The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is a country and archipelagic state in South Asia in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, about 750 kilometres (470 miles; 400 nautical miles) from the Asian continent's mainland. The Maldives' chain of 26 atolls stretches across the equator from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the north to Addu Atoll in the south.
Republic of Maldives
| |
|---|---|
 Flag  Emblem | |
| Motto: الدولة المحلديبية (Arabic) Ad-Dawlat Al-Mahaldibiyya "State of the Mahal Dibiyat" | |
| Anthem: ޤައުމީ ސަލާމް (Dhivehi) Qaumee Salaam "National Salute" | |
  | |
| Capital and largest city | Malé 4°10′31″N 73°30′32″E / 4.17528°N 73.50889°E |
| Official language and national language | Dhivehi |
| Common languages | English |
| Religion |
|
| Demonym(s) | Maldivian |
| Government | Unitary presidential republic |
• President | Mohamed Muizzu |
• Vice President | Hussain Mohamed Latheef |
• Majlis Speaker | Abdul Raheem Abdulla |
• Chief Justice | Ahmed Muthasim Adnan |
| Legislature | People's Majlis |
| Independence from the United Kingdom | |
• Independence declared | 26 July 1965 |
• First Republic | 1 January 1953 |
• Second Republic | 11 November 1968 |
• Current constitution | 7 August 2008 |
| Area | |
• Total | 298 km2 (115 sq mi) (187th) |
| Population | |
• 2022 census | 515,132 (167th) |
• Density | 1,728.63/km2 (4,477.1/sq mi) (7th) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2024 estimate |
• Total |  $13.867 billion (157th) |
• Per capita | $34,322 (54th) |
| GDP (nominal) | 2024 estimate |
• Total | $6.984 billion (161st) |
• Per capita | $17,287 (58th) |
| Gini (2024) |  31.3medium inequality |
| HDI (2022) | 0.762 high (87th) |
| Currency | Maldivian rufiyaa (MVR) |
| Time zone | UTC+5 (MVT) |
| Date format | dd/mm/yyyy |
| Calling code | +960 |
| ISO 3166 code | MV |
| Internet TLD | .mv |
The Maldives is the smallest country in Asia. Its land area is only 298 square kilometres (115 sq mi), but this is spread over roughly 90,000 square kilometres (35,000 sq mi) of the sea, making it one of the world's most spatially dispersed sovereign states. With a population of 515,132 in the 2022 census, it is the second least populous country in Asia and the ninth-smallest country by area, but also one of the most densely populated countries. The Maldives has an average ground-level elevation of 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) above sea level, and a highest natural point of only 2.4 metres (7 ft 10 in), making it the world's lowest-lying country. Some sources state the highest point, Mount Villingili, as 5.1 metres or 17 feet.
Malé is the capital and the most populated city, traditionally called the "King's Island", where the ancient royal dynasties ruled from its central location. The Maldives has been inhabited for over 2,500 years. Documented contact with the outside world began around 947 AD when Arab travelers began visiting the islands. In the 12th century, partly due to the importance of the Arabs and Persians as traders in the Indian Ocean, Islam reached the Maldivian Archipelago. The Maldives was soon 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 came in 1965, and a presidential republic was established in 1968 with an elected People's Majlis. The ensuing decades have seen political instability, efforts at democratic reform, and environmental challenges posed by climate change and rising sea levels. The Maldives became a founding member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
The Maldives is a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the Non-Aligned Movement. The World Bank classifies the Maldives as having an upper-middle income economy. The Maldives is a Dialogue Partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.Fishing has historically been the dominant economic activity, and remains the largest sector by far, followed by the rapidly growing tourism industry. The Maldives rates "high" on the Human Development Index, with per capita income significantly higher than other SAARC nations. The Maldives was a member of the Commonwealth of Nations from July 1982 until withdrawing from the organisation in October 2016 in protest of allegations of its human rights abuses and failing democracy. The Maldives rejoined the Commonwealth on 1 February 2020 after showing evidence of functioning democratic processes and popular support.
Etymology
According to legends, the first settlers of the Maldives were people known as Dheyvis. The first Kingdom of the Maldives was known as . During the 3rd century BCE visit of emissaries, it was noted that the Maldives was known as Dheeva Mahal.
During c. 1100 – 1166, the Maldives was also referred to as Diva Kudha, and the Laccadive archipelago which was a part of the Maldives was then referred to as Diva Kanbar by the scholar and polymath al-Biruni.
The name Maldives may also derive from Sanskrit माला mālā (garland) and द्वीप dvīpa (island), or මාල දිවයින Maala Divaina ("Necklace Islands") in Sinhala. The Maldivian people are called Dhivehin. The word Dheeb/Deeb (archaic Dhivehi, related to Sanskrit द्वीप, dvīpa) means "island", and Dhives (Dhivehin) means "islanders" (i.e., Maldivians). In Tamil, "Garland of Islands" can be translated as Mālaitīvu (மாலைத்தீவு).
The venerable Sri Lankan chronicle Mahavamsa mentions an island designated as Mahiladiva ("Island of Women", महिलादिभ) in Pali, likely arising from an erroneous translation of the Sanskrit term, signifying "garland".
Jan Hogendorn, professor of economics at Colby College, theorised that the name Maldives derives from the Sanskrit mālādvīpa (मालाद्वीप), meaning "garland of islands". In Malayalam, "Garland of Islands" can be translated as Maladweepu (മാലദ്വീപ്). In Kannada, "Garland of Islands" can be translated as Maaledweepa (ಮಾಲೆದ್ವೀಪ). None of these names are mentioned in any literature, however, 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.
Medieval Muslim travellers such as Ibn Battuta called the islands Maḥal Dībīyāt (محل ديبية) from the Arabic word maḥal ("palace"), which must be how the Berber traveller interpreted the name of Malé, having been through Muslim North India, where Perso-Arabic words were introduced to the local vocabulary. This is the name currently inscribed on the scroll in the Maldives state emblem. The classical Persian/Arabic name for the Maldives is Dibajat. 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".
In a conversational book published in 1563, Garcia de Orta writes: "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 means island. So that in that language, the word signifies 'four islands', while we, corrupting the name, call it Maldiva."
The local name for Maldives by the Maldivian people in Dhivehi language is "Dhivehi Raajje", (Dhivehi: ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ).
