Maldives

The Maldives (/ˈmɔːldiːvz/,

US: /ˈmɔːldaɪvz/ ( listen); Dhivehi: ‫ރ ްއ ެޖ‬
ާ ި‫ދި ެވހ‬
Dhivehi Raajje), officially the Republic of
Maldives, is a country in South Asia,
located in the Arabian Sea of the Indian
Ocean. It lies southwest of Sri Lanka and
India, about 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) from
the Asian continent. The chain of 26 atolls
stretches from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the
north to Addu Atoll in the south.
Comprising a territory spanning roughly
298 square kilometres (115 sq mi), the
Maldives is one of the world's most
geographically dispersed sovereign states
as well as the smallest Asian country by
land area and population, with around
427,756 inhabitants. Malé is the capital
and the most populated city, traditionally
called the "King's Island" for its central
location.
 Republic of Maldives
ާ ‫ރ ްއޖޭ ެގ ުޖ ްމ ޫހރި ްއ‬
‫ޔ‬ ާ ި‫ދި ެވހ‬ (Dhivehi)
Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa

Flag Emblem

Anthem: Qaumii salaam
National Salute

0:00 / 0:00

Location of Maldives in the Indian Ocean

Capital Malé

Official languages English · Dhivehi

Ethnic groups (2019) ≈100%

Maldiviansa[1][2][3]

Religion Islam (mandated by

law)

Demonym(s) Maldivian

Government Unitary presidential

republic

• President Ibrahim Mohamed

Solih[4]
• Vice President Faisal Naseem

• Speaker of the Mohamed Nasheed[5]

Majlis

• Chief Justice Ahmed Abdulla Didi

Legislature People's Majlis

Independence

• from the United 26 July 1965

Kingdom

• Current constitution 7 August 2008

Area

• Total 298[6] km2 (115 sq mi)

(187th)

Population

• 2016 estimate 427,756[7] (175th)

• 2014 census 341 356[8]

  2014 census 341,356

• Density 1,102.5/km2
(2,855.5/sq mi) (11th)

GDP (PPP) 2018 estimate

• Total $7.396 billion[9] (162nd)

• Per capita $20,228[9] (69th)

GDP (nominal) 2018 estimate

• Total $4.825 billion[9]

• Per capita $13,196[9]

Gini (2005–2013) 37.4[10]
medium · 76th (CIA)

HDI (2017)  0.717[11]
high · 101st

Currency Maldivian rufiyaa

(MVR)
Time zone UTC+5 (Maldives Time)

Date format dd/mm/yy

Driving side left

Calling code +960

ISO 3166 code MV

The Maldives archipelago is located on the

Chagos-Laccadive Ridge, a vast
submarine mountain range in the Indian
Ocean, which also forms a terrestrial
ecoregion, together with the Chagos
Archipelago and Lakshadweep.[12] With an
average ground-level elevation of 1.5
metres (4 ft 11 in) above sea level,[13] it is
the world's lowest country, with even its
highest natural point being one of the
lowest in the world, at 5.1 metres (17 ft).[13]
Due to the consequent risks posed by
rising sea levels, the government pledged
in 2009 to make the Maldives a carbon-
neutral country by 2019.[14]

Islam was introduced to the Maldivian

archipelago in the 12th century which was
consolidated as a sultanate, developing
strong commercial and cultural ties with
Asia and Africa. From the mid-16th-century,
the region came under the increasing
influence of European colonial powers, with
the Maldives becoming a British
protectorate in 1887. Independence from
the United Kingdom was achieved in 1965
and a presidential republic was established
in 1968 with an elected People's Majlis. The
ensuing decades have been characterised
by political instability, efforts at democratic
reform,[15] and environmental challenges
posed by climate change.[16]

The Maldives is a founding member of the

South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC). It is also a member
of the United Nations, the Organization of
Islamic Cooperation, and the Non Aligned
Movement. The World Bank classifies the
Maldives as having an upper middle
income economy.[17] Fishing has historically
been the dominant economic activity, and
remains the largest sector by far, followed
by the rapidly growing tourism industry.
Maldives is rated "high" on the Human
Development Index,[11] with its per capita
income significantly higher than other
SAARC nations.[18]

The Maldives was a Commonwealth

republic from July 1982 until its withdrawal
from the Commonwealth in October 2016 in
protest of international criticism of its
records in relation to corruption and
human rights.

Toponymy
The name "Maldives" may derive from the
Tamil words maalai (garland / evening)
and theevu (island),[19] or මාල ව න
(Maala Divaina, "Necklace Islands") in
Sinhala.[20] The Maldivian people are called
Dhivehin. The word theevu (archaic heevu,
related to Tamil தீ , dheevu) means
"island", and Dhives (Dhivehin) means
"islanders" (i.e., Maldivians).

The ancient Sri Lankan chronicle

Mahawamsa refers to an island called
Mahiladiva ("Island of Women", म हला दभ) in
Pali, which is probably a mistranslation of
the same Sanskrit word meaning
"garland".
Jan S Hogendorn, Grossman Professor of
Economics, theorises that the name
Maldives derives from the Sanskrit
mālādvīpa (माला प), meaning "garland of
islands".[19] In Tamil, "Garland of Islands" can
be translated as Malai Theevu
(மாைல தீ ).[21] In Malayalam, "Garland
of Islands" can be translated as
Maladweepu (മാലദ ീപ്). In Kannada,
"Garland of Islands" can be translated as
Maaledweepa ( ಾ ೕಪ). None of these
names is mentioned in any literature, but
classical Sanskrit texts dating back to the
Vedic period mention the "Hundred
Thousand Islands" (Lakshadweepa), a
generic name which would include not only
the Maldives, but also the Laccadives,
Aminidivi Islands, Minicoy, and the Chagos
island groups.[22]

Some medieval travellers such as Ibn

Battuta called the islands Mahal Dibiyat
(‫ )ﻣﺤﻞ دﺑﻴﺄت‬from the Arabic word mahal
("palace"), which must be how the Berber
traveller interpreted the local name, having
been through Muslim North India, where
Perso-Arabic words were introduced to the
local vocabulary.[23] This is the name
currently inscribed on the scroll in the
Maldive state emblem. The classical
Persian/Arabic name for Maldives is
Dibajat.[24][25] The Dutch referred to the
islands as the Maldivische Eilanden
(pronounced [mɑlˈdivisə ˈʔɛilɑndə(n)]), while
the British anglicised the local name for the
islands first to the "Maldive Islands" and
later to "Maldives".

Garcia da Orta writes in his conversational

book[26] first published in 1563 as follows: "I
must tell you that I have heard it said that
the natives do not call it Maldiva but
Nalediva. In the Malabar language nale
means four and diva island. So that in that
language the word signifies "four islands,"
while we, corrupting the name, call it
Maldiva."
History
Ancient history and settlement

The first Maldivians did not leave any

archaeological artifacts. Their buildings
were probably built of wood, palm fronds
and other perishable materials, which
would have quickly decayed in the salt and
wind of the tropical climate. Moreover,
chiefs or headmen did not reside in
elaborate stone palaces, nor did their
religion require the construction of large
temples or compounds.[27]

Comparative studies of Maldivian oral,

linguistic and cultural traditions and
customs confirm that the first settlers were
people from the southern shores of the
neighboring Indian subcontinent,[28]
including the Giraavaru people mentioned
in ancient legends and local folklore about
the establishment of the capital and kingly
rule in Malé.[29]

A strong underlying layer of Dravidian

population and culture survives in
Maldivian society, with a clear Tamil-
Malayalam substratum in the language,
which also appears in place names, kinship
terms, poetry, dance, and religious beliefs.
Malabari seafaring culture led to the
settlement of the Islands by Malayali
seafarers.[2]

The earliest written history of the Maldives

was marked by the arrival of Sinhalese
people in Sri Lanka and the Maldives
(Mahiladvipika) circa 543 to 483 BC, as
reported in the Mahavansa. Their
settlement marks a significant change in
demographics and the development of the
Indo-Aryan language Dhivehi language.

Buddhist period
Isdhoo Lōmāfānu is the oldest copper-plate book to
have been discovered in the Maldives to date. The

book was written in AD 1194 (590 AH) in the Evēla

form of the Divehi akuru, during the reign of Siri
Fennaadheettha Mahaa Radun (Dhinei Kalaminja).

Despite being just mentioned briefly in

most history books, the 1,400-year-long
Buddhist period has foundational
importance in the history of the Maldives. It
was during this period that the culture of
the Maldives both developed and
flourished, a culture which survives today.
The Maldivian language, the first Maldive
scripts, the architecture, the ruling
institutions, the customs and manners of
the Maldivians originated at the time when
the Maldives were a Buddhist kingdom.[30]

Buddhism probably spread to the

Maldives in the 3rd century BC at the time
of Emperor Ashoka's expansion and
became the dominant religion of the
people of the Maldives until the 12th
century AD. The ancient Maldivian Kings
promoted Buddhism, and the first Maldive
writings and artistic achievements, in the
form of highly developed sculpture and
architecture, are from that period. Nearly all
archaeological remains in the Maldives are
from Buddhist stupas and monasteries,
and all artifacts found to date display
characteristic Buddhist iconography.
Buddhist (and Hindu) temples were
Mandala shaped, they are oriented
according to the four cardinal points, the
main gate being towards the east. Local
historian Hassan Ahmed Maniku counted
as many as 59 islands with Buddhist
archaeological sites in a provisional list he
published in 1990.

