tamil 0.gif]]
|-
| colspan="2" |<nowiki>*</nowiki>ஃ is ''[[aytam]]'' but traditionally grouped with the vowel letters.
|}

{| class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"
|+Consonants (''meyyeḻuttu'')
!Letter
!Animation
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">க் (k)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 14.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ங் (ṅ)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 15.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ச் (ch)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 16.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ஞ் (ñ)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 17.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ட் (t)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 18.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ண் (ṇ)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 19.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">த் (th)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 20.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ந் (n)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 21.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ப் (p)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 22.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ம் (m)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 23.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ய் (y)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 24.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ர் (r)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 25.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ல் (l)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 26.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">வ் (v)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 27.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ழ் (ḻ)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 29.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ள் (ḷ)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 28.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ற் (ṟ)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 30.gif]]
|-
|<span style="font-size:200%">ன் (ṉ)</span>
|[[File:Writing Tamil 31.gif]]
|}

== Numerals and symbols ==

{{main|Tamil numerals}}

Apart from the usual numerals (from 0 to 9), Tamil also has numerals for 10, 100 and 1000. Symbols for [[Fraction (mathematics)|fraction]] and other number-based concepts can also be found.<ref>Selvakumar, V. (2016). History of Numbers and Fractions and Arithmetic Calculations in the Tamil Region: Some Observations. ''HuSS: International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Sciences, 3(1)'', 27–35. https://doi.org/10.15613/HIJRH/2016/V3I1/111730</ref>

{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center;"
|-
! 0 || 1 || 2 || 3 || 4 || 5 || 6 || 7 || 8 || 9 || 10 || 100 || 1000
|-
| {{lang|ta|௦}} || {{lang|ta|௧}} || {{lang|ta|௨}} || {{lang|ta|௩}} || {{lang|ta|௪}} || {{lang|ta|௫}} || {{lang|ta|௬}} || {{lang|ta|௭}} || {{lang|ta|௮}} || {{lang|ta|௯}} || {{lang|ta|௰}} || {{lang|ta|௱}} || {{lang|ta|௲}}
|}
{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center;"
|-
! day || month || year || debit || credit || as above || rupee || numeral || time || quantity
|-
| {{lang|ta|௳}} || {{lang|ta|௴}} || {{lang|ta|௵}} || {{lang|ta|௶}} || {{lang|ta|௷}} || {{lang|ta|௸}} || {{lang|ta|௹}} || {{lang|ta|௺}} || {{lang|ta|ள}} || {{lang|ta|வ}}
|}

== Unicode ==
{{Main|Tamil (Unicode block)|Tamil Supplement|l2=Tamil Supplement (Unicode block)}}

Tamil script was added to the [[Unicode]] Standard in October 1991 with the release of version 1.0.0. The Unicode block for Tamil is U+0B80–U+0BFF.  Grey areas indicate non-assigned code points. Most of the non-assigned code points are designated reserved because they are in the same relative position as characters assigned in other South Asian script blocks that correspond to phonemes that don't exist in the Tamil script.

Efforts to unify the Grantha script with Tamil have been made;<ref name="Sharma2010a" /><ref name="Sharma2010b">Sharma, Shriramana. (2010b). [http://unicode.org/L2/L2010/10379--extended-tamil.pdf ''Follow-up to Extended Tamil proposal L2/10-256R''.]</ref> however the proposals triggered discontent by some.<ref>Eraiyarasan, B. [https://unicode.org/L2/L2011/11055-tamil-grantha.pdf ''Dr. B. Eraiyarasan's comments on Tamil Unicode And Grantham proposals''.]</ref><ref>Nalankilli, Thanjai. (2018). Attempts to "Pollute" Tamil Unicode with Grantha Characters. ''Tamil Tribune''. Retrieved 12 March 2019 from http://www.tamiltribune.com/18/1201.html</ref> Eventually, considering the sensitivity involved, it was determined that the two scripts should be encoded independently, except for the numerals.<ref>Government of India. (2010). [https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2010/10409-grantha-meeting-sum.pdf ''Unicode Standard for Grantha Script''.]</ref>

