Which faculty? in Tamil
Two students meet on the university grounds in Tamil. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «வணக்கம், நீங்க எந்த பீடத்தில படிக்கிறீங்க?» — Hello, which faculty do you study in?; «நான் கலைப் பீடத்தில. என் துறை வரலாறு» — The humanities. My major is history. Every line can be played right on the page. The conversation is predictable: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: two students meet on the university grounds. The conversation is short and predictable — which is exactly what makes it good for a first try: few lines, and almost all of them repeat from one exchange to the next.
- வணக்கம், நீங்க எந்த பீடத்தில படிக்கிறீங்க?vaṇakkam, nīṅga enda pīḍattila paḍikkiṟīṅga?Hello, which faculty do you study in?
- நான் கலைப் பீடத்தில. என் துறை வரலாறுnāṉ kalaip pīḍattila. eṉ tuṟai varalāṟuThe humanities. My major is history.
- இன்னிக்கு விரிவுரை இருக்கா?iṉṉikku virivurai irukkā?Are there lectures today?
- ரெண்டு இருக்கு. அப்புறம் ஒரு கருத்தரங்குreṇḍu irukku. appuṟam oru karuttaraṅguTwo. Then a seminar as well.
- உங்களுக்கு புலமைப்பரிசில் கிடைச்சதா?uṅgaḷukku pulamaipparisil kiḍaiccadā?Did you get a scholarship?
- ஆமாம். அதனால நான் மாணவர் விடுதியில தங்கிறேன்āmām. adaṉāla nāṉ māṇavar viḍudiyila taṅgiṟēṉYes. That is why I live in the dormitory.
- அடுத்த வாரம் தவணைப் பரீட்சை. தயார் ஆகுறீங்களா?aḍutta vāram tavaṇaip parīṭcai. tayār āguṟīṅgaḷā?There is a test next week. Are you preparing?
- ஒவ்வொரு நாளும் படிக்கிறேன். மறுபரீட்சை எனக்கு வேண்டாம்ovvoru nāḷum paḍikkiṟēṉ. maṟuparīṭcai eṉakku vēṇḍāmI study every day. I do not need a retake.
Lines one by one
| Tamil | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| வணக்கம், நீங்க எந்த பீடத்தில படிக்கிறீங்க? | vaṇakkam, nīṅga enda pīḍattila paḍikkiṟīṅga? | Hello, which faculty do you study in? |
| நான் கலைப் பீடத்தில. என் துறை வரலாறு | nāṉ kalaip pīḍattila. eṉ tuṟai varalāṟu | The humanities. My major is history. |
| இன்னிக்கு விரிவுரை இருக்கா? | iṉṉikku virivurai irukkā? | Are there lectures today? |
| ரெண்டு இருக்கு. அப்புறம் ஒரு கருத்தரங்கு | reṇḍu irukku. appuṟam oru karuttaraṅgu | Two. Then a seminar as well. |
| உங்களுக்கு புலமைப்பரிசில் கிடைச்சதா? | uṅgaḷukku pulamaipparisil kiḍaiccadā? | Did you get a scholarship? |
| ஆமாம். அதனால நான் மாணவர் விடுதியில தங்கிறேன் | āmām. adaṉāla nāṉ māṇavar viḍudiyila taṅgiṟēṉ | Yes. That is why I live in the dormitory. |
| அடுத்த வாரம் தவணைப் பரீட்சை. தயார் ஆகுறீங்களா? | aḍutta vāram tavaṇaip parīṭcai. tayār āguṟīṅgaḷā? | There is a test next week. Are you preparing? |
| ஒவ்வொரு நாளும் படிக்கிறேன். மறுபரீட்சை எனக்கு வேண்டாம் | ovvoru nāḷum paḍikkiṟēṉ. maṟuparīṭcai eṉakku vēṇḍām | I study every day. I do not need a retake. |
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 it gets in the way badly. It is one of the most reliably measured findings in the entire field.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, நீங்க எந்த பீடத்தில படிக்கிறீங்க?” (vaṇakkam, nīṅga enda pīḍattila paḍikkiṟīṅga?) — Hello, which faculty do you study in?. 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.