request for reading literature.

[N. Ganesan]

K.V. Zvelebil's _Dravidian Linguistics: An Introduction_, 1990
"Dravidian speakers came from the
West by the _same_ route or at the _same_ time. Some may have come
through Afghanistan via the mountain passes and river valleys; others
may have come along the coast, possibly even by sea." (p. 47).
                               ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

 Does this have anything to do with David McAlpin's
 Elam - Brahui - South Dravidian theory. Recently,
 Mr. Karp informed of Prof. J. Braun's work on the
 relations between Elamite and Dravidian.

 Interestingly, Tamils in Sri Lanka are called Elamites!
 (Eelam). (cf. Sangam Tamil texts).

-----------

 Dravidians could have reached South India and Ceylon
 in very early times by Sea voyages. This is corroborated
 atleast in historical times.

 For example, expansion from South India into Southeast Asia,
 SaatavAhanas, Pallavas, Cholas, ... This shows seafaring abilities
 of Dravidians.

 Tamil inscriptions have been found in Egypt (last 3-4 years old
 article, JAOS), China (Southern coast, found in 1956),
 Malaysia and Indonesia.

 Any compreshensive studies on Tamil inscriptions found
 outside of India. Any pointers are highly appreciated.

 With kind regards,
 N. Ganesan




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