Islamic period
The importance of the Arabs as traders in
the Indian Ocean by the 12th century may
partly explain why the last Buddhist king of
Maldives Dhovemi converted to Islam in
the year 1153 (or 1193), adopting the Muslim
title of Sultan Muhammad al Adil, and
initiating a series of six Islamic dynasties
that lasted until 1932 when the sultanate
became elective. The formal title of the
sultan up to 1965 was, Sultan of Land and
Sea, Lord of the twelve-thousand islands
and Sultan of the Maldives which came
with the style Highness.

The person traditionally deemed

responsible for this conversion in 1153, was
a Somali Muslim visitor named Abu'l
Barakat al-Barbari also known as Aw
Barkhadle, according to the story told to
Ibn Battutah, who goes on to say a
mosque was built with the inscription: 'The
Sultan Ahmad Shanurazah accepted Islam
at the hand of Abu'l Barakat al-
Barbari.'[31][32]

Some scholars have suggested the

possibility of Ibn Battuta misreading
Maldive texts, and having a bias towards
the North African, Maghrebi narrative of
this Shaykh, instead of the East African
origins account that was known as well at
the time.[33] Even when Ibn Battuta visited
the islands the governor of the island at
that time was Abd Aziz Al Mogadishawi, a
Somali[34]

Scholars have posited another scenario

where this Abu Barakat might have been a
native of Barbera, a significant trading port
on the northwestern coast of Somalia.[35]
Barbara or Barbaroi (Berbers), as the
ancestors of the Somalis were referred to
by medieval Arab and ancient Greek
geographers, respectively.[36][37][38] This is
also seen when Ibn Batuta visited
Mogadishu, he mentions that the Sultan at
that time, "Abu Bakr ibn Shaikh Omar", was
a Berber (Somali). According to scholars,
Abu Barakat Al Barbari was Yusuf bin
Ahmad al-Kawneyn, a famous native
Somali scholar [39] known for establishing
the Walashma dynasty of the Horn of
Africa.[40] After his conversion of the
population of Dogor (now known as Aw
Barkhadle), a town in Somalia, he is also
credited to have been responsible for
spreading Islam in the Maldivian islands,
establishing the Hukuru Miskiiy Mosque,
and converting the Maldivian population
to Islam.[41][42] Ibn Batuta states the
Maldivian king was converted by Abu Al
Barakat Al Berber (Blessed Father of
Somalia).[43]
Others have it he may have been from the
Persian town of Tabriz.[44] The first
reference to an Iranian origin dates to an
18th-century Persian text.[45]

His venerated tomb now stands on the

grounds of Hukuru Mosque, or miski, in the
capital of Malé. Built in 1656, this is the
oldest mosque in Maldives. Following the
Islamic concept that before Islam there was
the time of Jahiliya (ignorance), in the
history books used by Maldivians the
introduction of Islam at the end of the 12th
century is considered the cornerstone of
the country's history.
Compared to the other areas of South
Asia, the conversion of the Maldives to
Islam happened relatively late. Arab
traders had converted populations in the
Malabar Coast since the 7th century, and
Muhammad Bin Qāsim had converted
large swathes of Sindh to Islam at about
the same time. The Maldives remained a
Buddhist kingdom for another 500 years
after the conversion of Malabar Coast and
Sindh—perhaps as the southwesternmost
Buddhist country. Arabic became the prime
language of administration (instead of
Persian and Urdu), and the Maliki school of
jurisprudence was introduced, both hinting
at direct contacts with the core of the Arab
world.

Middle Eastern seafarers had just begun

to take over the Indian Ocean trade routes
in the 10th century and found Maldives to
be an important link in those routes as the
first landfall for traders from Basra sailing
to Southeast Asia. Trade involved mainly
cowrie shells—widely used as a form of
currency throughout Asia and parts of the
East African coast—and coir fiber. The
Bengal Sultanate, where cowrie shells were
used as legal tender, was one of the
principal trading partners of the Maldives.
The Bengal–Maldives cowry shell trade
was the largest shell currency trade
network in history.[46] The other essential
product of the Maldives was coir, the fibre
of the dried coconut husk, resistant to
saltwater. It stitched together and rigged
the dhows that plied the Indian Ocean.
Maldivian coir was exported to Sindh,
China, Yemen, and the Persian Gulf.

Colonial period

18th-century map by Pierre Mortier from the

Netherlands, depicting with detail the islands of the
Maldives

In 1558 the Portuguese established a small

garrison with a Viador (Viyazoru), or
overseer of a factory (trading post) in the
Maldives, which they administered from
their main colony in Goa. Their attempts to
impose Christianity provoked a local revolt
led by Muhammad Thakurufaanu Al-Azam
and his two brothers, that fifteen years
later drove the Portuguese out of
Maldives. This event is now
commemorated as National Day. In the
mid-17th century, the Dutch, who had
replaced the Portuguese as the dominant
power in Ceylon, established hegemony
over Maldivian affairs without involving
themselves directly in local matters, which
were governed according to centuries-old
Islamic customs.

The British expelled the Dutch from Ceylon

in 1796 and included Maldives as a British
protected area. The status of Maldives as
a British protectorate was officially
recorded in an 1887 agreement in which
the sultan accepted British influence over
Maldivian external relations and defence
while retaining home rule, which continued
to be regulated by Muslim traditional
institutions in exchange for an annual
tribute. The status of the islands was akin
to other British protectorates in the Indian
Ocean region, including Zanzibar and the
Trucial States.

In the British period,the Sultan's powers

were taken over by the Chief Minister,
much to the chagrin of the British
Governor-General who continued to deal
with the ineffectual Sultan. Consequently,
Britain encouraged the development of a
constitutional monarchy, and the first
Constitution was proclaimed in 1932.
However, the new arrangements favoured
neither the aging Sultan nor the wily Chief
Minister, but rather a young crop of British-
educated reformists. As a result, angry
mobs were instigated against the
Constitution which was publicly torn up.

Maldives remained a British crown

protectorate until 1953 when the sultanate
was suspended and the First Republic was
declared under the short-lived presidency
of Muhammad Amin Didi. While serving as
prime minister during the 1940s, Didi
nationalized the fish export industry. As
president, he is remembered as a reformer
of the education system and a promoter of
women's rights. Conservatives in Malé
eventually ousted his government, and
during a riot over food shortages, Didi was
beaten by a mob and died on a nearby
island.

An RAF Short Sunderland moored in the lagoon at

Addu Atoll, during WWII

Beginning in the 1950s, the political history

in Maldives was largely influenced by the
British military presence in the islands. In
1954 the restoration of the sultanate
perpetuated the rule of the past. Two
years later, the United Kingdom obtained
permission to reestablish its wartime RAF
Gan airfield in the southernmost Addu Atoll,
employing hundreds of locals. In 1957,
however, the new prime minister, Ibrahim
Nasir, called for a review of the agreement.
Nasir was challenged in 1959 by a local
secessionist movement in the three
southernmost atolls that benefited
economically from the British presence on
Gan. This group cut ties with the Maldives
government and formed an independent
state, the United Suvadive Republic with
Abdullah Afif as president and Hithadhoo
as capital. One year later the Suvadive
republic was scrapped after Nasir sent
gunboats from Malé with government
police, and Abdulla Afif went into exile.
Meanwhile, in 1960 the Maldives had
allowed the United Kingdom to continue to
use both the Gan and the Hitaddu facilities
for a thirty-year period, with the payment
of £750,000 over the period of 1960 to
1965 for the purpose of Maldives'
economic development. The base was
closed in 1976 as part of the larger British
withdrawal of permanently-stationed
forces 'East of Suez'.[47]

Independence and republic

Flag of the Sultan of the Maldives

In line with the broader British policy of

decolonisation on 26 July 1965 an
agreement was signed on behalf of His
Majesty the Sultan by Ibrahim Nasir
Rannabandeyri Kilegefan, prime minister,
and on behalf of Her Majesty The Queen
by Sir Michael Walker, British Ambassador
designate to the Maldive Islands, which
ended the British responsibility for the
defence and external affairs of the
Maldives. The islands thus achieved full
political independence, with the ceremony
taking place at the British High
Commissioner's Residence in Colombo.
After this, the sultanate continued for
another three years under Muhammad
Fareed Didi, who declared himself King
rather than Sultan.

On 15 November 1967, a vote was taken in

parliament to decide whether the Maldives
should continue as a constitutional
monarchy or become a republic. Of the 44
members of parliament, forty voted in
favour of a republic. On 15 March 1968, a
national referendum was held on the
question, and 93.34% of those taking part
voted in favour of establishing a republic.
The republic was declared on 11 November
1968, thus ending the 853-year-old
monarchy, which was replaced by a
republic under the presidency of Ibrahim
Nasir. As the King had held little real power,
this was seen as a cosmetic change and
required few alterations in the structures
of government.