History
Ancient history and settlement
In the 6th–5th century BCE, the Maldives already had their kingdoms. The country has an established history of over 2,500 years according to historical evidence and legends.
The Mahāvaṃsa (300 BCE) has records of people from Sri Lanka emigrating to the Maldives. Assuming that cowrie shells come from the Maldives, historians believe that there may have been people living in the Maldives during the Indus Valley civilisation (3300–1300 BCE). Several artefacts show the presence of Hinduism in the country before the Islamic period.
According to the book Kitāb fi āthār Mīdhu al-qādimah (كتاب في آثار ميذو القديمة) (On the Ancient Ruins of Meedhoo), written in the 17th century in Arabic by Allama Ahmed Shihabuddine (Allama Shihab al-Din) of Meedhoo in Addu Atoll, the first settlers of the Maldives were people known as Dheyvis. They came from the Kalibanga in India. The time of their arrival is unknown but it was before Emperor Asoka's kingdom in 269–232 BCE. Shihabuddin's story tallies remarkably well with the recorded history of South Asia and that of the copperplate document of the Maldives known as Loamaafaanu.
The ancient history of the Maldives is told in copperplates, ancient scripts carved on coral artefacts, traditions, language, and different ethnicities of Maldivians. The Maapanansa, the copper plates on which recorded the history of the first Kings of the Maldives from the Solar Dynasty, were lost quite early on.
A 4th-century notice written by Ammianus Marcellinus (362 CE) speaks of gifts sent to the Roman emperor Julian by a deputation from the nation of Divi. The name Divi is very similar to Dheyvi who were the first settlers of Maldives.
The first Maldivians did not leave any archaeological artefacts. 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.
Comparative studies of Maldivian oral, linguistic, and cultural traditions confirm that the first settlers were people from the southern shores of the neighbouring Indian subcontinent, including the Giraavaru people, mentioned in ancient legends and local folklore about the establishment of the capital and kingly rule in Malé.
A strong underlying layer of Dravidian and North Indian cultures survives in Maldivian society, with a clear Elu substratum in the language, which also appears in place names, kinship terms, poetry, dance, and religious beliefs. The North Indian system was brought by the original Sinhalese from Sri Lanka. Malabar and Pandya seafaring culture led to the settlement of the Islands by Tamil and Malabar seafarers.
Buddhist period
Despite being just mentioned briefly in most history books, the 1,400 year-long Buddhist period has a 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 that survives today. The Maldivian language, early Maldive scripts, architecture, ruling institutions, customs, and manners of the Maldivians originated at the time when the Maldives were a Buddhist kingdom.
Buddhism probably spread to the Maldives in the 3rd century BCE at the time of Emperor Ashoka's expansion and became the dominant religion of the people of the Maldives until the 12th century. Archeological evidence from an ancient Buddhist monastery in Kaashidhoo has been dated between 205 to 560 AD, based on the radiocarbon dating of shell deposits unearthed from the foundations of stupas and other structures in the monastery. The ancient Maldivian Kings promoted Buddhism, and the first Maldive writings and artistic achievements, in the form of highly developed sculpture and architecture, originate from that period. Nearly all archaeological remains in the Maldives are from Buddhist stupas and monasteries, and all artefacts found to date display characteristic Buddhist iconography.[citation needed]
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 the Maldives, Dhovemi, converted to Islam in the year 1153 (or 1193). Adopting the Muslim title of Sultan Muhammad al-Adil, he initiated 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.
A Moroccan traveller named Abu al-Barakat Yusuf al-Barbari is traditionally cited for this conversion. According to the story told to Ibn Battutah, a mosque was built with the inscription: 'The Sultan Ahmad Shanurazah accepted Islam at the hand of Abu al-Barakat Yusuf al-Barbari.' 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 Persian origins account that was known as well at the time.
Others have it that he may have been from the Persian town of Tabriz. This interpretation, held by the more reliable local historical chronicles, Raadavalhi and Taarikh, is that Abu al-Barakat Yusuf al-Barbari was Abdul Barakat Yusuf Shams ud-Dīn at-Tabrīzī, also locally known as Tabrīzugefānu. In the Arabic script the words al-Barbari and al-Tabrizi are very much alike, since at the time, Arabic had several consonants that looked identical and could only be differentiated by overall context (this has since changed by the addition of dots above or below letters to clarify pronunciation – For example, the letter "B" in modern Arabic has a dot below, whereas the letter "T" looks identical except there are two dots above it). "ٮوسڡ الٮٮرٮرى" could be read as "Yusuf at-Tabrizi" or "Yusuf al-Barbari".
The venerated tomb of the scholar now stands on the grounds of Medhu Ziyaaraiy, across the street from the Friday Mosque, or Hukuru Miskiy, in Malé. Originally built in 1153 and re-built in 1658, this is one of the oldest surviving mosques in the 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. Nonetheless, the cultural influence of Buddhism remains, a reality directly experienced by Ibn Battuta during his nine months there sometime between 1341 and 1345, serving as a chief judge and marrying into the royal family of Omar I. For he became embroiled in local politics and left when his strict judgments in the laissez-faire island kingdom began to chafe with its rulers. In particular, he was angered at the local women going about with no clothing above the waist— a cultural epithet of the region at the time- was seen as a violation of Middle Eastern Islamic rules of modesty—and the locals taking no notice when he complained.
Compared to the other areas of South Asia, the conversion of the Maldives to Islam happened relatively late. The Maldives remained a Buddhist kingdom for another 500 years. Arabic became the prime language of administration (instead of Persian and Urdu), and the Maliki school of jurisprudence was introduced, both hinting at direct contact with the core of the Arab world.[citation needed]
Middle Eastern seafarers had just begun to take over the Indian Ocean trade routes in the 10th century and found the 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 fibre. 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.
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.
Protectorate period
In 1558, the Portuguese established a small garrison with a Viador (Viyazoaru), or overseer of a factory (trading post) in the Maldives, which they administered from their main colony in Goa. Their attempts to forcefully impose Christianity with the threat of death provoked a local revolt led by Muhammad Thakurufaanu al-A'uẓam, his two brothers, and Dhuvaafaru Dhandahele, who fifteen years later drove the Portuguese out of the Maldives. This event is now commemorated as National Day which is known as Qaumee Dhuvas (literally meaning "National" and "Day"). It is celebrated on the 1st of Rabi' al-Awwal, the third month of Hijri (Islamic) calendar.