{{Unicode chart Tamil}}

Proposals to encode characters used for [[Fraction (mathematics)|fractional]] values in traditional [[accounting]] practices were submitted.<ref>Sharma, Shriramana. (2012). [https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2012/12231-tamil-fractions-symbols-proposal.pdf ''Proposal to encode Tamil fractions and symbols''.]</ref> Although discouraged by the [[Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka|ICTA of Sri Lanka]],<ref>ICTA of Sri Lanka. (2014). [https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2014/14048-srilanka-comments.pdf ''Comments on the Proposals to Encode Tamil Symbols and Fractions''.]</ref> the proposal was recognized by the Government of [[Tamil Nadu]]<ref>Government of Tamil Nadu. (2017). [http://unicode.org/wg2/docs/n4822-tamil-frac.pdf ''Finalized proposal to encode Tamil fractions and symbols''.]</ref> and were added to the Unicode Standard in March 2019 with the release of version 12.0. The Unicode block for Tamil Supplement is U+11FC0–U+11FFF:

{{Unicode chart Tamil Supplement}}

===Syllabary===
Like other South Asian scripts in Unicode, the Tamil encoding was originally derived from the [[ISCII]] standard. Both [[ISCII]] and [[Unicode]] encode Tamil as an [[abugida]]. In an abugida, each basic character represents a consonant and default vowel. Consonants with a different vowel or bare consonants are represented by adding a modifier character to a base character. Each code point representing a similar phoneme is encoded in the same relative position in each South Asian script block in Unicode, including Tamil. Because Unicode represents Tamil as an abugida all the pure consonants (consonants with no associated vowel) and syllables in Tamil can be represented by combining multiple Unicode code points, as can be seen in the Unicode Tamil Syllabary below. In Unicode 5.1, named sequences were added for all Tamil consonants and syllables.