Tourism began to be developed on the

archipelago by the beginning of the 1970s.
The first resort in the Maldives was
Kurumba Maldives which welcomed the
first guests on 3 October 1972. The first
accurate census was held in December
1977 and showed 142,832 persons residing
in Maldives.[48] Political infighting during
the '70s between Nasir's faction and other
political figures led to the 1975 arrest and
exile of elected prime minister Ahmed Zaki
to a remote atoll. Economic decline
followed the closure of the British airfield at
Gan and the collapse of the market for
dried fish, an important export. With
support for his administration faltering,
Nasir fled to Singapore in 1978, with millions
of dollars from the treasury.

Maumoon Abdul Gayoom began his 30-

year role as president in 1978, winning six
consecutive elections without opposition.
His election was seen as ushering in a
period of political stability and economic
development in view of Gayoom's priority
to develop the poorer islands. Tourism
flourished and increased foreign contact
spurred development. However, Gayoom's
rule was controversial, with some critics
saying Gayoom was an autocrat who
quelled dissent by limiting freedoms and
political favouritism.[49]

A series of coup attempts (in 1980, 1983,

and 1988) by Nasir supporters and
business interests tried to topple the
government without success. While the
first two attempts met with little success,
the 1988 coup attempt involved a roughly
80-person mercenary force of the PLOTE
who seized the airport and caused
Gayoom to flee from house to house until
the intervention of 1600 Indian troops
airlifted into Malé restored order.

A November 1988 coup was headed by

Muhammadu Ibrahim Lutfee, a small-
businessman. On the night of 3 November
1988, the Indian Air Force airlifted a
parachute battalion group from Agra and
flew them over 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi)
to the Maldives. The Indian paratroopers
landed at Hulule and secured the airfield
and restored the government rule at Malé
within hours. The brief operation, labelled
Operation Cactus, also involved the Indian
Navy.

21st century

17th SAARC summit in Addu City, Maldives

On 26 December 2004, following the 2004

Indian Ocean earthquake, the Maldives
were devastated by a tsunami. Only nine
islands were reported to have escaped
any flooding,[50][51] while fifty-seven islands
faced serious damage to critical
infrastructure, fourteen islands had to be
totally evacuated, and six islands were
destroyed. A further twenty-one resort
islands were forced to close because of
tsunami damage. The total damage was
estimated at more than US$400 million, or
some 62% of the GDP.[52][53] 102
Maldivians and 6 foreigners reportedly
died in the tsunami.[49] The destructive
impact of the waves on the low-lying
islands was mitigated by the fact there
was no continental shelf or land mass upon
which the waves could gain height. The
tallest waves were reported to be 14 feet
(4.3 m) high.[54]
During the later part of Gayoom's rule,
independent political movements emerged
in Maldives, which challenged the then-
ruling Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (Maldivian
People's Party, MPP) and demanded
democratic reform. The dissident journalist
and activist Mohamed Nasheed founded
the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) in
2003 and pressured Gayoom into allowing
gradual political reforms.[55] In 2008 a new
constitution was approved and the first
direct presidential elections occurred,
which were won by Mohamed Nasheed in
the second round. His administration faced
many challenges, including the huge debt
left by the previous government, the
economic downturn following the 2004
tsunami, overspending (by means of
overprinting of local currency (the rufiyaa),
unemployment, corruption, and increasing
drug use.[56] Taxation on goods was
imposed for the first time in the country,
and import duties were reduced in many
goods and services. Social welfare
benefits were given to those aged 65
years or older, single parents, and those
with special needs.[49]

Social and political unrest grew in late 2011,

following opposition campaigns in the
name of protecting Islam. Nasheed
controversially resigned from office after
large number of police and army mutinied
in February 2012. Nasheed's vice president,
Mohammed Waheed Hassan, was sworn in
as president.[57] Nasheed was later
arrested,[58] convicted of terrorism, and
sentenced to 13 years. The trial was widely
seen as flawed and political. The UN
Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
called for Nasheed's immediate release.[59]

The elections in late 2013 were highly

contested. Former president Mohammed
Nasheed won the most votes in the first
round, but the Supreme Court annulled it
despite the positive assessment of
international election observers. In the re-
run vote Abdulla Yameen, half-brother of
the former president Gayoom, assumed
the presidency.[55] Yameen introduced
increased engagement with China, and
promoted a policy of connecting Islam with
anti-Western rhetoric.[55] Yameen survived
an assassination attempt in late 2015.[60]
Vice president Ahmed Adeeb was later
arrested together with 17 supporters for
"public order offences" and the
government instituted a broader
crackdown against political dissent. A state
of emergency was later declared ahead of
a planned anti-government rally,[61] and
the people's Majlis accelerated the
removal of Vice president Ahmed
Adeeb.[62][63]

In 2018 elections Ibrahim Mohamed Solih

won most votes, and became President.

Geography

Malhosmadulhu Atoll seen from space. "Fasdutere"

and Southern Maalhosmadulhu Atoll can be seen in
this picture.
The Maldives consists of 1,192 coral islands
grouped in a double chain of 26 atolls,
along the north-south direction, spread
over roughly 90,000 square kilometres
(35,000 sq mi), making this one of the
world's most dispersed countries. It lies
between latitudes 1°S and 8°N, and
longitudes 72° and 74°E. The atolls are
composed of live coral reefs and sand
bars, situated atop a submarine ridge 960
kilometres (600 mi) long that rises abruptly
from the depths of the Indian Ocean and
runs north to south.
Only near the southern end of this natural
coral barricade do two open passages
permit safe ship navigation from one side
of the Indian Ocean to the other through
the territorial waters of Maldives. For
administrative purposes, the Maldivian
government organised these atolls into 21
administrative divisions. The largest island
of Maldives is Gan, which belongs to
Laamu Atoll or Hahdhummathi Maldives. In
Addu Atoll, the westernmost islands are
connected by roads over the reef
(collectively called Link Road) and the total
length of the road is 14 km (9 mi).
Maldives is the lowest country in the world,
with maximum and average natural
ground levels of only 2.4 metres (7 ft 10 in)
and 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) above sea level,
respectively. In areas where construction
exists, however, this has been increased
to several metres. More than 80 per cent
of the country's land is composed of coral
islands which rise less than one metre
above sea level.[64] As a result, the
Maldives are at high risk of being
submerged due to rising sea levels. The
UN's environmental panel has warned that,
at current rates, sea level rise would be
high enough to make the Maldives
uninhabitable by 2100.[65][66]
Climate

A beach of Bathala island

The Maldives has a tropical monsoon

climate (Am) under the Köppen climate
classification, which is affected by the large
landmass of South Asia to the north.
Because the Maldives has the lowest
elevation of any country in the world, the
temperature is constantly hot and often
humid. The presence of this landmass
causes differential heating of land and
water. These factors set off a rush of
moisture-rich air from the Indian Ocean
over South Asia, resulting in the southwest
monsoon. Two seasons dominate
Maldives' weather: the dry season
associated with the winter northeastern
monsoon and the rainy season which
brings strong winds and storms.

The shift from the dry northeast monsoon

to the moist southwest monsoon occurs
during April and May. During this period,
the southwest winds contribute to the
formation of the southwest monsoon,
which reaches Maldives in the beginning of
June and lasts until the end of August.
However, the weather patterns of
Maldives do not always conform to the
monsoon patterns of South Asia. The
annual rainfall averages 254 centimetres
(100 in) in the north and 381 centimetres
(150 in) in the south.[67]

The monsoonal influence is greater in the

north of the Maldives than in the south,
more influenced by the equatorial currents.
 Climate data for Malé (1981–2010)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Average 30.3 30.7 31.4 31.6 31.2 30.6 30.5 30.4 30.2 30.2 30.1 30.1
high °C (°F) (86.5) (87.3) (88.5) (88.9) (88.2) (87.1) (86.9) (86.7) (86.4) (86.4) (86.2) (86.2
Daily mean 28.0 28.3 28.9 29.2 28.8 28.3 28.2 28.0 27.8 27.8 27.7 27.8
°C (°F) (82.4) (82.9) (84.0) (84.6) (83.8) (82.9) (82.8) (82.4) (82.0) (82.0) (81.9) (82.0
Average 25.7 25.9 26.4 26.8 26.3 26.0 25.8 25.5 25.3 25.4 25.2 25.4
low °C (°F) (78.3) (78.6) (79.5) (80.2) (79.3) (78.8) (78.4) (77.9) (77.5) (77.7) (77.4) (77.7
Average
114.2 38.1 73.9 122.5 218.9 167.3 149.9 175.5 199.0 194.2 231.1 216.
rainfall mm
(4.50) (1.50) (2.91) (4.82) (8.62) (6.59) (5.90) (6.91) (7.83) (7.65) (9.10) (8.54
(inches)
Average
precipitation
6 3 5 9 15 13 12 13 15 15 13 12
days
(≥ 1.0 mm)
Average
relative 78.0 77.0 76.9 78.1 80.8 80.7 79.1 80.5 81.0 81.7 82.2 80.9
humidity (%)
Mean
monthly
248.4 257.8 279.6 246.8 223.2 202.3 226.6 211.5 200.4 234.8 226.1 220.
sunshine
hours
Source #1: World Meteorological Organization[68]
Source #2: NOAA (relative humidity and sun 1961–1990)[69]

Sea level rise

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate

Change's 2007 report predicted the upper
limit of the sea level rises will be 59
centimetres (23 in) by 2100, which means
that most of the republic's 200 inhabited
islands may need to be abandoned.[70]
According to researchers from the
University of Southampton, the Maldives
are the third most endangered nation due
to flooding from climate change as a
percentage of population.[71]