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 the Maldives as a British protectorate. The status of the Maldives as a British protectorate was officially recorded in an 1887 agreement in which the sultan Muhammad Mueenuddeen II 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 Sultan nor the 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.
The 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 Mohamed Amin Didi. While serving as prime minister during the 1940s, Didi nationalised the fish export industry. As president, he is remembered as a reformer of the education system and an advocate of women's rights. Conservatives in Malé ousted his government, and during a riot over food shortages, Didi was beaten by a mob and died on a nearby island.
Beginning in the 1950s, the political history in the Maldives was largely influenced by the British military presence on 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 Afeef as president and Hithadhoo as its capital. One year later the Suvadive Republic was scrapped after Nasir sent gunboats from Malé with government police, and Abdullah Afeef went into exile. Meanwhile, in 1960 the Maldives allowed the United Kingdom to continue to use both the Gan and the Hithadhoo facilities for thirty years, with the payment of £750,000 from 1960 to 1965 for the Maldives' economic development. The base was closed in 1976 as part of the larger British withdrawal of permanently stationed forces 'East of Suez'.
Independence and republic
When the British became increasingly unable to continue their colonial hold on Asia and were losing their colonies to the indigenous populations who wanted freedom, on 26 July 1965 an agreement was signed on behalf of the Sultan by Ibrahim Nasir Rannabandeyri Kilegefan, Prime Minister, and on behalf of the British government by Sir Michael Walker, British Ambassador-designate to the Maldive Islands, which formally ended the British authority on the defence and external affairs of the Maldives. The islands thus achieved 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 Sir Muhammad Fareed Didi, who declared himself King upon independence.
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, 40 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 people living in the Maldives.
Political infighting during the 1970s 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 given Maumoon's priority to develop the poorer islands. Tourism flourished and increased foreign contact spurred development. However, Maumoon's rule was controversial, with some critics saying Maumoon was an autocrat who quelled dissent by limiting freedoms and practising political favouritism.
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-strong mercenary force of the PLOTE who seized the airport and caused Maumoon to flee from house to house until the intervention of 1,600 Indian troops airlifted into Malé restored order.
The November 1988 coup d'état was headed by Ibrahim Lutfee, a businessman, and Sikka Ahmed Ismail Manik, the father of the former first lady of the Maldives Fazna Ahmed. The attackers were defeated by then National Security Services of Maldives. 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. By the time Indian armed forces reached the Maldives, the mercenary forces has already left Malé on the hijacked ship MV Progress Light. The Indian paratroopers landed at Hulhulé and secured the airfield and restored the government rule at Malé within hours. The brief operation labelled Operation Cactus, also involved the Indian Navy that assisted in capturing the freighter MV Progress Light and rescued the hostages and crew.
21st century
The Maldives were devastated by a tsunami on 26 December 2004, following the Indian Ocean earthquake. Only nine islands were reported to have escaped any flooding, 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. 102 Maldivians and 6 foreigners reportedly died in the tsunami. 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.
During the later part of Maumoon's rule, independent political movements emerged in the 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 Maumoon into allowing gradual political reforms. In 2008, a new constitution was approved and the first direct presidential elections occurred, which were won by 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 using overprinting of local currency (the rufiyaa), unemployment, corruption, and increasing drug use.[unreliable source?] Taxation on goods was imposed for the first time in the country, and import duties were reduced on many goods and services. Universal health insurance (Aasandha) and social welfare benefits were given to those aged 65 years or older, single parents, and those with special needs.
Social and political unrest grew in late 2011, following opposition campaigns in the name of protecting Islam. Nasheed controversially resigned from office after a large number of police and army mutinied in February 2012. Nasheed's vice-president, Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik, was sworn in as president. Nasheed was later arrested, 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.
The election in late 2013 were highly contested. Former president 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, the half-brother of the former president Maumoon, assumed the presidency. Yameen survived an assassination attempt in late 2015. Vice president Mohamed Jameel Ahmed was removed from office after a no confidence motion from the People's Majlis, it was alleged that he was conspiring with opposition political parties and planning riots. Vice-president Ahmed Adeeb was later arrested together with 17 supporters for "public order offences" and the government instituted a broader crackdown against his accomplices. A state of emergency was later declared ahead of a planned anti-government rally, and the People's Majlis (parliament) accelerated the removal of Adeeb.
In the 2018 election, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih won the most votes, and was sworn in as the Maldives' new president in November 2018. Adeeb was freed by courts in Male in July 2019 after his conviction on charges of terrorism and corruption was overruled but was placed under a travel ban after the state prosecutor appealed the order in a corruption and money laundering case. Adeeb escaped in a tugboat to seek asylum in India. It is understood that the Indian Coast Guard escorted the tugboat to the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) and he was then "transferred" to a Maldivian Coast Guard ship, where officials took him into custody. Former president Abdulla Yameen was sentenced to five years in prison in November 2019 for money laundering. The High Court upheld the jail sentence in January 2021. However, Supreme Court overturned Yameen's conviction in November 2021.
In the 2023 election, People's National Congress (PNC) candidate Mohamed Muizzu won the second-round runoff of the Maldives presidential election, beating incumbent president, Ibrahim Solih, with 54% of the vote. On 17 October 2023, Mohamed Muizzu was sworn in as the eighth President of the Republic of Maldives. Mohamed Muizzu is widely seen to be pro-China, meaning souring relations with India. In 2024, ex-President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom was freed from his 11-year conviction and the High Court ordered a new trial.
Geography
The Maldives consists of 1,192 coral islands grouped in a double chain of 26 atolls, that stretch along a length of 871 kilometres (541 miles) north to south, 130 kilometres (81 miles) east to west, spread over roughly 90,000 square kilometres (35,000 sq mi), of which only 298 km2 (115 sq mi) is dry land, 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 the Maldives. For administrative purposes, the Maldivian government organised these atolls into 21 administrative divisions. The largest island of the Maldives is that of 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).
The 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 percent of the country's land is composed of coral islands which rise less than one metre above sea level. As a result, the Maldives are in danger of being submerged due to rising sea levels. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned that, at current rates, sea-level rise would be high enough to make the Maldives uninhabitable by 2100.