Unicode 5.1 also has a named sequence for the Tamil ligature SRI (''śrī''), ஶ்ரீ, written using ஶ (''śa''). The name of this sequence is TAMIL SYLLABLE SHRII and is composed of the Unicode sequence U+0BB6 U+0BCD U+0BB0 U+0BC0. The ligature can also be written using ஸ (''sa'') to create an identical ligature ஸ்ரீ composed of the Unicode sequence U+0BB8 U+0BCD U+0BB0 U+0BC0; but this is discouraged by the Unicode standard.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Pournader|first=Roozbeh|date=24 January 2018|title=The two ways to represent Tamil Shri|url=https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2018/18054-tamil-shri.txt|url-status=live|website=Unicode |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404201743/https://www.unicode.org/L2/L2018/18054-tamil-shri.txt |archive-date=Apr 4, 2023 }}</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" lang="ta"
|+ Unicode Tamil Syllabary
|-
! scope="col" rowspan="2" | {{lang|en|Consonants}}
! scope="col" colspan="12" | {{lang|en|Vowels}}
|-
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER A" | அ<br>0B85
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER AA" | ஆ<br>0B86
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER I" | இ<br>0B87
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER II" | ஈ<br>0B88
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER U" | உ<br>0B89
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER UU" | ஊ<br>0B8A
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER E" | எ<br>0B8E
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER EE" | ஏ<br>0B8F
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER AI" | ஐ<br>0B90
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER O" | ஒ<br>0B92
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER OO" | ஓ<br>0B93
! scope="col" title="TAMIL LETTER AU" | ஔ<br>0B94
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT K" | க்<br>0B95<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER KA" | க<br>0B95<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KAA" | கா<br>0B95<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KI" | கி<br>0B95<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KII" | கீ<br>0B95<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KU" | கு<br>0B95<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KUU" | கூ<br>0B95<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KE" | கெ<br>0B95<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KEE" | கே<br>0B95<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KAI" | கை<br>0B95<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KO" | கொ<br>0B95<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KOO" | கோ<br>0B95<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KAU" | கௌ<br>0B95<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT NG" | ங்<br>0B99<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER NGA" | ங<br>0B99<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGAA" | ஙா<br>0B99<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGI" | ஙி<br>0B99<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGII" | ஙீ<br>0B99<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGU" | ஙு<br>0B99<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGUU" | ஙூ<br>0B99<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGE" | ஙெ<br>0B99<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGEE" | ஙே<br>0B99<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGAI" | ஙை<br>0B99<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGO" | ஙொ<br>0B99<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGOO" | ஙோ<br>0B99<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NGAU" | ஙௌ<br>0B99<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT C" | ச்<br>0B9A<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER CA" | ச<br>0B9A<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CAA" | சா<br>0B9A<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CI" | சி<br>0B9A<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CII" | சீ<br>0B9A<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CU" | சு<br>0B9A<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CUU" | சூ<br>0B9A<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CE" | செ<br>0B9A<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CEE" | சே<br>0B9A<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CAI" | சை<br>0B9A<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CO" | சொ<br>0B9A<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE COO" | சோ<br>0B9A<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE CAU" | சௌ<br>0B9A<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT NY" | ஞ்<br>0B9E<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER NYA" | ஞ<br>0B9E<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYAA" | ஞா<br>0B9E<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYI" | ஞி<br>0B9E<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYII" | ஞீ<br>0B9E<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYU" | ஞு<br>0B9E<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYUU" | ஞூ<br>0B9E<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYE" | ஞெ<br>0B9E<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYEE" | ஞே<br>0B9E<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYAI" | ஞை<br>0B9E<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYO" | ஞொ<br>0B9E<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYOO" | ஞோ<br>0B9E<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NYAU" | ஞௌ<br>0B9E<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT TT" | ட்<br>0B9F<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER TTA" | ட<br>0B9F<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTAA" | டா<br>0B9F<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTI" | டி<br>0B9F<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTII" | டீ<br>0B9F<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTU" | டு<br>0B9F<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTUU" | டூ<br>0B9F<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTE" | டெ<br>0B9F<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTEE" | டே<br>0B9F<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTAI" | டை<br>0B9F<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTO" | டொ<br>0B9F<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTOO" | டோ<br>0B9F<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TTAU" | டௌ<br>0B9F<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT NN" | ண்<br>0BA3<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER NNA" | ண<br>0BA3<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNAA" | ணா<br>0BA3<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNI" | ணி<br>0BA3<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNII" | ணீ<br>0BA3<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNU" | ணு<br>0BA3<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNUU" | ணூ<br>0BA3<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNE" | ணெ<br>0BA3<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNEE" | ணே<br>0BA3<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNAI" | ணை<br>0BA3<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNO" | ணொ<br>0BA3<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNOO" | ணோ<br>0BA3<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNAU" | ணௌ<br>0BA3<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT T" | த்<br>0BA4<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER TA" | த<br>0BA4<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TAA" | தா<br>0BA4<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TI" | தி<br>0BA4<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TII" | தீ<br>0BA4<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TU" | து<br>0BA4<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TUU" | தூ<br>0BA4<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TE" | தெ<br>0BA4<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TEE" | தே<br>0BA4<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TAI" | தை<br>0BA4<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TO" | தொ<br>0BA4<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TOO" | தோ<br>0BA4<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE TAU" | தௌ<br>0BA4<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT N" | ந்<br>0BA8<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER NA" | ந<br>0BA8<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NAA" | நா<br>0BA8<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NI" | நி<br>0BA8<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NII" | நீ<br>0BA8<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NU" | நு<br>0BA8<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NUU" | நூ<br>0BA8<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NE" | நெ<br>0BA8<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NEE" | நே<br>0BA8<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NAI" | நை<br>0BA8<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NO" | நொ<br>0BA8<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NOO" | நோ<br>0BA8<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NAU" | நௌ<br>0BA8<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT P" | ப்<br>0BAA<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER PA" | ப<br>0BAA<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PAA" | பா<br>0BAA<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PI" | பி<br>0BAA<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PII" | பீ<br>0BAA<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PU" | பு<br>0BAA<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PUU" | பூ<br>0BAA<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PE" | பெ<br>0BAA<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PEE" | பே<br>0BAA<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PAI" | பை<br>0BAA<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PO" | பொ<br>0BAA<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE POO" | போ<br>0BAA<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE PAU" | பௌ<br>0BAA<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT M" | ம்<br>0BAE<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER MA" | ம<br>0BAE<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MAA" | மா<br>0BAE<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MI" | மி<br>0BAE<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MII" | மீ<br>0BAE<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MU" | மு<br>0BAE<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MUU" | மூ<br>0BAE<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE ME" | மெ<br>0BAE<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MEE" | மே<br>0BAE<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MAI" | மை<br>0BAE<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MO" | மொ<br>0BAE<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MOO" | மோ<br>0BAE<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE MAU" | மௌ<br>0BAE<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT Y" | ய்<br>0BAF<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER YA" | ய<br>0BAF<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YAA" | யா<br>0BAF<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YI" | யி<br>0BAF<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YII" | யீ<br>0BAF<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YU" | யு<br>0BAF<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YUU" | யூ<br>0BAF<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YE" | யெ<br>0BAF<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YEE" | யே<br>0BAF<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YAI" | யை<br>0BAF<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YO" | யொ<br>0BAF<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YOO" | யோ<br>0BAF<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE YAU" | யௌ<br>0BAF<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT R" | ர்<br>0BB0<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER RA" | ர<br>0BB0<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RAA" | ரா<br>0BB0<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RI" | ரி<br>0BB0<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RII" | ரீ<br>0BB0<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RU" | ரு<br>0BB0<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RUU" | ரூ<br>0BB0<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RE" | ரெ<br>0BB0<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE REE" | ரே<br>0BB0<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RAI" | ரை<br>0BB0<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RO" | ரொ<br>0BB0<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE ROO" | ரோ<br>0BB0<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RAU" | ரௌ<br>0BB0<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT L" | ல்<br>0BB2<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER LA" | ல<br>0BB2<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LAA" | லா<br>0BB2<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LI" | லி<br>0BB2<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LII" | லீ<br>0BB2<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LU" | லு<br>0BB2<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LUU" | லூ<br>0BB2<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LE" | லெ<br>0BB2<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LEE" | லே<br>0BB2<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LAI" | லை<br>0BB2<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LO" | லொ<br>0BB2<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LOO" | லோ<br>0BB2<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LAU" | லௌ<br>0BB2<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT V" | வ்<br>0BB5<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER VA" | வ<br>0BB5<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VAA" | வா<br>0BB5<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VI" | வி<br>0BB5<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VII" | வீ<br>0BB5<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VU" | வு<br>0BB5<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VUU" | வூ<br>0BB5<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VE" | வெ<br>0BB5<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VEE" | வே<br>0BB5<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VAI" | வை<br>0BB5<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VO" | வொ<br>0BB5<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VOO" | வோ<br>0BB5<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE VAU" | வௌ<br>0BB5<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT LLL" | ழ்<br>0BB4<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER LLLA" | ழ<br>0BB4<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLAA" | ழா<br>0BB4<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLI" | ழி<br>0BB4<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLII" | ழீ<br>0BB4<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLU" | ழு<br>0BB4<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLUU" | ழூ<br>0BB4<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLE" | ழெ<br>0BB4<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLEE" | ழே<br>0BB4<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLAI" | ழை<br>0BB4<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLO" | ழொ<br>0BB4<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLOO" | ழோ<br>0BB4<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLLAU" | ழௌ<br>0BB4<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT LL" | ள்<br>0BB3<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER LLA" | ள<br>0BB3<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLAA" | ளா<br>0BB3<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLI" | ளி<br>0BB3<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLII" | ளீ<br>0BB3<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLU" | ளு<br>0BB3<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLUU" | ளூ<br>0BB3<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLE" | ளெ<br>0BB3<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLEE" | ளே<br>0BB3<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLAI" | ளை<br>0BB3<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLO" | ளொ<br>0BB3<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLOO" | ளோ<br>0BB3<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE