🇮🇳 Tamil Interpreter

An official Tamil paper may come from Chennai, Madurai, Puducherry, Jaffna, Colombo or Singapore, and each of these places has its own register, its own numbering rules and its own certification route. That is why translating a Tamil document starts with one question: which country and which authority issued this document.

You need a Tamil interpreter when a document is written in தமிழ் script or when a Georgian text has to be prepared for a Tamil-speaking recipient. TARGMANEBI prepares written translations in both directions: civil records, Tamil Nadu Revenue Department certificates, Sri Lankan register extracts, school and university documents, and clinical, banking and land documents.

Tamil-language documents often have two or three languages on one sheet: in India Tamil is accompanied by English, and in Sri Lanka by Sinhala and English. In the translation each language part stays in its place, and no information that is written in only one language gets lost - for example, a handwritten Tamil note in the margin of an English form.

Translation from Tamil into Georgian and from Georgian into Tamil

Documents submitted to Georgian state agencies, universities, banks, notary offices and courts are translated from Tamil into Georgian. From Georgian into Tamil, we prepare texts that have to be read by a recipient living in Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka or Singapore: a family member, an employer, a private partner or a local organization.

If the receiving body asks for an English version, tell us in advance. Sometimes an English translation of the Tamil original is more practical than a Georgian one, especially when the package is going to a third country. In such cases we also use the English interpreter service.

The Tamil language: Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Sri Lanka and Singapore

Tamil belongs to the Dravidian language family and is one of the languages with the oldest written traditions in South Asia. In India it is the official language of the state of Tamil Nadu and of the Union Territory of Puducherry, and it is included in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India. In 2004 the Government of India granted Tamil classical language status - the first language to receive it.

Under Article 18 of the Constitution of Sri Lanka, the official language is Sinhala, Tamil is also an official language, and English serves as the link language. Article 153A of the Constitution of Singapore names four official languages: Malay, Mandarin Chinese, Tamil and English. Tamil-speaking communities also live in Malaysia; for documents from there the Malay interpreter page is useful as well.

This geography has practical consequences. A birth certificate from the Chennai municipality, a marriage extract from a Jaffna Divisional Secretariat and a Singapore school certificate belong to three different legal systems, although all three may contain Tamil text. Both the terminology of the translation and the certification route change from country to country.

தமிழ் script and the particularities of reading it

Tamil script is an abugida: a consonant sign carries an inherent vowel, and any other vowel is marked with an additional sign. The basic alphabet consists of 12 vowels, 18 consonants and one special sign - ஃ (aytham). Their combinations produce hundreds of syllabic forms, so on a blurry scan the loss of even one small curve changes the meaning of a word.

For a Georgian reader the main difficulty is that a Tamil letter often writes a voiceless and a voiced sound in the same way: one and the same sign may be pronounced as "k" or "g" depending on its position. Because of this, the Latin form of a name cannot be reconstructed unambiguously from the Tamil letters alone - Ganesan and Kanesan may be two different readings of one and the same Tamil entry.

In old or ceremonial texts Tamil numerals are sometimes found too, while modern official forms usually use international digits. We carry over the number, the date and the amount unchanged and, if the original has an English field, we also compare them with it.

Name structure: the father's initial and the absence of a surname

Tamil names often have no surname at all in the European sense. A common form in Tamil Nadu puts the initial of the father's name before the given name: R. Senthil means that R is the first letter of the father's name, not a middle name or a family name. In some documents the initial is written after the name, and in others the father's name is spelled out in full.

In an Indian passport application, initials as a rule have to be spelled out in full. As a result, the passport may say Senthil Rajendran, while the school certificate says R. Senthil. Some women use their husband's name instead of their father's name after marriage, so the structure of the name can change between one person's documents from different years.

In the Georgian translation we do not "invent" a surname. The name is carried over exactly as it appears in the document, and the Georgian transliteration is checked against the valid passport. If the form of the name differs between two documents, we let you know in advance, so that, if needed, you can obtain an additional document confirming your identity in good time.

Which Tamil documents are translated?

Tamil Nadu birth and death certificates

In Tamil Nadu the registration of births and deaths is based on the 1969 central act (Registration of Births and Deaths Act) and the state rules of 2000. Within Chennai the records are kept by the Greater Chennai Corporation, while in the other districts of the state an online civil registration system is used. A downloaded certificate carries a digital signature.

A certificate may have Tamil and English fields together, while a note added by hand may be in Tamil only. In the translation we clearly distinguish the registration number, the date of registration, the date the certificate was printed and the place of birth - a hospital, a home or another institution. In old records where the child's name was not given at registration, a name entered later may appear; this entry is translated in full as well.

