Perfective and the aspectual verb இரு

The perfective in Tamil is expressed using இரு. இரு as an aspectual verb, like all other aspectual verbs, is added after AVP form of a verb with the meaning that the action has happened but still continues, or is relevant to the discussion at hand. When in the future or in the conditional, it is usually translated as 'would have VERB' (the "pluperfect") Rather than add a glide, if the AVP ends in a vowel, the final vowel is dropped. Negation of the perfect happens in a number of different ways, depending on the tense of இரு, the AVP (experiential or not), and whether the action/event denoted is habitual or not.

Imminent action

Perfective tense is used to denote any event that has already occurred but is current/relevant at the time of utterance.

1. இன்றைக்கு என்னுடைய அப்பா என்னுடைய அறைக்கு வந்திருக்கிறார் 'My father has visited me in my room (in the dormitory).

2. நான் நிறைய சப்பிட்டிருக்கிறேன். என்னால் இப்பொழுது உங்களோடு ஹோட்டலுக்கு வரமுடியாது. 'I have eaten too much. I can't come to the restaurant with you now.

3. நிறைய தண்ணி போட்டிருக்கிறார். நடக்கவே முடியவில்லை. 'He is drunk. He is unable to walk.

Past PerfectWhen இரு is in the past tense, the action is relevant to some point in time before the time of utterance (i.e., it already happened/was relevant with respect to a particular time in the past).

4. நான் நேற்று ஐந்து மணிக்கு அவருடைய வீட்டுக்குப் போனேன். அப்போது அவர் கடைக்குப் போயிருந்தார். 'At the time when I went to you his house, he had been to a store.'

When used in combination with conditional and/or the future, this suffix expresses the 'plu perfect' meaning (also called doubtful past), which means that the action didn't really happen, but there was chance for it to take place. Note that the second sentence is also an AVP plus இரு in the future tense.

3. எனக்கு தெரிந்திருந்திருந்தால், நான் வந்திருப்பேன். 'If I knew, I would have come.'

4. நீங்கள் அந்த வீட்டுக்குள்ளே போயிருந்தால் நாய் உங்களை கடித்திருக்கும். If you had gone inside that house, the dog would have bitten you.

5. இந்நேரம் என்னுடைய தம்பி இந்தியாவிலிருந்து நியூயார்க்குக்கு வந்திருப்பான்.
My younger brother would have returned to New York from India (might be in New York) by now.

6. நீங்கள் மட்டும் நேற்று என்னுடைய வீட்டுக்கு வராமல் இருந்திருந்தால் நான் ஒரு நல்ல தமிழ் சினிமாவுக்குப் போயிருப்பேன்.
If you hadn't come to my house yesterday, I would have gone to a good Tamil movie yesterday.

Future perfect in future time

7. அடுத்த மாதம் இந்நேரம் நான் இந்தியாவுக்குப் போயிருப்பேன்.
By this time next month I will have gone to India.

8. நான் நாளைக்கு உங்கள் வீட்டுக்கு வந்திருப்பேன் என்று வேண்டுமென்றே உன்னுடைய மாமியார் இன்றைக்கு வெளியூருக்குக் கிளம்பிவிட்டார் பாருங்கள்.
Having already known that I will have come to your house, your mother-in-law had left for another town today.

9. நாளைக்குக் காலையில் எட்டு மணிக்கெல்லாம் எல்லோரும் அலுவலகத்துக்குப் (office) போயிருப்பார்கள், நாம் நிம்மதியாக எட்டரை மணியிலிருந்து சினிமா பார்க்கலாம்
Everyone will have gone to their office by eight o'clock tomorrow, so that we can see the Tamil movie from eight thirt onwards peacefully.

Future Perfect Negation

10. நீங்கள் இப்படி தொண தொணவென்று பேசுவீர்கள் என்று தெரிந்திருந்தால் னான் உங்களோடு சினிமாவுக்கு வந்திருக்கவேமாட்டேன்.
If I had already known that you would blabber like this, I wouldn't have come with you to the movie.

11. இன்றைக்கு எட்டு மணிக்கெல்லாம் தூங்கியிருக்கமாட்டேன், னீங்கள் என்னைப் பார்க்க வரலாம்.
You can come and see me at eight o'clock, I will not have slept by then.

Experience

Unlike the imminent, past and future perfect denoting actions/events, இரு can also be used to express someone's experience of having done something in the past. Even though the forms that give this meaning is very similar to the present perfect forms, the meaning of habituality can be understood only through the context. The difference between these uses of the perfect is evident in its negation. The negation of the perfect when used to describe an experience takes a different form than the present perfect.

1. அவர் சிக்காகோவுக்கு போயிருக்கிறார். 'He has been to Chicago.'

This sentence tells that 'he' went to Chicago at some point in the past. It could be just past month, a year or many years before.

Habitual negation and the negation of இரு to denote an experience Habitual negation is made by adding இல்லை to a nominal form of the main verb. This structure is also used to negate the perfect when used to describe some experience. Structure: AVP-இரு-tense-அது-இல்லை. The tense can be in the past, present, or future. When in the past tense, it negates the experience of some action.
நான் தாஜ்மஹாலைப் பார்த்ததில்லை. I have not seen the Taj Mahal.

அவர் அவர்களுடைய குரலைக் கேட்டதில்லை. He has not heard her voice.