LLAU" | ளௌ<br>0BB3<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT RR" | ற்<br>0BB1<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER RRA" | ற<br>0BB1<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRAA" | றா<br>0BB1<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRI" | றி<br>0BB1<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRII" | றீ<br>0BB1<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRU" | று<br>0BB1<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRUU" | றூ<br>0BB1<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRE" | றெ<br>0BB1<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RREE" | றே<br>0BB1<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRAI" | றை<br>0BB1<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRO" | றொ<br>0BB1<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RROO" | றோ<br>0BB1<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE RRAU" | றௌ<br>0BB1<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT NNN" | ன்<br>0BA9<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER NNNA" | ன<br>0BA9<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNAA" | னா<br>0BA9<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNI" | னி<br>0BA9<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNII" | னீ<br>0BA9<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNU" | னு<br>0BA9<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNUU" | னூ<br>0BA9<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNE" | னெ<br>0BA9<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNEE" | னே<br>0BA9<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNAI" | னை<br>0BA9<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNO" | னொ<br>0BA9<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNOO" | னோ<br>0BA9<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE NNNAU" | னௌ<br>0BA9<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT SH" | ஶ்<br>0BB6<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER SHA" | ஶ<br>0BB6<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHAA" | ஶா<br>0BB6<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHI" | ஶி<br>0BB6<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHII" | ஶீ<br>0BB6<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHU" | ஶு<br>0BB6<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHUU" | ஶூ<br>0BB6<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHE" | ஶெ<br>0BB6<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHEE" | ஶே<br>0BB6<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHAI" | ஶை<br>0BB6<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHO" | ஶொ<br>0BB6<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHOO" | ஶோ<br>0BB6<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SHAU" | ஶௌ<br>0BB6<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT J" | ஜ்<br>0B9C<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER JA" | ஜ<br>0B9C<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JAA" | ஜா<br>0B9C<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JI" | ஜி<br>0B9C<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JII" | ஜீ<br>0B9C<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JU" | ஜு<br>0B9C<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JUU" | ஜூ<br>0B9C<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JE" | ஜெ<br>0B9C<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JEE" | ஜே<br>0B9C<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JAI" | ஜை<br>0B9C<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JO" | ஜொ<br>0B9C<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JOO" | ஜோ<br>0B9C<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE JAU" | ஜௌ<br>0B9C<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT SS" | ஷ்<br>0BB7<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER SSA" | ஷ<br>0BB7<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSAA" | ஷா<br>0BB7<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSI" | ஷி<br>0BB7<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSII" | ஷீ<br>0BB7<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSU" | ஷு<br>0BB7<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSUU" | ஷூ<br>0BB7<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSE" | ஷெ<br>0BB7<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSEE" | ஷே<br>0BB7<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSAI" | ஷை<br>0BB7<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSO" | ஷொ<br>0BB7<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSOO" | ஷோ<br>0BB7<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SSAU" | ஷௌ<br>0BB7<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT S" | ஸ்<br>0BB8<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER SA" | ஸ<br>0BB8<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SAA" | ஸா<br>0BB8<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SI" | ஸி<br>0BB8<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SII" | ஸீ<br>0BB8<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SU" | ஸு<br>0BB8<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SUU" | ஸூ<br>0BB8<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SE" | ஸெ<br>0BB8<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SEE" | ஸே<br>0BB8<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SAI" | ஸை<br>0BB8<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SO" | ஸொ<br>0BB8<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SOO" | ஸோ<br>0BB8<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE SAU" | ஸௌ<br>0BB8<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT H" | ஹ்<br>0BB9<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL LETTER HA" | ஹ<br>0BB9<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HAA" | ஹா<br>0BB9<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HI" | ஹி<br>0BB9<br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HII" | ஹீ<br>0BB9<br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HU" | ஹு<br>0BB9<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HUU" | ஹூ<br>0BB9<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HE" | ஹெ<br>0BB9<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HEE" | ஹே<br>0BB9<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HAI" | ஹை<br>0BB9<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HO" | ஹொ<br>0BB9<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HOO" | ஹோ<br>0BB9<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE HAU" | ஹௌ<br>0BB9<br>0BCC
|-
! scope="row" title="TAMIL CONSONANT KSS" | க்ஷ்<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BCD
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSA" | க்ஷ<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>&nbsp;
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSAA" | க்ஷா<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BBE
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSI" | க்ஷி<br>0B95<br>0BCD <br>0BB7 <br>0BBF
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSII" | க்ஷீ<br>0B95<br>0BCD <br>0BB7 <br>0BC0
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSU" | க்ஷு<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BC1
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSUU" | க்ஷூ<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BC2
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSE" | க்ஷெ<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BC6
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSEE" | க்ஷே<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BC7
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSAI" | க்ஷை<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BC8
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSO" | க்ஷொ<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BCA
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSOO" | க்ஷோ<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BCB
| title="TAMIL SYLLABLE KSSAU" | க்ஷெள<br>0B95<br>0BCD<br>0BB7<br>0BCC
|}

