Conversation so far:
what language do the malayali speak?
Malayalam is the language spoken by the Malayalis.
Do they speak any other languages?
Malayalam is derived from old Tamil and Sanskrit in the 6th century.
any literary items of interest?
Malayalam literature is ancient in origin.
The oldest literature works in Malayalam, distinct from the Tamil tradition.

Question: How old is their literature?
Self-contained rewrite: How old is the Malayali literature?