பேச்சு:மலையகத் தமிழர்

கட்டற்ற கலைக்களஞ்சியமான விக்கிபீடியாவில் இருந்து.

These emphasise how the history of the people is intertwined with the plantation sector and reflect the fact
that most Upcountry Tamils still live within it. The terms do not include residents of up-country towns,
however, as do “Up-country Tamil” and “Hill-country Tamil.” The latter two, moreover,
reflect a phenomenological attachment to the landscapes of the island’s interior. All these last
four terms can be perceived as exclusive in the sense that the people living outside the upcountry
and the plantations are defined away. This need not be the case, however, if the
names are taken as recognition of the immense importance of the plantations and the upcountry
in shaping a collective identity, rather than as defining criteria for membership. When
I, as Bass, have chosen to use “Up-country Tamil” it is primarily because it agrees with the
Tamil term which seems to be coming out on top: “malaiyakam thamilar” (literally Tamils of
the Mountains or Hills). I do believe, after all, that it should be the prerogative of the group in
question to name itself. There is, however, no clear consensus among the Up-country Tamils."

http://folk.ntnu.no/haakoa/Haakon%20Aasprong%20-%20Making%20a%20Home%20away%20from%20Home.pdf