How to Express Time and Dates in Tamil for English Speakers

Understanding the Tamil Calendar and Time System

Tamil uses its own traditional calendar alongside the Gregorian calendar. When expressing dates, both systems can be used, but the Gregorian calendar is more common in daily life. Time is expressed using a 12-hour format with specific Tamil terms for morning, afternoon, evening, and night.

Tamil Months and Days of the Week

The Tamil calendar has 12 months, each with unique names. Similarly, the days of the week have Tamil names derived from celestial bodies and planets.

• January -தை (Thai)
• February -மாசி (Masi)
• March -பங்குனி (Panguni)
• April -சித்திரை (Chithirai)
• May -வைகாசி (Vaikasi)
• June -ஆனி (Aani)
• July -ஆடி (Aadi)
• August -ஆவணி (Aavani)
• September -புரட்டாசி (Purattasi)
• October -ஐப்பசி (Aippasi)
• November -கார்த்திகை (Karthigai)
• December -மார்கழி (Margazhi)

• Sunday - ஞாயிறு (Nyayiru)
• Monday - திங்கள் (Thingal)
• Tuesday - செவ்வாய் (Sevvai)
• Wednesday - புதன் (Budhan)
• Thursday - வியாழன் (Viyazhan)
• Friday - வெள்ளி (Velli)
• Saturday - சனி (Sani)

Expressing Time in Tamil

To tell time in Tamil, you use the numbers followed by the word for hour (மணி, maɳi) and minutes (நிமிடம், nimidam). The day is divided into parts with specific words to indicate morning, afternoon, evening, and night.

• Morning - காலை (Kaalai)
• Afternoon - மதியம் (Mathiyam)
• Evening - மாலை (Maalai)
• Night - இரவு (Iravu)

For example, 7:30 AM would be expressed as 'காலை ஏழு மணி முப்பது நிமிடம்' (kaalai ezhu mani muppathu nimidam).

Common Phrases to Express Time and Dates in Tamil

Tips for English Speakers Learning Tamil Time and Date Expressions

Remember that Tamil numbers are essential for telling time and dates, so practicing them will help a lot. Also, the word order in Tamil is often different from English, with the time or date usually coming before the verb. Listening to native speakers and practicing common phrases will improve your fluency.