For more on the general rules for civil records, see the birth certificate translation page.

Community, Nativity and Legal Heir - Revenue Department certificates

In Tamil Nadu, certificates of the state Revenue Department are often requested through the TNeSevai portal, created by the Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency. Its list of services has Community Certificate, Nativity Certificate and Income Certificate as separate items.

A Community Certificate confirms a person's community category under the state classification and in India is mainly used in education and employment. A Nativity Certificate confirms that the person is a native of the state. A Legal Heir Certificate lists the legal heirs of a deceased person and, as a rule, is issued by the taluk office (Tahsildar) after an on-site verification.

These certificates have no exact Georgian equivalent, so we translate the title descriptively and keep the original term in brackets. In an inheritance case in Georgia, whether a Legal Heir Certificate is sufficient is decided by the notary or the court, so find out in advance in what form they need it.

Marriage registration in Tamil Nadu

The Tamil Nadu Registration of Marriages Act, 2009 makes marriage registration mandatory for Indian citizens of all religions whose marriage took place in the state. The function of marriage registrar is performed by the Sub-Registrar Offices. At the same time, a marriage may also be recorded under the Hindu Marriage Act or the Special Marriage Act, and each certificate has its own form.

For the translation, the names of the spouses, their dates of birth, the parents' names, the addresses, the date and place of the marriage, the witnesses and the registration number are important. A certificate of a temple ceremony is a separate document and does not automatically replace the state registration certificate. For details, see marriage certificate translation.

Sri Lanka's civil register - Registrar General's Department

In Sri Lanka, birth, marriage and death records are kept by the Registrar General's Department, while certified copies are issued by the registration units of the Divisional Secretariats. If the record is in the electronic eBMD system, a copy can also be requested online; an old record, however, is requested from the secretariat where the event was originally registered.

Old Sri Lankan certificates were often filled in by hand, in Sinhala only or in Tamil only. The department itself also offers an official translation of the birth certificate, including from Tamil into English. On the new digital national birth certificate, according to the department's explanation, the text is in two languages: Sinhala and English, or Tamil and English.

When translating for a Georgian agency, we check in which language the fields are filled in and which part is only the printed template. On a marriage certificate we pay attention to the regime under which the marriage was registered, because in Sri Lanka different rules apply to general, Kandyan and Muslim marriages.

The Sri Lankan NIC: the old and the new number

The Sri Lankan National Identity Card (NIC) is issued by the Department for Registration of Persons. Since 2016 new cards have been issued with a 12-digit number, without a Latin letter at the end. The old format - nine digits and a letter at the end, usually V - is still found on cards issued in earlier years and in old certificates.

The first four digits of the new number indicate the year of birth, so when checking we also compare the NIC number with the date of birth. One person's old and new documents may show numbers in two different formats. This is not an error, and in the translation both stay exactly as they are in the original.

Singapore documents and Tamil text

In Singapore Tamil is an official language, but most state documents are issued in English. Tamil text is more often found in certificates of school Tamil language courses, in letters from community and religious organizations, in family correspondence and in personal documents.

If a Singapore document is entirely in English, no Tamil interpreter is needed - in that case we translate from English into Georgian. With a mixed text, we process the parts in both languages in one translation, so that the recipient receives a single, consistent document.

School and university documents

A graduate of a Tamil Nadu State Board school usually has SSLC (tenth grade) and HSC (twelfth grade) mark sheets, issued by the Directorate of Government Examinations. The result is first published online in a provisional form, while the original is handed to the student through the school. The directorate also has an online verification system for mark sheets.

In Sri Lanka the main school documents are the G.C.E. Ordinary Level and Advanced Level certificates, issued by the Department of Examinations. A university package in both countries often includes a provisional certificate, a consolidated mark statement, a degree certificate, a transfer certificate and a conduct certificate.

In the translation we keep the registration number, the sequence of semesters, the credits, the CGPA and the classification (First Class, Distinction, etc.). We do not convert the grades into the Georgian system - that is the competence of the recognition body. See diploma translation.

Students from India in Georgia

Many students from India, including from Tamil Nadu, study at Georgian universities. Most of the documents needed at the enrollment and residence stage are in English, but a Tamil translation is often needed for family documents: a parent's income certificate, a land record, an old birth certificate or a sponsor's bank statement with notes in Tamil.

