https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._K._Ramanujan (1985), https://books.google.com/books?id=nIybE0HRvdQC, New York: Columbia University Press. Pp. 329, ISBN 0-231-05107-7Quote (p.ix–x) "Tamil, one of the four classical languages of India, is a Dravidian language ... These poems (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sangam_literature, 1st century BC to 3rd century AD) are 'classical,' i.e. early, ancient; they are also 'classics,' i.e. works that have stood the test of time, the founding works of a whole tradition. Not to know them is not to know a unique and major poetic achievement of Indian civilization."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._K._Ramanujan (1985), https://books.google.com/books?id=nIybE0HRvdQC, New York: Columbia University Press. Pp. 329, ISBN 0-231-05107-7Quote (p.ix–x) "Tamil, one of the four classical languages of India, is a Dravidian language ... These poems (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sangam_literature, 1st century BC to 3rd century AD) are 'classical,' i.e. early, ancient; they are also 'classics,' i.e. works that have stood the test of time, the founding works of a whole tradition. Not to know them is not to know a unique and major poetic achievement of Indian civilization."
