FAQ

What does an Endowed Chair mean?
An endowed chair is an academic unit under a specific department in an institution of higher education to teach and research, with the financial support of donors and it lasts in perpetuity.
What is Tamil Chair, Inc.?
In 2015, Harvard University accepted a proposal to set up a “Sangam Tamil Chair” in the Department of South Asian Studies with the focus being on Sangam Tamil Literature and all Tamil literature influenced by it. Subsequently Tamil Chair Inc. a non-profit organization was registered in the state of Maryland specifically to collect funds for the establishment of the Tamil Chair at Harvard and any future initiatives in other world universities. Donations given to Tamil Chair Inc. are deductible in US federal tax income under IRS regulation 501 (C) (3).
Why do we need Tamil Chairs at universities?
Tamil language has ancient literature dating back to around 300 B.C. Tamil is one of the classical languages of the world, with Greek, Sanskrit, Latin, Hebrew, Persian, and Chinese being the others. The Tamil language has had a continuous and vibrant literary history which continues to this day. Tamil is the 20th most spoken language (by 80 million people) in the world. Today, Tamil is spoken in many countries of the world.

Tamil literature is a vast field and there are many areas which need to be researched. Tamil needs to be taught at institutions where other classical languages of the world are taught. Also, there are many Tamils from all over the world who attend reputed universities like Harvard or Berkeley. Hence Tamil was already taught in some of these universities at a basic level. It is a matter of prestige for the Tamil community to set up a Tamil chair at the oldest and most leading academic institutions in the United States and other countries. It will also help produce Tamil scholars who will be trained in modern research methodologies.

For example, there is research and progressive work done in other classical languages at various international academic centers. It is quite urgent and highly imperative that the same attention be given to the Tamil language. It will enhance the chances for its continual use and growth and gain global recognition.

Why Harvard Sangam Chair?
Harvard University, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA, established in 1636, is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and is considered as one of the celebrated citadels of Higher Education in the world. It has produced many U.S. presidents, noble prize winners and celebrated scholars. Being a teaching and research university, Harvard provides great opportunities for Tamil students, scholars and researchers.

Representing many different countries, languages, and research interests, Harvard functions as a premier academic hub promoting great diversity and intellectual vitality. Harvard has many of the best scholars in the world in its teaching faculty. Except Tamil, all the 7 classical languages were already being researched by scholars at Harvard. Hence it was natural that Harvard was looking for a funding to start Tamil research. Since Sangam literature is the basis of all later Tamil literature including our bhakti literature, all related literature will also be taught and researched. Most other Tamil literature including the contemporary one are being studied by researchers at universities in India and Sri Lanka.

What is the status of Harvard Sangam Chair?

Six million U.S dollars, the total commitment for setting up the Tamil Chair, were contributed by Tamils worldwide, Tamil Nadu Government and many Tamil organizations and businesses. The money was handed over to Harvard in May 2018    Professor Martha Ann Selby was appointed as Sangam Tamil Chair Professor in July 2022 and started the groundwork. Two PhD students are expected to join the Tamil department at Harvard from September 2024.

What are the other initiatives Tamil Chair Inc. has involved?

Toronto Tamil Chair:
Tamil community in Canada and the United States pledged $3-million to U of Toronto Scarborough for chair in Tamil studies. Canadian Tamil Congress, and Tamil Chair Inc. raised the funds to support the endowment for a full-time chair position that will explore aspects of Tamil language, history and culture through research and scholarship and paid to the University of Toronto in April 2021. A generous donation of approximately $250,000 came from SJV Chelvanayagam Charitable foundation. Subsequently the University started the search internationally for a suitable Tamil scholar and announced that Professor Sidharthan Maunaguru will be the inaugural Chair of Tamil Studies at University of Toronto Scarborough from January 2024.

University of Cologne – Germany
Tamil Department functioning for the past 50 years was about be to be discontinued from Sept.2019
Tamil Chair Inc. took upon the issue and paid a grant of $176,142 and extended the Tamil Teaching temporarily under the leadership of Sven Wortmann. Subsequently Tamil Nadu government had signed an MoU with the University of Cologne and paid funds to extend the department permanently!

Thirumoolar Tamil Chair
Thirumoolar Tamil Chair is an initiative of Tamil Chair Inc. Currently, talks are almost in the final stage of signing an MoU with the Medical University of South Carolina. This will be the first time a Tamil Chair will be installed at a Medical University in the USA.

The goal of this Chair would be to promote evidence-based medical research using yogic principles of the Tamil Siddha tradition. Previous work at MUSC has established the use of Thirumoolar Pranayama in clinical practice in cancer and its biological mechanisms. Ongoing projects at MUSC include Pranayama for cancer survivorship, Pranayama for radiation therapy delivery, Pranayama for employee wellness, and Pranayama and yoga for aging, and scleroderma.

Aringer Anna Tamil Endowment at University of California, Berkeley
When the first Tamil Chair in the US was established 20 years ago at the University of California, Berkeley, the initial funding was guaranteed for one Professor. The University added another Tamil instructor, but this teaching position is likely to be removed due to the depletion of the current market value of the Endowment Fund.
Tamil Chair Inc has signed up a memo to establish “Aringer Anna Tamil Studies Endowment” for $1 Million and guarantee the funding for the second teaching position. Tamil Chair Inc. has already donated the initial seed money of $25000 and planned to raise the remaining funds. We have also approached Tamil Nadu government for some support.

Tamil Knowledge Campus (TKC) at Roja Muthiah Research Library (RMRL)
Thirty years of experience at RMRL culminated in the idea of creating the Tamil Knowledge Campus that aims to provide a space, physical as well as virtual, for public engagement. This space will provide the users access to archival resources for learning, researching, observing, deliberating and co-creating knowledge. It will a vibrant space dedicated to research, knowledge building, and showcasing Tamil history, heritage and culture.

TKC will be an umbrella organization encompassing Roja Muthiah Research Library & Museum of Print Culture, Indus Research Centre & Indus Interpretation Centre, and Centre for Study in Public Sphere.