Former president Mohamed Nasheed has

been highly outspoken about this issue,
saying in 2012 that "If carbon emissions
continue at the rate they are climbing
today, my country will be under water in
seven years."[72] He has called for more
climate change mitigation action while on
the American television shows The Daily
Show[73] and the Late Show with David
Letterman,[72] and hosted "the world's first
underwater cabinet meeting" in 2009 to
raise awareness of the threats posed by
climate change.[74][75] Concerns over sea
level rise have also been expressed by
Nasheed's predecessor, Maumoon Abdul
Gayoom.[76]

In 2008, President Mohamed Nasheed

announced plans to look into purchasing
new land in India, Sri Lanka, and Australia
because of his concerns about global
warming, and the possibility of much of the
islands being inundated with water from
rising sea levels. The purchase of land will
be made from a fund generated by
tourism. The President has explained his
intentions: "We do not want to leave the
Maldives, but we also do not want to be
climate refugees living in tents for
decades".[77]

By 2020, Maldives plans to eliminate or

offset all of its greenhouse gas emissions.
At the 2009 International Climate Talks,
President Mohamed Nasheed explained
that:

For us swearing off fossil fuels is

not only the right thing to do, it
is in our economic self-interest...
Pioneering countries will free
 themselves from the
unpredictable price of foreign
oil; they will capitalise on the
new green economy of the
future, and they will enhance
their moral standing giving
them greater political influence
on the world stage.[78]

Environment

Environmental issues other than sea level

rise include bad waste disposal and beach
theft. Although the Maldives are kept
relatively pristine and little litter can be
found on the islands, no good waste
disposal sites exist. Most trash from Malé
and other resorts is simply dumped at
Thilafushi.[79]

31 protected areas are administered by

the Ministry of Environment and Energy
and Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) of the Maldives.[80]

Marine ecosystem

Maldives soft coral

Oriental Sweetlips (Plectorhinchus vittatus) at Meeru
Island, North Male Atoll

The Maldives have a range of different

habitats including deep sea, shallow coast,
and reef ecosystems, fringing mangroves,
wetlands and dry land. There are 187
species of coral forming the coral reefs.
This area of the Indian Ocean, alone,
houses 1100 species of fish, 5 species of
sea turtle, 21 species of whale and dolphin,
400 species of mollusc, and 83 species of
echinoderms. The area is also populated
by a number of crustacean species: 120
copepod, 15 amphipod, as well as more
than 145 crab and 48 shrimp species.[81]

Among the many marine families

represented are Pufferfish, Fusiliers,
Jackfish, Lionfish, Oriental Sweetlips, reef
sharks, Groupers, Eels, Snappers,
Bannerfish, Batfish, Humphead Wrasse,
Spotted Eagle Rays, Scorpionfish,
Lobsters, Nudibranches, Angelfish,
Butterflyfish, Squirrelfish, Soldierfish,
Glassfish, Surgeonfish, Unicornfish,
Triggerfish, Napoleon wrasses, and
Barracudas.[82][83]

These coral reefs are home to a variety of

marine ecosystems that vary from
planktonic organisms to whale sharks.
Sponges have gained importance as five
species have displayed anti-tumor and
anti-cancer properties.[84]

In 1998, sea-temperature warming of as

much as 5 °C (9.0 °F) due to a single El Niño
phenomenon event caused coral
bleaching, killing two-thirds of the nation's
coral reefs.[85]
In an effort to induce the regrowth of the
reefs, scientists placed electrified cones
anywhere from 20–60 feet (6.1–18.3 m)
below the surface to provide a substrate
for larval coral attachment. In 2004,
scientists witnessed corals regenerating.
Corals began to eject pink-orange eggs
and sperm. The growth of these electrified
corals was five times faster than untreated
corals.[85] Scientist Azeez Hakim stated:

before 1998, we never thought

that this reef would die. We had
always taken for granted that
these animals would be there,
 that this reef would be there
forever. El Niño gave us a wake-
up call that these things are not
going to be there for ever. Not
only this, they also act as a
natural barrier against the
tropical storms, floods and
tsunamis. Seaweeds grow on the
skeletons of dead coral.[82]

Again, in 2016, the coral reefs of the

Maldives experienced a severe bleaching
incident. Up to 95% of coral around some
islands have died, and, even after six
months, 100% of young coral transplants
died. The surface water temperatures
reached an all-time high in 2016, at 31
degrees Celsius in May.[86]

Recent scientific studies suggest that the

faunistic composition can vary greatly
between neighbour atolls, especially in
terms of benthic fauna. Differences in
terms of fishing pressure (including
poaching) could be the cause.[87]

Government
Independence Square in Malé

Maldives is a presidential republic, with

extensive influence of the president as
head of government and head of state.
The president heads the executive branch,
acts at the same time as minister of
defence and appoints the cabinet which is
approved by the People's Majlis
(Parliament). He leads police, army, coast
guards, fire brigade and judiciary. There is
no separation of powers. The current
president as of 17 November 2018 is
Ibrahim Mohamed Solih. Members of the
unicameral Majlis serve five-year terms,
with the total number of members
determined by atoll populations. At the
2014 election, 77 members were elected.
The People's Majlis, located in Male, houses
members from all over the country.[3]

The republican constitution came into force

in 1968, and was amended in 1970, 1972,
and 1975. On 27 November 1997 it was
replaced by another Constitution assented
to by the President Gayoom. This
Constitution came into force on 1 January
1998. All stated that the president was the
head of state, head of government and
the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed
Forces and the Police of the Maldives.
In 2018, the ruling PPM-Y's tensions with
opposition parties and subsequent
crackdown was termed as an "assault on
democracy" by the UN Human Rights
chief.[88]

The Prime Minister of India addressing the People's

Majlis in 2011
Law

According to the Constitution of Maldives,

"the judges are independent, and subject
only to the Constitution and the law. When
deciding matters on which the Constitution
or the law is silent, judges must consider
Islamic Shari'ah". Article 15 of the Act
Number 1/81 (Penal Code) gives provision
for hudud punishments.[89] Article 156 of
the constitution states that law includes
the norms and provisions of sharia.[90]

Islam is the official religion of the Maldives

and open practice of any other religion is
forbidden.[91] The 2008 constitution says
that the republic "is based on the principles
of Islam" and that "no law contrary to any
principle of Islam can be applied". Non-
Muslims are prohibited from becoming
citizens.[92]

The requirement to adhere to a particular

religion and prohibition of public worship
following other religions is contrary to
Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights and Article 18 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights to which Maldives has recently
become party[93] and was addressed in
Maldives' reservation in adhering to the
Covenant claiming that "The application of
the principles set out in Article 18 of the
Covenant shall be without prejudice to the
Constitution of the Republic of the
Maldives."[94]

Human rights

Human rights in the Maldives is a

contentious issue. In its 2011 Freedom in
the World report, Freedom House declared
the Maldives "Partly Free", claiming a
reform process which had made headway
in 2009 and 2010 had stalled.[95] The
United States Bureau of Democracy,
Human Rights and Labor claims in their
2012 report on human rights practices in
the country that the most significant
problems are corruption, lack of religious
freedom, and abuse and unequal
treatment of women.[96]

In February 2013, the court sentenced a 15-

year-old rape victim to 100 lashes and 8
months of house arrest for having had
extra-marital relations. The conviction was
based on the confession of the girl shortly
after being raped by her stepfather.[97]
Same-sex relations are illegal in the
Maldives.[98]

Foreign relations
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hosts Maldivian
foreign minister Abdulla Shahid

Since 1996, the Maldives has been the

official progress monitor of the Indian
Ocean Commission. In 2002, the Maldives
began to express interest in the
commission but as of 2008 had not applied
for membership. Maldives' interest relates
to its identity as a small island state,
especially economic development and
environmental preservation, and its desire
for closer relations with France, a main
actor in the IOC region.

The Maldives is a founding member of the

South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC). The republic joined
the Commonwealth in 1982, some 17 years
after gaining independence from the
United Kingdom. In October 2016, Maldives
announced its withdrawal from the
Commonwealth[99] in protest at allegations
of human rights abuse and failing
democracy.[100] The Maldives enjoys close
ties with Commonwealth members
Seychelles and Mauritius. The Maldives
and Comoros are also both members of
the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and his Cabinet

has decided that the Maldives will be
returning to its status as a Commonwealth
republic.[101]

Military

Fire & Rescue Service boats

The Maldives National Defence Force is the
combined security organisation
responsible for defending the security and
sovereignty of the Maldives, having the
primary task of being responsible for
attending to all internal and external
security needs of the Maldives, including
the protection of the Exclusive Economic
Zone (EEZ) and the maintenance of peace
and security. The MNDF component
branches are the Coast Guard, Marine
Corps, Special Forces, Service Corps and
the Corps of Engineers.

As a water-bound nation much of the

security concerns lie at sea. Almost 99% of
the country is covered by sea and the
remaining 1% land is scattered over an
area of 800 km (497 mi) × 120 km (75 mi),
with the largest island being not more than
8 km2 (3 sq mi). Therefore, the duties
assigned to the MNDF of maintaining
surveillance over Maldives' waters and
providing protection against foreign
intruders poaching in the EEZ and
territorial waters, are immense tasks from
both logistical and economic viewpoints.