After graduation the opposite need arises: a Georgian diploma, an academic certificate or a clinical practice document has to be submitted in India. In such cases the receiving body as a rule asks for an English translation, and the Georgian apostille on the Georgian document is a separate stage. The sequence has to be planned in advance; for details, see the apostille page.

Land and real estate: Patta, Chitta and Encumbrance Certificate

In Tamil Nadu the main records of a land plot are Patta and Chitta, which show the owner, the survey number and the land classification. The Encumbrance Certificate, locally often called Villangam, is different: it lists the registered transactions involving the property for a specific period and is requested on TNREGINET, the portal of the state Registration Department.

In Georgia these documents are mainly used to prove the source of funds, a sponsor's financial position or an inheritance. They contain many local terms: taluk, village, survey number, subdivision, sub-registrar office. We do not artificially Georgianize such words - we keep the original form and add a short explanation at the first mention.

Clinical and banking documents

Clinical records in India and Sri Lanka are mostly written in English, but Tamil may appear in a doctor's handwritten note, a patient's informed consent, a regional hospital's form or an insurance application. We check doses, units, the names of medicines and dates one by one. See medical certificate translation.

In a bank statement, a loan agreement and an income certificate the amount and the currency (INR, LKR or SGD) are carried over unchanged. In Indian documents digits are often grouped by lakh and crore, for example 12,50,000 - this notation does not look like the European one, but in the translation the number stays in the same form and is not converted into another currency.

Apostille: India and Singapore

India is a party to the 1961 Hague Apostille Convention: according to the HCCH status table, the convention entered into force for India on 14 July 2005. The apostille is issued by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, including at its regional branches - in Chennai the MEA Branch Secretariat operates. Before that, the document is usually authenticated at state level: a personal document at the state Home or General Administration Department, an educational one at the Education Department.

For Singapore the convention entered into force on 16 September 2021, and the authority issuing the apostille is the Singapore Academy of Law. Georgia has been a party to the convention since 14 May 2007, so an Indian or Singapore apostille in Georgia, in general, no longer requires additional consular legalization. The requirement of the specific agency should still be checked in advance.

A practical tip: first have the apostille put on the original, and then send us the complete package, so that the text of the apostille is translated as well. If the apostille is added after the translation has been prepared, the translation may need to be updated.

Sri Lanka: legalization instead of an apostille

In the HCCH status table of the Apostille Convention, Sri Lanka does not appear as a contracting state at this time. Therefore a legalization chain is usually used for a Sri Lankan document: first the document is authenticated by the issuing or supervising body, and then by the Consular Affairs Division of the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which carries out the authentication through an electronic system (e-DAS).

The next stage is usually a diplomatic mission of Georgia. The Embassy of Georgia in India, in New Delhi, is also accredited to Sri Lanka. Which stages the specific Georgian agency requires should be clarified in advance, before you prepare the document for translation.

A Georgian document that has to be submitted in Sri Lanka also goes through legalization. In such a case, first obtain the recipient's written instructions: they show in which language the translation is needed and which certification is mandatory.

Notarized translation in Georgia

In Georgia a translation for official submission is often notarized. In this procedure the translator signs the translation in the presence of the notary, and the notary confirms the authenticity of the translator's signature. The notary does not check the content of the translation, nor the authenticity of the Tamil Nadu, Sri Lankan or Singapore document - that is the function of the apostille or legalization.

The translation is attached to the original or to its copy, the pages are bound and the notarial act is drawn up as one package. If you need the same document for several agencies, tell us in advance how many copies have to be prepared. In detail - on the notarized translation page.

Quality control in Tamil translation

Every translation goes through a second reading: names, figures and dates are checked separately against the original, and local terms against official sources.

How do I order a Tamil translation?

Turnaround time

A Tamil document of standard volume is usually ready the same or the next day. This is a typical turnaround, not a guarantee: many pages, handwritten entries, a damaged scan or notarization change the time. We will agree the specific turnaround with you after seeing the document.

Tamil translation in Tbilisi and remotely

The office is located in Tbilisi, at 118 Davit Aghmashenebeli Avenue. If you are in Batumi, Kutaisi or abroad, you can send the document remotely, and we will agree in advance on how the notarized copy will be handed over. For other South Asian languages, see the Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam and Punjabi language pages, and for the list of all languages - the interpreter services page.

An image sent through a messenger is often compressed, and the small curves of Tamil letters and the vowel signs get lost. If the text is small, it is better to send the original file or a PDF made with a scanner.

Official sources

The links below help you identify the type of document and the issuing system. They do not replace checking the receiving agency's requirement in writing.

Frequently asked questions