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Glite Dictionary
Dravidian language

Dravidian language

9.9
A family of languages like Tamil and Telugu spoken in southern India and Sri Lanka
  • noun
translation icon : lengua dravídica
  • Tamil is a prominent Dravidian language spoken by millions in southern India and Sri Lanka.

Examples

  • Malayalam, another Dravidian language, is widely used in the Indian state of Kerala.

  • Linguists have traced the origins of many words in a Dravidian language back thousands of years.

  • The Dravidian languages include Tamil and Telugu.

  • Many people in India speak a Dravidian language.

  • Tamil is a prominent Dravidian language spoken by millions in southern India and Sri Lanka.

  • Malayalam, another Dravidian language, is widely used in the Indian state of Kerala.

  • Linguists have traced the origins of many words in a Dravidian language back thousands of years.

Synonyms

Dravidic
vsDravidian language
  • Specialized
9.9

A family of languages spoken mostly in southern and central India and Sri Lanka like Tamil and Telugu

also highlights presence in parts of Southeast Asia beyond India and Sri Lanka
Dravidian
vsDravidian language
9.9

A group of languages spoken mainly in southern and central India and Sri Lanka

focuses more on listing member languages and broader Southeast Asia presence

Surface Forms

Dravidian language singular
Dravidian languages plural

Morphology

Dravidian + language

The meaning is directly compositional: 'Dravidian' names a language family and 'language' labels a spoken/written system, so 'Dravidian language' straightforwardly means a language of the Dravidian family. This adjective+noun pattern is a standard, cross-linguistic way to form language-family labels and would be predictable to B1 learners who know both constituents.

Etymology

Dravidian language may come from an old word 'Dravida' that people used for the southern part of India. That's why the term labels the group of languages spoken in the south, like Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam.