Tamil Font Converter
This Tamil font converter finds the old font. Paste Tamil typed in Bamini, TSCII, TAB or TAM, and it comes out as Unicode. Unicode can also go back to any of them for an older layout, and you can pick both fonts yourself.
0 characters
What we accept
What goes in and out
Text in
Paste or type
Old-font or Unicode text
Text out
Copy
Unicode or old-font text
Download
.docx, .rtf, .txt
Where it runs
Conversion
In your browser
Your text
Not uploaded
Why people use this tool
For Tamil files that arrive in an old font nobody named, from a colleague, an archive or a contributor.
Works out the font
No need to know if a file is Bamini or TSCII. Paste it and the converter checks.
Both directions
Old font to Unicode for sharing. Unicode back to an old font when a layout still needs it.
Asks when unsure
If two fonts fit your text, you choose. The converter does not guess on a single short word.
Stays in your browser
The conversion runs on your device. Your text is not uploaded to our server.
English left alone
Words in English, numbers and email addresses are kept as they are. Only the old-font text is changed.
Words to check are marked
If a word does not look like a real word after conversion, it is underlined so you can check it.
How to convert a Tamil font
Four steps, all of them in your browser. Nothing to install and no account.
Paste your Tamil text.
From Word, a PDF you can copy from, an email or a message.
See what it was typed in.
The detected font is shown under the text box. Change it if you know better.
Pick where it should go.
Unicode for phones and websites. Bamini, TSCII, TAB or TAM for an old layout or printer.
Copy or download.
Unicode comes as a Word file. The old fonts come as an .rtf with the font already set.
What's kept, and what to check
The text comes across as it was typed. A few things are worth a look before you use it.
What's kept
What comes across
Paragraphs.
Breaks stay where they were.
Split vowels.
கொ, கோ and கௌ are joined or split as each font needs.
English and numbers.
Copied unchanged, in an English font in the downloads.
Check before use
Worth a look
The detected font.
If the result looks wrong, pick the source font yourself.
Very short text.
One or two words may fit more than one font. Paste a longer piece if you can.
For old-font output, the .rtf and Word files set the font for you. We do not supply the old fonts; your computer needs them installed.
Tricky letters we test
Hard Tamil letters in each font this page reads, converted by this page when it was built.
| Font | Old-font keys | Unicode | What makes it hard |
|---|---|---|---|
| FontBamini | Old-font keys=yq;fhTld; | Unicodeஸ்ரீலங்காவுடன் | Bamini keeps ஸ்ரீ on the = key. The hub has to read that equals sign as a letter before it can tell the font. |
| FontTSCII | Old-font keys¾£‡¢¾÷ | Unicodeதீக்ஷிதர் | TSCII stores க்ஷ as one code, ‡. Unicode spells it out as க, pulli and ஷ, and ி follows. |
| FontBamini | Old-font keysnfhOk;G | Unicodeகொழும்பு | Lowercase keys with ; and a capital O inside one word: only Bamini types Tamil like this, so the hub picks it. Then n and h join into ொ. |
| FontBamini | Old-font keysNfhupf;iffs; | Unicodeகோரிக்கைகள் | A capital N opening a word looks like an English name. In Bamini it is ே, and with h it makes ோ, so the hub keeps the word as Tamil. |
| FontBamini | Old-font keysnfsjkd; | Unicodeகௌதமன் | The n that opens the word starts a two-part vowel, so the s two keys later closes it: கௌ, where s elsewhere would be ள. |
| FontTSCII | Old-font keys¦¸ª¨Å | Unicodeகௌவை | TSCII writes ௌ as ¦ before the letter and ª after it. Then ¨ puts ை in front of வ. |
| FontBamini | Old-font keys[dhjpgjp | Unicodeஜனாதிபதி | The word opens with [, which Bamini uses for ஜ. A bracket at the start of a word is still Tamil here. |
| FontTAB | Old-font keysÿ | Unicodeஸ்ரீ | TAB and TAM draw all of ஸ்ரீ with the single code ÿ. |
| FontTAM | Old-font keysõ¼A¡øù˜ | Unicodeவருகின்றனர் | TAM adds joined shapes that TAB lacks: the plain capital A is கி, and ˜ is ர் with its pulli. |
Questions
Answers to common questions about Tamil Font Converter.
How do I know which Tamil font my text uses?
Paste it here. The converter reads it with each font it knows and shows the one that gives real Tamil words. Text like jkpo; with semicolons is very likely Bamini. Accented letters such as ¾Á¢ú point to TSCII, TAB or TAM.
What is the difference between Bamini and Unicode?
Bamini draws Tamil shapes on English keys, so it needs the Bamini font to be read. Unicode gives every Tamil letter a code of its own, which any phone or computer can show. That is why a Tamil font change in Word is not enough: set Bamini text to Latha and you see English letters.
How do I convert TSCII to Unicode?
Paste the TSCII text and leave the source on Detect automatically; nothing else needs setting. If the page asks whether the text is TSCII or TAB, pick TSCII when the file came from Project Madurai or an old Tamil web page.
Can I convert Vanavil to Unicode?
Text typed in Vanavil-Avvaiyar can be, because that font uses the Bamini keys and is read as Bamini. We have not tested the other Vanavil fonts, so we do not offer them yet.
Why is my result still wrong after trying each font?
The text may be in a font we do not cover, such as Anjal, or it was damaged when copied. Spaces a PDF puts inside words are joined for you. Boxes or question marks mean the letters were lost before they reached this page.
Can I use the Tamil font converter on my phone?
Yes. Paste text copied from a message or a file, and the font is detected on the phone as well. Share sends a Unicode result straight on. Text typed on a phone keyboard is already Unicode, so for an old layout pick Bamini or TSCII under To.
Other tools in the set
Converters for other old fonts and the other direction. Each one runs in your browser.
Which font is your text in?
Match what you see to a font, then open the page made for it.
| Font | Where you meet it | Without the font it looks like | Pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unicode (Latha, Nirmala UI, phone keyboards) | Where you meet itAnything typed on a phone, in Google Docs or on a website | Without the font it looks likeReal Tamil letters on every device | Use the converter above |
| Bamini (also Baamini, Vanavil-Avvaiyar) | Where you meet itSri Lankan newspapers, textbooks and forms, and Tamil publishing abroad | Without the font it looks likeEnglish letters and semicolons, such as jkpo; for தமிழ் | |
| TSCII (TSCInaimathi and other TSC fonts) | Where you meet itProject Madurai e-texts and older Tamil web pages | Without the font it looks likeAccented letters and symbols, such as ¾Á¢ú for தமிழ் | Use the converter above |
| TAB (TABInaiMathi) | Where you meet itTamil Nadu bilingual documents and conference papers from around 2000 | Without the font it looks likeAccented letters, such as îñ¤ö¢ for தமிழ் | Use the converter above |
| TAM (TAMLKamban) | Where you meet itTamil Nadu government notes and budget papers of the early 2000s | Without the font it looks likeLike TAB, with some capital letters mixed in, such as îI› for தமிழ் | Use the converter above |