The Coast Guard plays a vital role in

carrying out these functions. To provide
timely security its patrol boats are
stationed at various MNDF Regional
Headquarters. The Coast Guard is also
assigned to respond to the maritime
distress calls and to conduct search and
rescue operations in a timely manner.
Maritime pollution control exercises are
conducted regularly on an annual basis for
familiarisation and handling of such
hazardous situations.

Administrative divisions
Each administrative atoll is marked, along with the
thaana letter used to identify the atoll. Natural atolls
are labelled in light blue. Full view of the map .

The Maldives has twenty-six natural atolls

and few island groups on isolated reefs, all
of which have been divided into twenty-
one administrative divisions (19
administrative atolls and cities of Malé and
Addu).[102]

Each atoll is administered by an elected

Atoll Council. The islands are administered
by an elected Island Council.

Between 2008 and 2010 the Maldives had

7 provinces each consisting of the
following administrative divisions (the
capital Malé is its own administrative
division):

1. Mathi-Uthuru Province; consists of

Haa Alif Atoll, Haa Dhaalu Atoll and
Shaviyani Atoll.
2. Uthuru Province; consists of Noonu
Atoll, Raa Atoll, Baa Atoll and Lhaviyani
Atoll.
3. Medhu-Uthuru Province; consists of
Kaafu Atoll, Alifu Alifu Atoll, Alifu Dhaalu
Atoll and Vaavu Atoll.
4. Medhu Province; consists of Meemu
Atoll, Faafu Atoll and Dhaalu Atoll.
5. Medhu-Dhekunu Province; consists of
Thaa Atoll and Laamu Atoll.
6. Mathi-Dhekunu Province; consists of
Gaafu Alifu Atoll and Gaafu Dhaalu
Atoll.
7. Dhekunu Province; consists of
Gnaviyani Atoll and Addu City.
In addition to a name, every administrative
division is identified by the Maldivian code
letters, such as "Haa Alif" for Thiladhunmati
Uthuruburi (Thiladhunmathi North); and by
a Latin code letter. The first corresponds
to the geographical Maldivian name of the
atoll; the second is a code adopted for
convenience. As there are certain islands
in different atolls that have the same
name, for administrative purposes this
code is quoted before the name of the
island, for example: Baa Funadhoo, Kaafu
Funadhoo, Gaafu-Alifu Funadhoo. Since
most Atolls have very long geographical
names it is also used whenever the long
name is inconvenient, for example in the
atoll website names.[103]

The introduction of code-letter names has

been a source of much puzzlement and
misunderstandings, especially among
foreigners. Many people have come to
think that the code-letter of the
administrative atoll is its new name and
that it has replaced its geographical name.
Under such circumstances it is hard to
know which is the correct name to use.[103]

Economy
This section needs additional citations for
verification. Learn more
Malé harbour

Graphical depiction of Maldives's product exports in

28 color-coded categories

Historically Maldives provided enormous

quantities of cowry shells, an international
currency of the early ages. From the 2nd
century AD the islands were known as the
'Money Isles' by the Arabs.[104] Monetaria
moneta were used for centuries as a
currency in Africa, and huge amounts of
Maldivian cowries were introduced into
Africa by western nations during the
period of slave trade.[105] The cowry is now
the symbol of the Maldives Monetary
Authority.

In the early 1970s, the Maldives was one of

the world's 20 poorest countries, with a
population of 100,000. The economy at the
time was largely dependent on fisheries
and trading local goods such as coir rope,
ambergris (Maavaharu), and coco de mer
(Tavakkaashi) with neighboring countries
and East Asian countries.

The Maldivian government began a largely

successful economic reform programme in
1980s, initially by lifting import quotas and
giving more opportunities to private
sector. At the time tourism sector which
would play a significant role in the nation's
development was at its infant stage.

Agriculture and manufacturing continue to

play a lesser role in the economy,
constrained by the limited availability of
cultivable land and the shortage of
domestic labour.
Tourism

Filitheyo island beach with tall palm trees and blue

fresh lagoons

The Maldives remained largely unknown to

tourists until the early 1970s. Only 185
islands are home to its 447,137 inhabitants.
The other islands are used entirely for
economic purposes, of which tourism and
agriculture are the most dominant. Tourism
accounts for 28% of the GDP and more
than 60% of the Maldives' foreign
exchange receipts. Over 90% of
government tax revenue comes from
import duties and tourism-related taxes.

The development of tourism fostered the

overall growth of the country's economy. It
created direct and indirect employment
and income generation opportunities in
other related industries. The first tourist
resorts were opened in 1972 with Bandos
Island Resort and Kurumba Village (the
current name is Kurumba Maldives),[106]
which transformed the Maldives economy.
The resort island of Landaa Giraavaru (Baa atoll)

According to the Ministry of Tourism, the

emergence of tourism in 1972 transformed
the economy, moving rapidly from
dependence on fisheries to tourism. In just
three and a half decades, the industry
became the main source of income.
Tourism was also the country's biggest
foreign currency earner and the single
largest contributor to the GDP. As of 2008,
89 resorts in the Maldives offered over
17,000 beds and hosted over 600,000
tourists annually.[107] In 2017 over 1.4 million
visitors came to the islands [108]

The number of resorts increased from 2 to

92 between 1972 and 2007. As of 2007,
over 8,380,000 tourists had visited
Maldives.[109]

Visitors to the Maldives do not need to

apply for a visa pre-arrival, regardless of
their country of origin, provided they have
a valid passport, proof of onward travel,
and the money to be self-sufficient while in
the country.[110]

Most visitors arrive at Malé International

Airport, on Hulhulé Island, adjacent to the
capital Malé. The airport is served by
flights to and from India, Sri Lanka, Doha,
Dubai, Singapore, Istanbul, and major
airports in South-East Asia, as well as
charters from Europe. Gan Airport, on the
southern atoll of Addu, also serves an
international flight to Milan several times a
week. British Airways offers direct flights to
the Maldives around 2–3 times per week.

The country currently has six heritage

Maldivian coral mosques, all of which are
listed as UNESCO tentative sites.[111]

Fishing industry
 This section needs additional citations for
verification. Learn more

A mechanised traditional inter-island dhoni stripped of

its sails

For many centuries the Maldivian economy

was entirely dependent on fishing and
other marine products. Fishing remains the
main occupation of the people and the
government gives priority to the fisheries
sector.
The mechanisation of the traditional fishing
boat called dhoni in 1974 was a major
milestone in the development of the
fisheries industry. A fish canning plant was
installed on Felivaru in 1977, as a joint
venture with a Japanese firm. In 1979, a
Fisheries Advisory Board was set up with
the mandate of advising the government
on policy guidelines for the overall
development of the fisheries sector.
Manpower development programmes
began in the early 1980s, and fisheries
education was incorporated into the
school curriculum. Fish aggregating
devices and navigational aids were
located at various strategic points.
Moreover, the opening up of the exclusive
economic zone (EEZ) of the Maldives for
fisheries has further enhanced the growth
of the fisheries sector.

As of 2010, fisheries contributed over 15%

of the country's GDP and engaged about
30% of the country's work force. Fisheries
were also the second-largest foreign
exchange earner after tourism.

Demographics
Malé, the capital of the Maldives

Demographics of the Maldives, from 2000 to 2012

Population[7]

Year Million

1950 0.07

2000 0.3

2016 0.4

2018 0.45

This section needs additional citations for

verification. Learn more

The largest ethnic group are Dhivehis, i.e.

the Maldivians, native to the historic
region of the Maldive Islands comprising
today's Republic of Maldives and the island
of Minicoy in Union territory of
Lakshadweep, India. They share the same
culture and speak the Dhivehi language.
They are principally an Indo-Aryan people,
having traces of Middle Eastern, South
Asian, Austronesian and African genes in
the population.

In the past there was also a small Tamil

population known as the Giraavaru
people. This group have now been almost
completely absorbed into the larger
Maldivian society but were once native to
the island of Giraavaru (Kaafu Atoll). This
island was evacuated in 1968 due to heavy
erosion of the island.

Some social stratification exists on the

islands. It is not rigid, since rank is based
on varied factors, including occupation,
wealth, Islamic virtue, and family ties.
Instead of a complex caste system, there
was merely a distinction between noble
(bēfulhu) and common people in the
Maldives. Members of the social elite are
concentrated in Malé.

The population doubled by 1978, and the

population growth rate peaked at 3.4% in
1985. At the 2006 census, the population
had reached 298,968,[112] although the
census in 2000 showed that the
population growth rate had declined to
1.9%. Life expectancy at birth stood at 46
years in 1978, and later rose to 72. Infant
mortality has declined from 12.7% in 1977 to
1.2% today, and adult literacy reached 99%.
Combined school enrolment reached the
high 90s. The population was projected to
have reached 317,280 in 2010.[113]

The 2014 Population and Housing Census

listed the total population in Maldives as
402,071: 338,434 resident Maldivians and
63,637 resident foreigners, approximately
16% of the total population. However, it is
believed that foreigners have been
undercounted.[114] There are 40,000
Bangladeshis in the Maldives, making them
the largest group of foreigners working in
that country.[115] Other immigrants include
Filipinos in the Maldives as well as various
Western foreign workers.