Climate
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 the Maldives' weather: the dry season associated with the winter northeastern monsoon and the rainy season associated with the southwest monsoon 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 the Maldives at the beginning of June and lasts until the end of November. However, the weather patterns of the 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.
The monsoonal influence is greater in the north of the Maldives than in the south, more influenced by the equatorial currents.
The average high temperature is 31.5 degrees Celsius and the average low temperature is 26.4 degrees Celsius.
| Climate data for Malé (1981–2010) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 30.3 (86.5) | 30.7 (87.3) | 31.4 (88.5) | 31.6 (88.9) | 31.2 (88.2) | 30.6 (87.1) | 30.5 (86.9) | 30.4 (86.7) | 30.2 (86.4) | 30.2 (86.4) | 30.1 (86.2) | 30.1 (86.2) | 30.6 (87.1) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 28.0 (82.4) | 28.3 (82.9) | 28.9 (84.0) | 29.2 (84.6) | 28.8 (83.8) | 28.3 (82.9) | 28.2 (82.8) | 28.0 (82.4) | 27.8 (82.0) | 27.8 (82.0) | 27.7 (81.9) | 27.8 (82.0) | 28.2 (82.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 25.7 (78.3) | 25.9 (78.6) | 26.4 (79.5) | 26.8 (80.2) | 26.3 (79.3) | 26.0 (78.8) | 25.8 (78.4) | 25.5 (77.9) | 25.3 (77.5) | 25.4 (77.7) | 25.2 (77.4) | 25.4 (77.7) | 25.8 (78.4) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 114.2 (4.50) | 38.1 (1.50) | 73.9 (2.91) | 122.5 (4.82) | 218.9 (8.62) | 167.3 (6.59) | 149.9 (5.90) | 175.5 (6.91) | 199.0 (7.83) | 194.2 (7.65) | 231.1 (9.10) | 216.8 (8.54) | 1,901.4 (74.86) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 6 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 131 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 78.0 | 77.0 | 76.9 | 78.1 | 80.8 | 80.7 | 79.1 | 80.5 | 81.0 | 81.7 | 82.2 | 80.9 | 79.7 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 248.4 | 257.8 | 279.6 | 246.8 | 223.2 | 202.3 | 226.6 | 211.5 | 200.4 | 234.8 | 226.1 | 220.7 | 2,778.2 |
| Source 1: World Meteorological Organization | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: NOAA (relative humidity and sun 1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
Sea level rise
In 1988, Maldivian authorities claimed that sea rise would "completely cover this Indian Ocean nation of 1,196 small islands within the next 30 years."
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's 2007 report predicted the upper limit of the sea level rise will be 59 centimetres (23 in) by 2100, which means that most of the republic's 200 inhabited islands may need to be abandoned. According to researchers from the University of Southampton, the Maldives are the third most endangered island nation due to flooding from climate change as a percentage of population.
In 2008, Nasheed announced plans to look into purchasing new land in India, Sri Lanka, and Australia because he was concerned 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 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".
At the 2009 International Climate Talks, Nasheed stated that:
For us swearing off fossil fuels is not only the right thing to do, but it is also 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.
Former president Mohamed Nasheed said in 2012 "If carbon emissions continue at the rate they are climbing today, my country will be underwater in seven years." He has called for more climate change mitigation action while on the American television shows The Daily Show and the Late Show with David Letterman, and hosted "the world's first underwater cabinet meeting" in 2009 to raise awareness of the threats posed by climate change. Concerns over rising sea levels have also been expressed by Nasheed's predecessor, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.
In 2020, a three-year study at the University of Plymouth which looked at the Maldives and the Marshall Islands, found that tides move sediment to create a higher elevation, a morphological response that the researchers suggested could help low-lying islands adjust to sea level rise and keep the islands habitable. The research also reported that sea walls were compromising islands' ability to adjust to rising sea levels and that island drowning is an inevitable outcome for islands with coastal structures like sea walls. Hideki Kanamaru, natural resources officer with the Food and Agriculture Organization in Asia-Pacific, said the study provided a "new perspective" on how island nations could tackle the challenge of sea-level rise, and that even if islands can adapt naturally to higher seas by raising their own crests, humans still needed to double down on global warming and protection for island populations.
Environment
Environmental issues other than sea level rise include bad waste disposal and sand theft. Although the Maldives are kept relatively pristine and little litter can be found on the islands, most waste disposal sites are often substandard. The bulk of the waste from Malé and nearby resorts in the Maldives is disposed of at Thilafushi, an industrial island on top of a lagoon reclaimed in the early '90s to sort waste management issues which had plagued the capital and surrounding islands.
31 protected areas are administered by the Ministry of Climate Change, Environment and Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of the Maldives.
Marine ecosystem
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 1,100 species of fish, 5 species of sea turtle, 21 species of whale and dolphin, 400 species of mollusk, and 83 species of echinoderms. The area is also populated by several crustacean species: 120 copepods, and 15 amphipods, as well as more than 145 crab and 48 shrimp species.
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 wrasse, and barracuda.
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.
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.
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. 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 forever. Not only this, but they also act as a natural barrier against tropical storms, floods, and tsunamis. Seaweeds grow on the skeletons of dead coral.
—
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.
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.
Wildlife
The wildlife of the Maldives includes the flora and fauna of the islands, reefs, and the surrounding ocean. Recent scientific studies suggest that the fauna varies greatly between atolls following a north-south gradient, but important differences between neighbouring atolls were also found (especially in terms of sea animals), which may be linked to differences in fishing pressure — including poaching.
The terrestrial habitats of the Maldives are confronted with a significant threat as extensive development encroaches swiftly upon the limited land resources. Once seldom frequented, previously uninhabited islands now teeter on the brink of extinction, virtually devoid of untouched expanses. Over recent decades of intensive development, numerous natural environments crucial to indigenous species have suffered severe endangerment or outright destruction.
Coral reef habitats have been damaged, as the pressure for land has brought about the creation of artificial islands. Some reefs have been filled with rubble with little regard for the changes in the currents on the reef shelf and how the new pattern would affect coral growth and its related life forms on the reef edges. Mangroves thrive in brackish or muddy regions of the Maldives. The archipelago hosts fourteen species spanning ten genera, among which is the fern Acrostichum aureum, indigenous to these islands.
