Maia

Learn Tamil.

தமிழ்

A structured course in Tamil, built for its unique script, agglutinative grammar, and the significant gap between written and spoken forms that confuses every learner.

Start your Tamil course

Why Tamil

Tamil is one of the oldest continuously spoken languages in the world, with a literary tradition spanning over two millennia. It's the official language of Tamil Nadu in India and of Sri Lanka, and it's spoken by large diaspora communities in Singapore, Malaysia, and around the world.

Tamil has a fierce cultural identity tied to its language. For heritage speakers reconnecting with family, or for anyone drawn to South Indian culture, music, or cinema, learning Tamil opens a door that no other language can.

What makes Tamil challenging — and how Maia helps

The Tamil script

Tamil has its own script with 12 vowels and 18 consonants that combine into 216 compound characters. Maia introduces these systematically, grouping by phonetic similarity rather than alphabetical order.

Written vs. spoken Tamil

Formal written Tamil (sentamizh) and everyday spoken Tamil (koduntamizh) differ enough to feel like separate languages. Maia teaches spoken Tamil for conversation while building reading ability in the written form.

Agglutinative grammar

Tamil builds meaning by stacking suffixes onto word stems. A single verb can carry information about tense, person, number, and mood. Maia breaks down these suffix patterns piece by piece.

What your course includes

  • •Lessons covering Tamil script through conversational practice
  • •AI podcast episodes mixing Tamil and English
  • •Script recognition, vocabulary, and grammar exercises
  • •Spaced repetition for characters and vocabulary
  • •Adaptive curriculum based on your progress

Sample lesson topics

  1. 1.Tamil vowels and consonants: reading your first words
  2. 2.Greetings and introductions: vanakkam and beyond
  3. 3.Basic sentences: subject, object, and verb order
  4. 4.Numbers, time, and everyday phrases
  5. 5.Verb conjugation: tense suffixes in practice
  6. 6.At the restaurant: ordering food and expressing preferences
Start learning Tamil

Free to start. No credit card required.