நானும் உங்கள் வீட்டில் சாப்பிட்டதில்லை. I also haven't eated at your house.

Alternatively, one can also put the main verb in the negative AVP form:
அவர்கள் படிக்காமல் இருக்கிறார்கள். 'They have not been reading.'

When இரு is in the present or future tense, the negation is of habitual action. In spoken Tamil, the future of இரு in aspectual negation is not used. கவலை படாதீர்கள். நான் எதுவும் மறக்கிறதில்லை/மறப்பதில்லை
Don't worry. I don't usually forget anything.

Class work: Translate the following combinations and make your own sentences in Tamil using these combinations: (Be sure to convert these written forms into their corresponding spoken forms appropriately).

1. பாடியிருக்கமுடியும்

2. படித்திருக்கவேண்டும்

3. போயிருக்கலாம்

4. கேட்டிருப்பேன்

5. தூங்கியிருந்தார்கள்

6. அழுதிருக்கிறீர்கள்

Translate the following sentences.

1. I have spoken with him.

2. My younger brother has stayed in Chennai. But he has not stayed in Tangavore.

3. We (excl.) have not laughed like that before.

4. I had not listened to the radio before yesterday.

5. If I had studied more I would have understood more now.

6. Even if you had studied, you still wouldn't understand everything.

7. I haven't talked to her. I don't usually talk to her.

I. Translate the following paragraphs into Tamil.

Tamil Eloquence and Political Rhetoric

Oratory at political rallies, cultural gatherings, literary meetings etc., is a common practice among the Tamils. Emphasizing the historical merits of the Tamil language and its literary heritage is one of the ways that the orators attract audiences. This is because of the widespread belief in the beauty of the Tamil written language. For this reason, those who are able to command literary Tamil with ease are highly respected.

Such uses of Tamil has been common in Tamil politics, from their political agendas (e.g., encouraging the use of Tamil in the government, schools, etc.) to how they use their language (e.g., in political speeches). Cracking jokes, teasing others indirectly etc., are quite common in such speeches. During elections, the political party members go to the extreme of attacking each other verbally on the political platforms, albeit in poetic style. This has been an unavoidable and uncontrollable feature of the Tamil Political arena. Below are some Tamil expressions that describe the fluency of such speeches. Note how the descriptions themselves are often poetic, utilizing metaphor and onomatopeia.

வெட்டு ஒண்ணு துண்டு ஒண்ணுண்ணு அவர் பேசுவார் 'He speaks outright, without hiding anything. (lit. he speaks as though one simple cut results two pieces)'

கல கலண்ணு சிரிக்க வைப்பார் 'He would make the audience laugh.'

சும்மா கணீர் கணீர்ண்ணு பேசி எல்லாரையும் அசர வைச்சிடுவார் 'He makes everyone stunned, simply by speaking so priciesly and boldly.'

அவரோட பேச்சுல தமிழ் பூந்து விளையாடும் 'In his speech, the Tamil language just spins around.'

வழா வழா கொழா கொழாண்ணு பேசாம சுத்தத் தமிழ்லெ பேசி எல்லாருக்கும் தண்ணி காட்டிடுவார் 'Without speaking very sluggishly, he uses the pure Tamil and makes his opponents giddy' (lit. he would show water to everyone).

Some political party members use certain catch phrases to identify their own individuality. Following are some of the phrases that some speakers used in the past:

ரத்ததுக்கு ரத்தமே 'Belonging to the same blood' (lit. blood of the blood). This phrase implies the close affinity between the speaker and the people.

எல்லோரும் இந்நாட்டு மக்கள் 'Everyone is the king of this country.'

மாற்றான் தோட்டத்து மல்லிகைக்கும் மணம் உண்டு 'The jasmine from the neighbor's garden also possesses fragrance.'

ஏழைப் பங்காளி 'kin to the poor people'

Quoting the ideas and concepts from ancient Tamil literature quite frequently are often used to imply the speakers' love on language and culture, and hence their closeness to the interests of the Tamil people. Below are some allusions commonly used in political rhetoric:

புறமுதுகு காட்டாத வீரம் நம் வீரம் 'Our bravery never shows our back to the enemies.' (From the Sangam classics புறநாநூறு.)

செல்விருந்தோம்பி வருவிருந்து பார்க்கும் பரம்பரை நம் பரம்பரை. 'Our lineage is the one that always treats the guests with pride and expects more guests all the time' (From the Sangam work: திருக்குறள்.)

யாதும் ஊரே யாவரும் கேளிர் 'all towns are local towns and everyone is our kin' (From Sangam poem)

These quotes are comprehensible by most of the Tamil speakers because of their common currency in the population at large, partially due to their use in politics.

Use of metaphors and alliteration are very common in literary/political speeches.

முல்லைக்குத் தேர் தந்த பாரி வாழ்ந்த குலம் நம் குலம். 'Our lineage belongs to the lineage of the king Pari who gave away his chariot to the Jasmine wreath to grow'.

கற்புக்கரசி கண்ணகி பரம்பரையில் வந்தவர்கள் நம் நாட்டுப் பெண்கள் 'Our women belong to the tradition of the chaste woman Kannaki' (Kannaki is the heroine in the epic Silappathikaaram, and is often used as a model for chaste women).