The waters surrounding the Maldives boast an extensive array of marine life, showcasing a vibrant tapestry of corals and over 2,000 species of fish. From the dazzling hues of reef fish to the majestic presence of the blacktip reef shark, moray eels, and a diverse range of rays including manta rays, stingrays, and eagle rays, the seas teem with life. Notably, the Maldivian waters harbor the magnificent whale shark. Renowned for its biodiversity, these waters host rare species of both biological and commercial significance, with tuna fisheries representing a longstanding traditional resource. Within the limited freshwater habitats such as ponds and marshes, freshwater fish such as the milkfish (Chanos chanos) and various smaller species thrive. Additionally, the introduction of the tilapia or mouth-breeder, facilitated by a United Nations agency in the 1970s, further enriches the aquatic diversity of the Maldives.
Due to their diminutive size, land-dwelling reptiles are scarce on the Maldivian islands. Among the limited terrestrial reptilian inhabitants are a species of gecko and the oriental garden lizard (Calotes versicolor), alongside the white-spotted supple skink (Riopa albopunctata), the Indian wolf snake (Lycodon aulicus), and the brahmin blind snake (Ramphotyphlops braminus).
In the surrounding seas, however, a more diverse array of reptilian life thrives. Maldivian beaches serve as nesting grounds for the green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas), the hawksbill sea turtle, and the leatherback sea turtle. Furthermore, saltwater crocodiles have been reported to occasionally reach the islands, taking residence in marshy regions.
The location of this Indian Ocean archipelago means that its avifauna is mainly restricted to pelagic birds. Most of the species are Eurasian migratory birds, only a few being typically associated with the Indian sub-continent. Some, like the frigatebird, are seasonal. Some birds dwell in marshes and island bush, like the grey heron and the moorhen. White terns are found occasionally on the southern islands due to their rich habitats.
Government and politics
The Maldives is a presidential constitutional republic, with extensive influence of the president as head of government and head of state. The president heads the executive branch and appoints the cabinet which is approved by the People's Majlis (Parliament). He leads the armed forces. The current president serving since 17 November 2023 is Mohamed Muizzu.President of the Maldives and Members of the unicameral Majlis serve five-year terms. The total number of members are determined by atoll populations. At the 2024 parliamentary election, the People's National Congress (PNC) won a super-majority over the 93 constituencies.
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 then-President Maumoon. This Constitution came into force on 1 January 1998. The current Constitution of Maldives was ratified by President Maumoon on 7 August 2008, and came into effect immediately, replacing and repealing the constitution of 1998. This new constitution includes a judiciary run by an independent commission, and independent commissions to oversee elections and fight corruption. It also reduces the executive powers vested under the president and strengthens the parliament. All state that the president is head of state, head of government, and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces of the Maldives.
In 2018, the then ruling Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM-Y)'s tensions with opposition parties and the subsequent crackdown was termed as an "assault on democracy" by the UN Human Rights chief.
In the April 2019 parliamentary election The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih won a landslide victory. It took 65 of 87 seats of the parliament. This was the first time a single party was able to get such a high number of seats in the parliament in Maldivian history.
Order of Nishanizzuddeen is the Maldives' highest civilian honor that can be bestowed upon a person. It is awarded by the president, usually in an elaborate ceremony.
In April 2024, President Mohamed Muizzu's pro-China People's National Congress (PNC) won 66 seats in the 2024 Maldivian parliamentary election, while its allies took nine, giving the president the backing of 75 legislators in the 93-member house, meaning a super-majority and enough to change the constitution.
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".
Islam is the official religion of the Maldives and open practice of any other religion is forbidden. 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.
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 the Maldives has recently become party and was addressed in the 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 Maldives."
A new penal code came into effect on 16 July 2015, replacing the 1968 law, the first modern, comprehensive penal code to incorporate the major tenets and principles of Islamic law.
Same-sex relations are illegal in the Maldives, although tourist resorts typically operate as exceptions to this law.
Foreign relations
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[update] 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, the Maldives announced its withdrawal from the Commonwealth in protest at allegations of human rights abuse and failing democracy. 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. Following his election as president in 2018, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and his Cabinet decided that the Maldives would apply to rejoin the Commonwealth, with readmission occurring on 1 February 2020.
As a result of sanctions imposed upon the Russian oligarchs by the West in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, many of them sought refuge for their mega-yachts in the Maldives due to the absence of an extradition treaty with the United States and other countries.
Following a cabinet meeting, in June 2024, the government of the Maldives decided to ban Israeli passport holders from entering the country, as a response to the ongoing Israel–Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
Military
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, Defence Intelligence Service, Military Police, Corps of Engineers, Special Protection Group, Medical Corps, Adjutant General's Corps, Air Corps, and Fire and Rescue Service. The Maldives has an arrangement with India allowing cooperation on radar coverage.
As a water-bound nation, much of its security concerns life 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 the 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 maritime distress calls and to conduct search and rescue operations promptly. In 2019, the Maldives signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
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 that had made headway in 2009 and 2010 had stalled. 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, abuse, and unequal treatment of women.
Administrative divisions
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 (17 administrative atolls and cities of Malé, Addu, Fuvahmulah, Thinadhoo, and Kulhudhuffushi).
Each atoll is administered by an elected Atoll Council. The islands are administered by an elected Island Council.
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 certain islands in different atolls 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.
The introduction of code-letter names has been a source of much puzzlement and misunderstanding, 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.
Economy
Historically, the Maldives provided enormous quantities of cowry shells, an international currency of the early ages. From the 2nd century CE, the islands were known as the 'Money Isles' by the Arabs.Monetaria moneta was 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. The cowry is now the symbol of the Maldives Monetary Authority.
In the early 1970s and 1980s, 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 neighbouring countries and East Asian countries.
The Maldivian government began a largely successful economic reform programme in the 1980s, initiated by lifting import quotas and giving more opportunities to the 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 lesser roles in the economy, constrained by the limited availability of cultivable land and the shortage of domestic labour.
Tourism
The Maldives remained largely unknown to tourists until the early 1970s. Only 200 islands are home to its 382,751 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), which transformed the Maldives' economy.
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[update], 89 resorts in the Maldives offered over 17,000 beds and hosted over 600,000 tourists annually. In 2019, over 1.7 million visitors came to the islands.