Religion

Maldives religions (2010)[116]

Islam   98.4%
Mosque in Hulhumalé

After the long Buddhist[117] period of

Maldivian history, Muslim traders
introduced Islam. Maldivians converted to
Islam by the mid-12th century. The islands
have had a long history of Sufic orders, as
can be seen in the history of the country
such as the building of tombs. They were
used until as recently as the 1980s for
seeking the help of buried saints. They can
be seen next to some old mosques and
are considered a part of Maldives's cultural
heritage.

Other aspects of tassawuf, such as

ritualised dhikr ceremonies called Maulūdu
(Mawlid)—the liturgy of which included
recitations and certain supplications in a
melodical tone—existed until very recent
times. These Maulūdu festivals were held
in ornate tents specially built for the
occasion. At present Islam is the official
religion of the entire population, as
adherence to it is required for citizenship.

According to Moroccan traveller Ibn

Battuta, the person responsible for this
conversion was a Sunni Muslim visitor
named Abu al-Barakat al-Barbari, sailing
from Morocco. He is also referred to as
Tabrizugefaanu. His venerated tomb now
stands on the grounds of the Friday
Mosque, or Hukuru Miskiy, in Malé. Built in
1656, this is the country's oldest mosque.

Languages

Thaana script
The official and common language is
Dhivehi, an Indo-Aryan language closely
related to the Sinhala language of Sri
Lanka. The first known script used to write
Dhivehi is the eveyla akuru script, which is
found in historical recording of kings
(raadhavalhi). Later a script called dhives
akuru was used for a long period. The
present-day script is called Thaana and is
written from right to left. Thaana is said to
have been introduced by the reign of
Mohamed Thakurufaanu.

English is widely spoken by the locals of

the Maldives.[118] The spread of English has
reached almost every corner of the world,
and the Republic of the Maldives is no
exception. Following the nation's opening
to the outside world, the introduction of
English as a medium of instruction at
secondary and tertiary level of education,
and its government's recognition of the
opportunities offered through tourism,
English has now firmly established itself in
the country. As such, the Maldives are
quite similar to the countries in the Gulf
region (cf. Randall & Samimi, 2010; Boyle,
2012). The nation is undergoing vast
societal change, and English is part of
this.[119]
Population by locality

Culture
This section needs additional citations for
verification. Learn more

Maahefun Festival in Fuvahmulah

Since the 12th century AD there were also

influences from Arabia in the language and
culture of the Maldives because of the
conversion to Islam and its location as a
crossroads in the central Indian Ocean.
This was due to the long trading history
between the far east and the middle east.
However, unlike the Sinhalese of Sri Lanka
and most of the Arabs, Africans and
Europeans whose influence can be seen in
loanwords, material culture, and the
diversity of Maldivian phenotype,
Maldivians do not have the highly
embedded patriarchal codes of honour,
purity, corporate marriage, and sedentary
private property that are typical of places
where agriculture is the key form of
subsistence and social relations have been
built, historically, around tribute taking.
Reflective of this is the fact that the
Maldives has had the highest national
divorce rate in the world for many
decades. This, it is hypothesised, is due to
a combination of liberal Islamic rules about
divorce and the relatively loose marital
bonds that have been identified as
common in non- and semi-sedentary
peoples without a history of fully
developed agrarian property and kinship
relations.[120]

Transportation
TMA Terminal

Velana International Airport is the principal

gateway to the Maldives. International
travel is available on a number of major
airlines. Two Maldives based airlines also
operate international flights. Privately
owned MEGA Maldives Airlines has Boeing
737 and 767 aircraft and operates
frequent services to Beijing, Shanghai, and
Hong Kong. Government owned Island
Aviation Services (branded as Maldivian)
operates to nearly all Maldives domestic
airports with several Bombardier Dash 8
aircraft and one A320 with international
service to Chennai and
Thiruvananthapuram, India, and Dhaka,
Bangladesh.

In Maldives there are three main ways to

travel between islands: by domestic flight,
by seaplane or by boat.[121] For several
years there were two seaplane companies
operating: TMA (Trans Maldivian Airways)
and Maldivian Air Taxi, but these merged in
2013 under the name TMA. The seaplane
fleet is entirely made up of DHC-6 Twin
Otters. There is also another airline, Flyme,
which operates using ATR planes to
domestic airports, principally Maamagili
and some others. The typical Maldivian
boat is called a dhoni. Depending on the
distance of the destination island from the
airport, resorts organise domestic flight
plus boat transfers, seaplane flights
directly to the resort island jetty, or
speedboat trips for their guests. There are
also locally run ferries using large dhoni
boats. Speedboats and seaplanes tend to
be more expensive, while travel by dhoni,
although slower, is relatively cheaper and
convenient.

Education
The Maldives National University is one of
the country's three institutions of higher
education. Its mission statement is as
follows:

To create, discover, preserve

and disseminate knowledge that
are necessary to enhance the
lives and livelihoods of people
and essential for the cultural,
social and economic
development of the society so
that this nation shall remain
free and Islamic forever.[122]
In 1973, the Allied Health Services Training
Centre (the forerunner of the Faculty of
Health Sciences) was established by the
Ministry of Health. The Vocational Training
Centre was established in 1974, providing
training for mechanical and electrical
trades. In 1984, the Institute for Teacher
Education was created and the School of
Hotel and Catering Services was
established in 1987 to provide trained
personnel for the tourist industry. In 1991,
the Institute of Management and
Administration was created to train staff
for public and private services. In 1998, the
Maldives College of Higher Education was
founded. The Institute of Shar'ah and Law
was founded in January 1999. In 2000 the
college launched its first degree
programme: Bachelor of Arts. On 17
January 2011 the Maldives National
University Act was passed by the
President of the Maldives; The Maldives
National University was named on 15
February 2011.[122]

