| The present study is an attempt to analyse the history of the Muslims’ settlement in different parts of Tamilnadu. There are about 3 to 4 million Tamil Muslims in India mostly in Tamil Nadu state and also in neighbouring Kerala. A significant Tamil-speaking Muslim population numbering 1.8 million or more live in the Northern, Eastern provinces and Colombo in Sri Lanka and many other pockets across central, southwest provinces; however they are listed as a separate ethnic group in official statistics. There are around 500,000 in Malaysia and 20,000 in Singapore. Tamil Muslims are largely urban traders rather than farmers. There is a substantial diaspora of Tamil Muslims, particularly in South East Asia, which has seen their presence as early as the 13th century. |