The number of resorts increased from 2 to 92 between 1972 and 2007. As of 2007[update], over 8,380,000 tourists had visited the Maldives.
The country has six heritage Maldivian coral mosques listed as UNESCO tentative sites.
Visitors
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.
Most visitors arrive at Velana International Airport, on Hulhulé Island, adjacent to the capital Malé. The airport is served by flights to and from India, Sri Lanka, Doha, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, Dhaka, Istanbul, and major airports in South-East Asia like Kuala Lumpur International in Malaysia, as well as charters from Europe like Charles De Gaulle in France. Gan Airport, on the southern atoll of Addu, also serves an international flight to Malpensa in Milan several times a week. British Airways offers direct flights to the Maldives from Heathrow Airport.
Fishing industry
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[update], fisheries contributed over 15% of the country's GDP and engaged about 30% of the country's workforce. Fisheries were also the second-largest foreign exchange earner after tourism.
Demographics
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1911 | |
| 1966 | |
| 2000 | |
| 2020 est. |
The largest ethnic group is Dhivehin, 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 has now been almost completely absorbed into the larger Maldivian society but was once native to the island of Giraavaru, which 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. By the 2006 census, the population had reached 298,968, 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.
The 2014 Population and Housing Census listed the total population in the Maldives as 437,535: 339,761 resident Maldivians and 97,774 resident foreigners, approximately 16% of the total population. However, it is believed that foreigners have been undercounted. As of May 2021[update], there were 281,000 expatriate workers, an estimated 63,000 of whom are undocumented in the Maldives: 3,506 Chinese, 5,029 Nepalese, 15,670 Sri Lankans, 28,840 Indians, and (the largest group of foreigners working in the country) 112,588 Bangladeshis. Other immigrants include Filipinos as well as various Western foreign workers.
Religion
- Islam 98.69 (98.4%)
- Christianity 0.29 (0.29%)
- Agnostics 0.29 (0.29%)
- Hindu 0.29 (0.29%)
- Others 0.74 (0.74%)
After the long Buddhist 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 the 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 melodic 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 Arab traveller Ibn Battuta, the person responsible for this conversion was a Sunni Muslim visitor named Abu al-Barakat Yusuf al-Barbari, sailing from what is today Morocco. He is also referred to as Tabrizugefaanu. His venerated tomb now stands on the grounds of Medhu Ziyaaraiy, across the street from the Friday Mosque, or Hukuru Miskiy, in Malé. Originally built in 1153 and re-built in 1658, this is one of the country's oldest surviving mosques.
In 2013, scholar Felix Wilfred of Oxford University estimated the number of Christians in Maldives as 1,400 or 0.4% of the country's population.
Since the adoption of the 2008 constitution citizens and anyone wishing to become citizens is required by law to nominally follow Sunni Islam which would make Maldives a 100% Muslim country in theory. But residents, tourists, and guest workers are free to be of any religion and practise them in private. However, in 2020, studies found that 0.29% of the population is Christian (roughly split between Catholic and Protestant).
Languages
The official and national 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 the 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 derived from a mix of the old indigenous script of Dhives akuru and Arabic abjad. Thaana is said to have been introduced during the reign of Mohamed Thakurufaanu.
English is widely spoken by the locals of the Maldives: "Following the nation's opening to the outside world, the introduction of English as a medium of instruction at the secondary and tertiary levels 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... The nation is undergoing vast societal change, and English is part of this."
Otherwise, Arabic is taught in schools and mosques, as Sunni Islam is the state religion. The Maldivian population has formal or informal education in the reading, writing, and pronunciation of the Arabic language, as part of the compulsory religious education for all primary and secondary school students.
Thikijehi Thaana
These additional letters were added to the Thaana alphabet by adding dots (nukuthaa) to existing letters, to allow for transliteration of Arabic loanwords, as previously Arabic loanwords were written using the Arabic script. Their usage is inconsistent, and becoming less frequent as the spelling changes to reflect pronunciation by Maldivians, rather than the original Arabic pronunciation, as the words get absorbed into the Maldivian language.
Population by locality
Largest localities in Maldives by registered population as of December 31, 2018 | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Name | Division | Pop. | ||||||
 Malé  Addu City | 1 | Malé | Malé | 252,768 |  Fuvahmulah  Kulhudhuffushi | ||||
| 2 | Addu City | Addu Atoll | 34,503 | ||||||
| 3 | Fuvahmulah | Gnaviyani Atoll | 13,037 | ||||||
| 4 | Kulhudhuffushi | Haa Dhaalu | 10,210 | ||||||
| 5 | Thinadhoo | Gaafu Dhaalu | 7,487 | ||||||
| 6 | Naifaru | Lhaviyani | 5,542 | ||||||
| 7 | Hinnavaru | Lhaviyani | 4,901 | ||||||
| 8 | Dhuvaafaru | Raa | 4,760 | ||||||
| 9 | Dhidhdhoo | Haa Alifu | 4,246 | ||||||
| 10 | Gan | Laamu | 3,860 | ||||||
Health
The Human Rights Measurement Initiative reports that Maldives is meeting 5.1 out of 10 of the expected fulfillment for the right to health considering its income level. Specifically for children's health rights, Maldives attains 98.0% of the anticipated level based on its current income. Regarding adult health rights, the country achieves 99.7% of the expected fulfillment considering its income level. However, in terms of reproductive health rights, Maldives falls into the "very bad" category, as it fulfills only 18.2% of the expected achievement based on its available resources.
Life expectancy at birth in Maldives was 77 years in 2011. Infant mortality fell from 34 per 1,000 in 1990 to 15 in 2004. There is an increasing disparity between health in the capital and on the other islands. There is also a problem of malnutrition. Imported food is expensive.
On 24 May 2021, the Maldives had the world's fastest-growing COVID-19 outbreak, with the highest number of infections per million people over the prior 7 and 14 days, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Doctors warned that increasing demand for COVID-19 care could hinder their ability to handle other health emergencies in the Maldives. The reason for the outbreak was the Delta variant.
Transportation
Velana International Airport is the principal gateway to the Maldives; it is adjacent to the capital city Malé and is connected by a bridge. International travel is available on government-owned Island Aviation Services (branded as Maldivian), which operates DHC-6 Twin Otter seaplanes and to nearly all Maldivian domestic airports with several Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft, and one Airbus A320 with international service to India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Thailand.
