: Authors like Shyam Selvadurai , who is of mixed Tamil-Sinhala parentage, explore the nuances of identity in works like Funny Boy .
Predominantly Hindu and speaking a Dravidian language, Tamils have an ancient presence in southern India and northern Sri Lanka. Archaeological evidence suggests South Indian influences and settlements from the early Iron Age. Sri Lankan Tamils are often divided into two groups: Sri Lankan Tamils , whose ancestors have lived primarily in the north and east for centuries, and Indian Tamils , brought by the British in the 19th century to work on hill-country tea and coffee plantations. tamil sinhala