=== Programmatic access ===
* Tamil script can be manipulated using the [[Python (programming language)|Python]] library called '''open-Tamil'''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://pypi.python.org/pypi/Open-Tamil/|title=Open-Tamil 0.65 : Python Package Index}}</ref>
* There is a Windows open source application available called [https://github.com/ThaniThamizhAkarathiKalanjiyam/AnyTaFont2UTF8 AnyTaFont2UTF8] using C#.

==See also==
{{Div col}}
*[[Simplified Tamil script]]
*[[Tamil phonology]]
*[[Tamil Keyboard]]
*[[Tamil Braille]]
*[[:b:ta:தமிழ் எழுத்துகள்|Tamil letters]] (on Tamil Wikibooks)
*[[Tamil numerals]]
*[[Tamil units of measurement]]
*[[Grantha script]]
*[[Vatteluttu script]]
*[[Tamil-Brahmi]]
*[[Pallava script]]
*[[Kolezhuthu]]
*[[Arwi]]
*[[Tamil bell]]
*[[Malayalam Script]]
*[[ISO 15919]]
{{div col end}}

==Explanatory notes==
{{notelist}}
{{reflist|group=n}}

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* {{Citation | last=Mahadevan | first=Iravatham | year=2003 | title=Early Tamil Epigraphy from the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D. | series=[[Harvard Oriental Series]], Volume 62 | place=Cambridge | publisher=Harvard University Press | isbn=0-674-01227-5}}
* {{Citation |last=Steever |first=Sanford B. |year=1996 |chapter=Tamil Writing |editor-first=William |editor-last=Bright |editor2-first=Peter T. |editor2-last=Daniels |title=The World's Writing Systems |location=New York |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195079937/page/426 426–430] |isbn=0-19-507993-0 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780195079937/page/426 }}

==External links==
{{commons category-inline}}
* [https://www.tnarch.gov.in/keeladi Findings at Keeladi Site dates back to 6th Century BCE]
*[http://www.ibiblio.org/tamil/paadanool/pdf/introduction.pdf Tamil Alphabet & Basics](PDF) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140808050357/http://www.ibiblio.org/tamil/paadanool/pdf/introduction.pdf |date=8 August 2014 }}
*
*[http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/plc/tamilweb/book/chapter1/node5.html#SECTION00120000000000000000 Phonetics of spoken Tamil]
* [https://www.unicode.org/charts/PDF/U0B80.pdf Unicode Chart] – For Tamil ([[Portable Document Format|PDF]])
* [http://www.tamilvu.org/coresite/download/TACE16_Report_English.pdf TACE 16] (PDF)
*[http://www.learntamil.com Learn Tamil]
*[http://eluthu.com/user/tamil-padi/index.php Tamil Letters]
*[https://internetlk.com/unicode-to-bamini/ Tamil Unicode Keyboard]
{{list of writing systems}}
{{Tamil language}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tamil Script}}
[[Category:Tamil script| ]]
[[Category:Tamil language|Script, Tamil]]
[[Category:Brahmic scripts]]