In the Maldives, there are three main ways to travel between islands: by domestic flight, by seaplane, or by boat. For several years two seaplane companies were 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, Villa Air, which operates using ATR planes to domestic airports, principally Villa-Maamigili, Dharavandhoo and some others. Manta Air began its first scheduled seaplane service in 2019. Its seaplane fleet is made up of DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft. In addition to the seaplane service, Manta Air utilises ATR 72–600 aircraft to operate domestic flights to Dhaalu Airport, Dharavandhoo Airport and Kooddoo Airport from the main Velana International Airport. Depending on the distance of the destination island from the airport, resorts organise speedboat transfers or seaplane flights directly to the resort island jetty for their guests. Several daily flights operate from Velana International Airport to the 18 domestic and international airports in the country. Scheduled ferries also operate from Malé to many of the atolls. The traditional Maldivian boat is called a dhoni, one of the oldest known sea vessels in the Maldives. 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 institutions of higher education. 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. In 2015 under a Presidential decree the College of Islamic Studies was changed into the Islamic University of Maldives (IUM).
The Maldivian government now offers 3 different scholarships to students who have completed their higher secondary education with results above a certain threshold, with ranks of the scholarship received depending on the merits achieved by students on their year 12 examinations.
Culture
The culture of the Maldives is influenced by the cultures of the people of different ethnicities who have settled on the islands throughout the times.
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.
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.
Media
PSM News serves as the country's main media, owned by the government of the Maldives. The newspaper was founded on 3 May 2017, in the celebration of World Press Freedom Day. Maldives has been ranked one–hundred in the World Press Freedom Index 2023 and 106 in 2024. The country's first daily newspaper, Haveeru Daily News was the first and longest–serving newspaper in the history of the Maldives, which was registered on 28 December 1978, and dissolved in 2016. Article 28 of the Maldives Constitution guarantees freedom of the press and stipulates that:
No person shall be compelled to disclose the source of any information that is espoused, disseminated, or published by that person.
However, this protection is compromised by the Evidence Act, which came into effect in January 2023 and grants courts the authority to compel journalists to reveal their confidential sources. The Maldives Media Council (MMC) and the Maldives Journalists Association (MJA) serve as crucial watchdogs in addressing and combating these threats. Newspapers, Sun Online, Mihaaru and its English edition, The Edition and Avas serves one of the most well–known private news outlets.
Sports
Sports in the Maldives are deeply ingrained in the culture of the island nation, with a diverse array of activities reflecting both traditional pastimes and modern sporting pursuits. Given its unique geography of scattered islands surrounded by the Indian Ocean, water sports naturally hold a prominent position. Surfing, in particular, has gained international recognition, with waves that cater to both beginners and seasoned surfers. Locations such as the atolls of North and South Malé, Thulusdhoo, and Himmafushi offer ideal conditions for enthusiasts to ride the waves throughout the years. Additionally, diving and snorkeling are immensely popular, allowing locals and tourists alike to explore the rich marine life that thrives in the crystal-clear waters surrounding the Maldives.
Football, or soccer, stands out as one of the most widely played and passionately followed sports in the Maldives.The Maldives national football team competes in regional and international tournaments, with a fervent fan base supporting their endeavors. The country has its own domestic football league, the Dhivehi Premier League, featuring clubs from various atolls vying for supremacy. Matches often draw large crowds, contributing to the vibrant sporting atmosphere of the Maldives. Moreover, futsal enjoys popularity, especially among younger generations, with numerous indoor facilities providing spaces for friendly matches and competitive leagues.
Traditional Maldivian sports also play a significant role in preserving cultural heritage and promoting physical activity. Bodu Beru, a rhythmic drumming and dance performance, often accompanies traditional sports events, adding to the festive ambiance. One such traditional sport is "Baibalaa", a game resembling volleyball but played with a woven ball made from dried coconut palm leaves. "Fenei Bashi", a form of wrestling, is another traditional sport that showcases strength and agility. These indigenous sports serve as a reminder of the Maldives' rich cultural heritage and continue to be cherished by communities across the islands.
See also
- List of Maldives-related topics
- Outline of the Maldives
- Maldives Sign Language
- Maldives Inland Revenue Authority
Notes
- The total area, including its exclusive economic zone territory is approximately 89,999 square kilometers, behind Jordan (89,342 square kilometers) and ahead of Portugal (92,220 square kilometers). With the EEZ, the Maldives would be the 110th largest country.
- The Maldives predominantly utilizes the Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR) as its official currency. However, United States dollars are commonly accepted in tourist establishments due to the high number of visitors from USD-based countries.
- See List of date formats by country.
- /ˈmɔːldivz/ MAWL-deevz; Dhivehi: ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, romanized: Dhivehi Raajje, pronounced [diʋehi ɾaːd͡ʒːe].
- ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, pronounced [diʋehi ɾaːd͡ʒːeːge d͡ʒumhuːɾijjaː].
- There are 209 registered Higher Education Institutes as of May 2022.
References
- "National Emblems of the Maldives". Maldives Mission to the United Nations. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 29 October 2010.
- "Regional Profiles: Maldives". The Association of Religion Data Archives. World Religion Database. Archived from the original on 6 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- "Economic Profile". Embassy of the Republic of Maldives. Archived from the original on 13 August 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
- "Maldives". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 29 July 2022. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
- "Census Results Summary". Maldives Population and Housing Census. National Bureau of Statistics. Archived from the original on 1 September 2023. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
- "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2024 Edition. (Maldives)". International Monetary Fund. 10 October 2024. Retrieved 28 December 2024.
- "Gini Index coefficient". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
- "Human Development Report 2023/24" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 13 March 2024. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 March 2024. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
- "List of all left- & right-driving countries around the world". worldstandards.eu. 31 December 2024. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
- Henley, Jon (11 November 2008). "The last days of paradise". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 4 September 2013. 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.
