LingoflyAt the notary in Tamil
A notary office: certifying a document in Tamil. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «வணக்கம் (vaṇakkam), ஒரு (oru) ஆவண (āvaṇa) மொழிபெயர்ப்பை சான்றுப்படுத்தவேணும்» — Hello, a document needs to be certified; «எந்த (enda) ஆவணம் (āvaṇam)? மூலமும் நகலும் ரெண்டும் (reṇḍum) கொண்டு (koṇḍu) வந்தியளா (vandiyaḷā)?» — Which document? Did you bring both the original and a copy? Every line can be played right on the page.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a notary office: certifying a document. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- வணக்கம், ஒரு ஆவண மொழிபெயர்ப்பை சான்றுப்படுத்தவேணும்vaṇakkam, oru āvaṇa moḻibeyarppai sāṉṟuppaḍuttavēṇumHello, a document needs to be certified.
- பிறப்புச் சான்றிதழ். நகல் ரெண்டு எடுத்திட்டன்piṟappuc sāṉṟidaḻ. nagal reṇḍu eḍuttiṭṭaṉA birth certificate. I made two copies.
- இந்தாங்கோ. வதிவிடப் பதிவுக்கும் இதே ஆவணம் போதுமா?indāṅgō. vadiviḍap padivukkum idē āvaṇam pōdumā?Here. Is this document enough for residence registration?
- parisīlaṉaik kālam evvaḷavu nāḷ eḍukkum?How many days will the review take?
- mūṇu kiḻamai irukkum. avasarameṇḍā uttiyōgapūrva kōrikkai eḻuduṅgōAbout three weeks, probably. If it is urgent, file an official request.
Lines one by one
| Tamil | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| வணக்கம் (vaṇakkam), ஒரு (oru) ஆவண (āvaṇa) மொழிபெயர்ப்பை சான்றுப்படுத்தவேணும் | vaṇakkam, oru āvaṇa moḻibeyarppai sāṉṟuppaḍuttavēṇum | Hello, a document needs to be certified. |
| எந்த (enda) ஆவணம் (āvaṇam)? மூலமும் நகலும் ரெண்டும் (reṇḍum) கொண்டு (koṇḍu) வந்தியளா (vandiyaḷā)? | enda āvaṇam? mūlamum nagalum reṇḍum koṇḍu vandiyaḷā? | Which document? Did you bring both the original and a copy? |
| பிறப்புச் சான்றிதழ் (piṟappuc sāṉṟidaḻ). நகல் (nagal) ரெண்டு (reṇḍu) எடுத்திட்டன் | piṟappuc sāṉṟidaḻ. nagal reṇḍu eḍuttiṭṭaṉ | A birth certificate. I made two copies. |
| நல்லது (nalladu). உங்கட (uṅgaḍa) அடையாள (aḍaiyāḷa) அட்டையையும் காட்டுங்கோ (kāṭṭuṅgō) | nalladu. uṅgaḍa aḍaiyāḷa aṭṭaiyaiyum kāṭṭuṅgō | All right. Show your ID as well. |
| இந்தாங்கோ. வதிவிடப் (vadiviḍap) பதிவுக்கும் இதே ஆவணம் (āvaṇam) போதுமா? | indāṅgō. vadiviḍap padivukkum idē āvaṇam pōdumā? | Here. Is this document enough for residence registration? |
| போதாது (pōdādu). மின்சாரப் (miṉsārap) பில்லும் வேணும் (vēṇum). இல்லாட்டி (illāṭṭi) கிராம சேவகர் கடிதம் (kaḍidam) | pōdādu. miṉsārap billum vēṇum. illāṭṭi grāma sēvagar kaḍidam | Not enough. An electricity bill is needed too. Or a letter from the community head. |
| பரிசீலனைக் காலம் (parisīlaṉaik kālam) எவ்வளவு (evvaḷavu) நாள் (nāḷ) எடுக்கும் (eḍukkum)? | parisīlaṉaik kālam evvaḷavu nāḷ eḍukkum? | How many days will the review take? |
| மூணு (mūṇu) கிழமை (kiḻamai) இருக்கும் (irukkum). அவசரமெண்டா உத்தியோகபூர்வ கோரிக்கை (uttiyōgapūrva kōrikkai) எழுதுங்கோ (eḻuduṅgō) | mūṇu kiḻamai irukkum. avasarameṇḍā uttiyōgapūrva kōrikkai eḻuduṅgō | About three weeks, probably. If it is urgent, file an official request. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Tamil in this situation?
“வணக்கம் (vaṇakkam), ஒரு (oru) ஆவண (āvaṇa) மொழிபெயர்ப்பை சான்றுப்படுத்தவேணும்” (vaṇakkam, oru āvaṇa moḻibeyarppai sāṉṟuppaḍuttavēṇum) — Hello, a document needs to be certified. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.