See also
Index of Maldives-related articles
Outline of Maldives

References
1. Levinson, David (1947). Ethnic groups
 worldwide: a ready reference
handbook . Oryx Publishers.
ISBN 978-1-57356-019-1.
2. Maloney, Clarence. "Maldives
People" . International Institute for
Asian Studies. Retrieved 22 June
2008.
3. "Maldives Enthnography" . Maldives-
ethnography.com. Archived from the
original on 16 January 2013. Retrieved
30 June 2010.
4. "President" . The President's Office -
Republic of Maldives. Retrieved
17 November 2018.
5. "Eighteenth People's Majlis elects
Speaker and Deputy Speaker" .
People's Majlis. 28 May 2014.
Archived from the original on 9 July
2014.
6. "Field Listing: Area" . CIA World
Factbook. CIA World Factbook.
Retrieved 27 January 2016.
7. "World Population Prospects: The
2017 Revision" . ESA.UN.org (custom
data acquired via website). United
Nations Department of Economic and
Social Affairs, Population Division.
Retrieved 10 September 2017.
8. "GeoHive – Maldives Population" .
GeoHive. Archived from the original
on 25 February 2015.
9. "Maldives" . International Monetary
Fund. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
10. "2015 Human Development Report
Statistical Annex" (PDF). United
Nations Development Programme.
2015. p. 17. Retrieved 14 December
2015.
11. "2015 Human Development Report
Statistical Annex" (PDF). United
Nations Development Programme.
2015. p. 13. Retrieved 14 December
2015.
12. World Wildlife Fund, ed. (2001).
"Maldives-Lakshadweep-Chagos
Archipelago tropical moist forests" .
WildWorld Ecoregion Profile. National
Geographic Society. Archived from
the original on 8 March 2010.
Retrieved 30 December 2010.
13. Henley, Jon (11 November 2008). "The
last days of paradise" . The Guardian.
London. Retrieved 12 May 2010. "[The
Maldives] holds the record for the
country with the lowest high point on
earth: nowhere on any of the islands
on Maldives does the natural ground
level exceed 5.1m. Most of [the
Maldives'] land mass, which totals
roughly one-fifth of Greater London,
is a great deal lower [...], averaging
around 1.5m."
14. "Copenhagen Accord" (PDF). New
York Times. 18 December 2009.
Retrieved 2 July 2013.
15. "Maldives – Country report –
Freedom in the World – 2015" . 21
January 2015.
16. National Adaptation Program of
Action: Republic of Maldives (PDF)
(Report). Ministry of Environment,
Energy and Water. 2007.
17. Upper middle income World Bank.
Retrieved 18 September 2015.
18. "2016 Human Development Report
Statistical Annex" (PDF). United
Nations Development Programme.
2016. p. 13. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
19. Hogendorn, Jan and Johnson Marion
(1986). The Shell Money of the Slave
Trade. African Studies Series 49,
Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge ISBN 0521541107, pp. 20–
22
20. P.E.P Deraniyagala in Senarat
Paranavitana; Leelananda
Prematilleka; Johanna Engelberta
van Lohuizen-De Leeuw (1978).
Senarat Paranavitana
Commemoration Volume . Brill.
pp. 52–. ISBN 978-90-04-05455-4.
Retrieved 1 August 2013.
21. "Altername Names for Republic of
Maldives" . Geonames.org. Retrieved
23 September 2013.
22. Apte, Vaman Shivram (1985).
Sanskrit–English Dictionary. Motilal
Banarsidass, New Delhi.
23. Ibn Battuta Travels in Asia and Africa.
translated by A. R. Gibb.
24. Akhbar al-Sin wa 'l-Hind (Notes on
China and India), which dates from
851.
25. "The Seas of Sinbad" . Saudi Aramco
World. 56 (4). 2005. Archived from
the original on 8 February 2007.
Retrieved 24 September 2008.
26. Orta, Garcia (2016). Colloquies on the
Simple and Drugs of India. India: Sri
Satguru Publications. p. 22. ISBN 978-
81-7030-117-2.
27. Kalpana Ram (1993). Mukkuvar
Women. Macquarie University.
28. Xavier Romero-Frias, The Maldive
Islanders, A Study of the Popular
Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom
29. Ellis, Royston (2008). Maldives . Bradt
Travel Guides. ISBN 9781841622668.
30. Clarence Maloney. People of the
Maldive Islands. Orient Longman
31. Battutah, Ibn (2002). The Travels of
Ibn Battutah. London: Picador.
pp. 235–236, 320.
ISBN 9780330418799.
32. The Adventures of Ibn Battuta: A
Muslim Traveller of the Fourteenth
Century
33. Honchell, Stephanie (2018), Sufis, Sea
Monsters, and Miraculous
Circumcisions: Comparative
Conversion Narratives and Popular
Memories of Islamization, Fairleigh
Dickinson University and the
University of Cape Town, p. 5, "In
reference to Ibn Batuta's Moroccan
theory of this figure, citation 8 of this
text mentions, that other accounts
identify Yusuf Al Barbari as East
African or Persian. But as fellow
Maghribi, Ibn Battuta likely felt partial
to the Moroccan version."
34. Defremery, C. (1999). Ibn Battuta in
the Maldives and Ceylon . Asian
Educational Services.
ISBN 9788120612198.
35. "Richard Bulliet – History of the World
to 1500 CE (Session 22) – Tropical
Africa and Asia" . Youtube.com. 23
November 2010. Retrieved
23 September 2013.
36. F.R.C. Bagley et al., The Last Great
Muslim Empires (Brill: 1997), p. 174.
37. Mohamed Diriye Abdullahi, Culture
and Customs of Somalia,
(Greenwood Press: 2001), p. 13.
38. James Hastings, Encyclopedia of
Religion and Ethics Part 12: V. 12
(Kessinger Publishing, LLC: 2003), p.
490.
39. Somalia; Wasaaradda Warfaafinta iyo
Hanuuninta Dadweynaha (1972). The
Writing of the Somali Language: A
Great Landmark in Our Revolutionary
History. Ministry of Information and
National Guidance. p. 10. "Aw
Barkhadle, he was a native, who lived
in about 1,000 years ago and is buried
now in a ruined town named after
him, Aw Barkhadle, which is a few
miles away from Hargeisa."
40. Nehemia Levtzion; Randall Pouwels
(2000). The History of Islam in Africa.
Ohio University Press. p. 242. "Aw
Barkhadle, is the founder and
ancestor of the Walashma dynasty"
41. Mackintosh-Smith, Tim (2010).
Landfalls: On the Edge of Islam from
Zanzibar to the Alhambra. Hodder &
Stoughton. p. 384.
42. Galaal, Musa (1980). "Les liens
historiques entre la corne de l'Afrique
et les îles du golfe Persique et de
l'océan Indien par les voies de l'Islam".
Relations historiques à travers
l'océan Indien. Belgique: l'Organisation
des Nations Unies pour l'éducation, la
science et la culture. p. 28. ISBN 978-
92-3-201740-6. "Translated from
French to English: Now this holy man—
this is the new point (Al Kownayn)—
seems to be the same as that which
the people of the Maldive Islands,
near India, called Barakath Al-Barbari
who spread Islam in this region as he
did in the Horn of Africa. We only
 know in which of these two regions
he lived first and this prompted him
to change sectors of business. The
tomb of Sheik Barkhadle (Yusuf Al
Kownayn) is in a ruined city called
Dhogor, near Hargeisa, in the north of
the Democratic Republic of Somalia."
43. Ibn Batuta (1968). Monteil, Vincent
(ed.). Voyages d'Ibn Battuta:Textes
et documents retrouves (in Arabic).
Anthropos. p. 127.
44. Paul, Ludwig (2003). Persian Origins:
Early Judaeo-Persian and the
Emergence of New Persian : Collected
Papers of the Symposium, Göttingen
1999 . Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 31.
ISBN 978-3-447-04731-9.
45. Paul, Ludwig (2003). Persian Origins:
Early Judaeo-Persian and the
Emergence of New Persian : Collected
Papers of the Symposium, Göttingen
1999 . Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. p. 31.
ISBN 978-3-447-04731-9.
46. Boomgaard, P. (1 January 2008).
Linking Destinies: Trade, Towns and
Kin in Asian History . BRILL.
ISBN 9789004253995 – via Google
Books.
47. "The Sun never sets on the British
Empire" . Gan.philliptsmall.me.uk. 17
May 1971. Archived from the original
on 19 September 2013. Retrieved
2 April 2013.
48. "Maldives – Population". Library of
Congress Country Studies
49. CNN (11 November 2008). "Sinking
island nation seeks new home" .
Retrieved 12 November 2008.BAT
50. "Maldives – Country Review Report
on the Implementation of the Brussels
Programme of Action for LDCS"
(PDF). Archived from the original on 21
September 2013.
51. "Maldives Skyscraper – Floating
States" . UN.org.
52. "UNDP: Discussion Paper – Achieving
Debt Sustainability and the MDGs in
Small Island Developing States: The
Case of the Maldives" (PDF).
Archived from the original (PDF) on 12
January 2012.
53. "Maldives tsunami damage 62
percent of GDP: WB" . 15 February
2005. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
54. "Republic of Maldives – Tsunami:
Impact and Recovery" (PDF).
undp.org.mv. Archived from the
original (PDF) on 28 March 2012.
Retrieved 18 September 2015.
55. Autocracy and Back Again: The Ordeal
of the Maldives . Brown Political
Review. Retrieved on 10 May 2016.
56. Raajje News (7 May 2009). "he Quality
of Political Appointees in the Nasheed
Administration" . Retrieved
21 February 2012.
57. Al Jazeera (9 February 2012).
"Maldives president quits after
protests" . Retrieved 6 February
2012.
58. The Huffington Post, ed. (8 October
2012). "Mohamed Nasheed, Former
Maldives President, Arrested after
Failing to Appear in Court" . Archived
from the original on 10 March 2016.
59. Naafiz, Ali (20 October 2015).
"Maldives opposition seeks India's
help in jailed leader's release" .
Haveeru Online. Archived from the
original on 21 October 2015.
Retrieved 24 October 2015.
60. Maldives President Escapes Unhurt
After Explosion on Boat . Time.com
(28 September 2015). Retrieved on 10
May 2016.
61. Maldives declares 30-day emergency
– BBC News . bbc.co.uk. Retrieved on
10 May 2016.
62. "Majlis passes declaration to remove
VP from office" . 5 November 2015.
Archived from the original on 14 July
2016.
63. "Maldives revokes state of
emergency amid global outcry and
tourism worries" . The Guardian.
Associated Press. 10 November 2015.
Retrieved 10 November 2015.
64. "Entire Maldives cabinet resigns" . Al
Jazeera English. 29 June 2010.
Retrieved 30 June 2010.
65. Megan Angelo (1 May 2009). "Honey, I
Sunk the Maldives: Environmental
changes could wipe out some of the
world's most well-known travel
destinations" . Archived from the
original on 17 July 2012.
66. Kristina Stefanova (19 April 2009).
"Climate refugees in Pacific flee rising
sea" . Washington Times.
67. "Maldives – Atlapedia Online" .
68. "World Weather Information Service –
Malé" . WMO. Retrieved 17 March
2016.
69. "Malé Climate 1961–90" . NOAA.
Retrieved 17 March 2016.
70. "Where climate change threatens
survival" . The Sydney Morning
Herald. 9 January 2012. Retrieved
18 September 2015.
71. Stephen, Marcus (14 November 2011).
"A sinking feeling: Why is the
president of the tiny Pacific island
nation of Nauru so concerned about
climate change?" . The New York
Times Upfront. Retrieved 9 February
2015. "Most Endangered Island
nations at highest risk for flooding
due to climate change 3 Maldives
(Indian Ocean)"
72. Catoe, Linda. "Endangered island
nations call for global action on
climate change" . The Guilfordian.
Retrieved 30 December 2018.
73. "Exclusive – Mohamed Nasheed
Extended Interview Pt. 2" . The Daily
Show. Comedy Central. 2 April 2012.
Retrieved 14 February 2017.
74. Lang, Olivia (17 October 2009).
"Maldives leader in climate change
stunt" . BBC News. Retrieved
19 October 2010.
75. "Maldives cabinet makes a splash" .
BBC News. 17 October 2009.
76. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. "Address
by his Excellency Mr. Maumoon Abdul
Gahoom, President of the Republic of
Maldives, at thenineteenth special
session of the United Nations General
Assembly for the purpose of an
overall review and appraisal of the
implementation of agenda 21 – June
24, 1997" . Archived from the original
on 13 June 2006. Retrieved
6 January 2006.
77. Ramesh, Randeep (10 November
2008). "Paradise almost lost:
Maldives seek to buy a new
homeland" . The Guardian. London.
Retrieved 12 May 2010.
78. "Climate Change Gridlock: Where Do
We Go From Here? (Part 1)" . Making
Contact. National Radio Project. 28
June 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
79. Evans, Judith (24 April 2015).
"Maldives island swamped by rising
tide of waste" . Financial Times.
Retrieved 14 February 2017.
80. "Protected Areas – Maldives" .
epa.gov.mv. Environmental
Protection Agency. Archived from the
original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved
25 May 2013.
81. "Fourth National Report to the
Convention on Biological Diversity of
Maldives" (PDF). Ministry of Housing
and Environment. p. 7. Archived from
the original on 4 November 2015.
Retrieved 2 April 2013.
82. "Maldives Marine Life" .
Scubadivemaldives.com. Archived
from the original on 22 December
2011. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
83. "Sharks of the Maldives" .
TheMaldives.com. Retrieved
12 February 2017.
84. "Regional Workshop on the
Conservation and Sustainable
Management of Coral Reefs" .
Fao.org. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
85. "Maldives Nurses Its Coral Reefs Back
to Life" . Globalcoral.org. 2 May 2004.
Archived from the original on 21
September 2013. Retrieved 2 April
2013.
86. "Coral Bleaching Updates" .
MarineSavers. Marine Savers and
Four Seasons Resorts Maldives
(2012–2017). 31 July 2016. Retrieved
12 February 2017.
87. Ducarme, Frédéric (2016). "Field
Observations of Sea Cucumbers in Ari
Atoll, and Comparison with Two
Nearby Atolls in Maldives" (PDF). SPC
Beche-de-mer Information Bulletin. 36.
88. "Maldives crackdown an 'assault on
democracy': UN rights chief" . The New
Indian Express. Retrieved 8 February
2018.
89. "Maldives Penal Code" (PDF).
Retrieved 19 February 2013.
90. Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na'im (2015).
"Maldives, Republic of" . Islamic Family
Law. Emory University School of Law.
Retrieved 18 February 2013.
91. "International Religious Freedom
Report for 2017" . www.state.gov.
Retrieved 30 December 2018.
92. Ran Hirschl (5 May 2011).
Constitutional Theocracy . Harvard
University Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-
674-05937-5.
93. "Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Maldives" . Foreign.gov.mv. Archived
from the original on 21 September
2013. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
94. Davis, Thomas W. D. (2011). Human
Rights in Asia . Edward Elgar
Publishing. p. 33. ISBN 978-1-84844-
680-9.
95. Freedom House (2011). "Freedom in
the World 2011: Maldives" . Freedom
House. Retrieved 25 August 2012.
96. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights
and Labor (2012). "Country Reports
on Human Rights Practices for 2011:
Maldives" . United States
Department of State. Retrieved
24 August 2012.
97. Merrick, Jane (7 July 2013). "Britons
urged to boycott Maldives over
sexist laws" . The Independent.
98. "State Sponsored Homophobia 2016:
A world survey of sexual orientation
laws: criminalisation, protection and
recognition" (PDF). International
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and
Intersex Association. 17 May 2016.
99. Secretary-General statement on
Maldives decision to leave the
Commonwealth , 13 October 2016
100. Maldives quits Commonwealth over
alleged rights abuses , The Guardian,
13 October 2016
101. "The President's Office" .
102. "Maldives Atolls" . Statoids.com.
Retrieved 30 June 2010.
103. Divehiraajjege Jōgrafīge Vanavaru.
Muhammadu Ibrahim Lutfee
104. Lyon, James (October 2003).
Maldives . Lonely Planet Publications
Pty Ltd. p. 9. ISBN 978-1-74059-176-8.
105. Hogendorn, Jan and Johnson Marion
(1986). The Shell Money of the Slave
Trade. African Studies Series 49,
Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge ISBN 0521541107.
106. "Coup? What coup? Tourists ignore
Maldives turmoil" . The Age.
Melbourne. 13 February 2012.
107. "Ministry of Tourism. Retrieved 3 April
2009" . Tourism.gov.mv. Retrieved
2 April 2013.
108. "The Maldives, a tourist haven in
peril" . www.yahoo.com. Retrieved
4 May 2019.
109. "35 years of tourism" (PDF).
Retrieved 2 April 2013.
110. "Entry into Maldives" . Department of
Immigration and Emigration, Republic
of Maldives. Retrieved 9 February
2012.
111. Centre, UNESCO World Heritage.
"Coral Stone Mosques of Maldives -
UNESCO World Heritage Centre" .
whc.unesco.org.
112. "Islands by Population Size and
Percentage Share of Total
Population" . Maldives: Population
and Housing Census 2006. Ministry of
Planning and National Development.
Archived from the original on 19
September 2013. Retrieved
8 February 2012.
113. "Census Analysis 2006. Population
Projection 2006 – 2050" (PDF).
planning.gov.mv. p. 273. Retrieved
5 July 2014.
114. "Maldives' Population Dynamics" .
Retrieved 1 February 2019.
115. Maldives to recruit more Bangladeshi
workers, SATURDAY, 02 AUGUST
2008 .
116. Maldives . globalreligiousfutures.org
117. "Conversion of the Maldives to
Islam" . maldivesstory.com.mv.
Archived from the original on 9 May
2003.
118. "Maldives Languages – Languages
of Maldives – Language Spoken In
Maldives" . maldives.tourism-
srilanka.com.
119. Meierkord, Christiane (March 2018).
"English in paradise: the Maldives:
English is rapidly establishing itself as
a second language in a society
transforming from fishing to tourism
and trade" . English Today. 34 (1): 2–
11. doi:10.1017/S0266078417000475 .
ISSN 0266-0784 .
120. Marcus, Anthony. 2012. Reconsidering
Talaq: Marriage, Divorce and Sharia
Reform in the Republic of Maldives in
Chitra Raghavan and James Levine.
Self-Determination and Women's
Rights in Muslim Societies. Lebanon,
NH: Brandeis University Press
121. Maldives – Élite Diving Agency .
Elitedivingagency.com. Retrieved on
29 January 2014.
122. "The Maldives National University" .
mnu.edu.mv.

Further reading
Divehiraajjege Jōgrafīge Vanavaru.
Muhammadu Ibrahim Lutfee. G.Sōsanī. Malé
1999.
H. C. P. Bell, The Maldive Islands, An account
of the Physical Features, History, Inhabitants,
Productions and Trade. Colombo 1883,
ISBN 81-206-1222-1.
H.C.P. Bell, The Maldive Islands; Monograph
on the History, Archaeology and Epigraphy.
Reprint Colombo 1940. Council for Linguistic
and Historical Research. Malé 1989.
H.C.P. Bell, Excerpta Maldiviana. Reprint
Colombo 1922/35 edn. Asian Educational
Services. New Delhi 1999.
Divehi Tārīkhah Au Alikameh. Divehi Bahāi
Tārikhah Khidmaiykurā Qaumī Markazu.
Reprint 1958 edn. Malé, Maldives 1990.
Christopher, William (1836–38). Transactions
of the Bombay Geographical Society, Vol. I.
Bombay.
Lieut. I.A. Young & W. Christopher, Memoirs
on the Inhabitants of the Maldive Islands.
Geiger, Wilhelm. Maldivian Linguistic Studies.
Reprint 1919 edn. Asian Educational Services.
Delhi 1999.
Hockly, T.W. The Two Thousand Isles. Reprint
1835 edn. Asian Educational Services. Delhi
2003.
Hideyuki Takahashi, Maldivian National
Security –And the Threats of Mercenaries,
The Round Table (London), No. 351, July 1999,
pp. 433–444.
Malten, Thomas: Malediven und Lakkadiven.
Materialien zur Bibliographie der Atolle im
Indischen Ozean. Beiträ
ge zur Südasien-
Forschung Südasien-Institut Universitä
t
Heidelberg, Nr. 87. Franz Steiner Verlag.
Wiesbaden, 1983.
Vilgon, Lars: Maldive and Minicoy Islands
Bibliography with the Laccadive Islands.
Published by the author. Stockholm, 1994.
Clarence Maloney, People of the Maldive
Islands, Orient Black Swan, 2013
Xavier Romero-Frias, The Maldive Islanders :
a study of the popular culture of an ancient
ocean kingdom, NEI, 1999
Xavier Romero-Frias, Folk Tales of the
Maldives, Nordic Institute of Asian Studies,
2012
Djan Sauerborn, The Perils of Rising
Fundamentalism in the Maldives ,
International Relations and Security Network
(ISN), Zürich, September 2013
 Djan Sauerborn, Failing to Transition:
Democratization under Stress in the
Maldives , South Asia Democratic Forum
(SADF), February 2015

External links

Maldives
at Wikipedia's sister projects

Definitions
from
Wiktionary
Media from
Wikimedia
Commons
 News from
Wikinews
Quotations
from
Wikiquote
Texts from
Wikisource
Travel
guide from
Wikivoyag
e

Official tourist information

President's Office
 "Maldives" . The World Factbook. Central
Intelligence Agency.
Maldives from UCB Libraries GovPubs
Maldives at Curlie
Maldives from the BBC News
Wikimedia Atlas of Maldives
Key Development Forecasts for the
Maldives from International Futures
Constitution of the Republic of Maldives

Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Maldives&oldid=900461494"
Last edited 3 days ago by an anony…

Content is available under CC BY-SA 3.0 unless

otherwise noted.