- "Male | Geography, Facts, & Points of Interest". Britannica. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
- "Home". Permanent Mission of the Republic of the Maldives to the United Nations. Archived from the original on 15 March 2024. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- "Maldives – Country report – Freedom in the World – 2015". Freedom House. 21 January 2015. Archived from the original on 14 August 2016. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
- National Adaptation Program of Action: Republic of Maldives (PDF) (Report). Ministry of Environment, Energy and Water. 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
- "Data for Upper middle income, Maldives". World Bank. Archived from the original on 15 May 2024. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- "Nepal, Maldives To Join Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.As Observer". Spotlight. Xinhua News Agency. 1 August 2022. Archived from the original on 15 March 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- Human Development Report 2020 The Next Frontier: Human Development and the Anthropocene (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 15 December 2020. pp. 343–346. ISBN 978-92-1-126442-5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 January 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
- "2016 Human Development Report Statistical Annex" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 2016. p. 13. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
- Safi, Michael (13 October 2016). "Maldives quits Commonwealth over alleged rights abuses". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 13 October 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- "Maldives rejoins Commonwealth after evidence of reforms". The Guardian. 1 February 2020. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
- Mohamed, Naseema (2005). "First Settlers". Note on the Early History of the Maldives. 70 (1): 7–14. doi:10.3406/arch.2005.3970. ISSN 0044-8613. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
- Dhivehisitee (30 May 2014). "The Long Road From Islam to Islamism: A Short History". Dhivehi Sitee. Archived from the original on 29 August 2014. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
- Hogendorn, Jan. The Shell Money of the Slave Trade. pp. 23–24.
- 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
- Wilhelm Geiger, trans. Mrs. J. C. Willis, Máldivian Linguistic Studies, Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 27 (Colombo: 1911), 149–52. ISBN 8120612019
- "Altername Names for Republic of Maldives". GeoNames. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
- Melton, Gregory (16 April 2024). "How did Maldives get its name?". Geographic FAQ Hub. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- "Maldives - Summary". Studocu. University of Sydney. Retrieved 15 May 2024.
- Apte, Vaman Shivram (1985). Sanskrit–English Dictionary. Motilal Banarsidass, New Delhi.[full citation needed]
- "Minicoy in English dictionary". Glosbe. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- Battuta, Ibn (1929) Travels in Asia and Africa 1325–1354, translated by A. R. Gibb. London: Routledge and Keegan Paul.[page needed]
- Akhbar al-Sin wa 'l-Hind (Notes on China and India), which dates from 851.[full citation needed]
- Lunde, Paul (July–August 2005). "The Seas of Sinbad". Saudi Aramco World. Vol. 56, no. 4. pp. 20–29. Archived from the original on 8 February 2007. Retrieved 24 September 2008.
- Pacific Islands Business Law Handbook Volume 1 Strategic Information, Regulations, Contact. Global Pro Info USA. June 2015. p. 69. ISBN 978-1-5145-0229-7. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
IBPUS.com
- Orta, Garcia (2016). Colloquies on the Simple and Drugs of India. India: Sri Satguru Publications. p. 22. ISBN 978-81-7030-117-2.
- Dhivehi Bahaai Thareekhah Khidhumaikuraa Qaumee Marukazu (1 August 1990). "Dhivehiraajje". Digital Repository of the Maldives National University. Dhivehi Bahaai Thareekhah Khidhumaikuraa Qaumee Marukazu. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024 – via Saruna.
- ދިވެހީންގެ އަސްލު (in Divehi). Maldives: ދިވެހިތާރީޚަށް ޚިދުމަތްކުރާ ޤައުމީ މަރުކަޒު. 1998. p. 3.
- ދިވެހީންގެ އަސްލު (in Divehi). ދިވެހިތާރީޚަށް ޚިދުމަތްކުރާ ޤައުމީ މަރުކަޒު.
- Kalpana Ram (1993). Mukkuvar Women. Macquarie University.
- Xavier Romero-Frias, The Maldive Islanders, A Study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom
- Ellis, Royston (2008). Maldives. Bradt Travel Guides. ISBN 9781841622668. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2020.
- Maloney, Clarence. "Where Did the Maldives People Come From?". International Institute for Asian Studies. Archived from the original on 29 January 2002. Retrieved 22 June 2008.
- Maloney, Clarence. People of the Maldive Islands. Orient Longman.
- Mikkelsen, Egil (2000). "Archaeological Excavations of a Monastery at Kaashidhoo. Cowrie shells and their Buddhist context in the Maldives" (PDF). National Centre for Linguistic and Historical Research. University of Oslo, Norway. ISBN 99915-1-013-3. Retrieved 25 January 2025.
- Battutah, Ibn (2002). The Travels of Ibn Battutah. London: Picador. pp. 235–236, 320. ISBN 9780330418799.
- The Adventures of Ibn Battuta: A Muslim Traveller of the Fourteenth Century Archived 12 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine
- Honchell, Stephanie (2018), Sufis, Sea Monsters, and Miraculous Circumcisions: Comparative Conversion Narratives and Popular Memories of Islamization (PDF), Fairleigh Dickinson University and the University of Cape Town, p. 5, archived (PDF) from the original on 16 May 2024, retrieved 16 May 2024,
In reference to Ibn Battuta'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 a fellow Maghribi, Ibn Battuta likely felt partial to the Moroccan version.
- 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. Archived from the original on 15 September 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
- Kamala Visweswaran (6 May 2011). Perspectives on Modern South Asia: A Reader in Culture, History, and Representation. John Wiley & Sons. pp. 164–. ISBN 978-1-4051-0062-5. Archived from the original on 3 May 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
- Ishtiaq Ahmed (2002). Ingvar Svanberg; David Westerlund (eds.). Islam Outside the Arab World. Routledge. p. 250. ISBN 9780253022608. Archived from the original on 3 May 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2020.
- HCP Bell, The Máldive Islands. Monograph on the History, Archæology, and Epigraphy with W. L. De Silva, Colombo 1940
- 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. Archived from the original on 15 September 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
- Yoosuf, Muawwaz (28 February 2020). "Malé Friday Mosque". Coral Stone Mosques of Maldives. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- Buchan, James (21 December 2002). Mackintosh-Smith, Tim (ed.). "The Travels of Ibn Battutah". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 7 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- Jerry Bently, Old World Encounters Cross-Cultural Contacts and Exchanges in Pre-Modern Times (New York: Oxford University Press, 1993), 126.
- Boomgaard, P. (1 January 2008). Linking Destinies: Trade, Towns and Kin in Asian History. BRILL. ISBN 9789004253995. Archived from the original on 6 January 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2016 – via Google Books.
- "BOCARRO, António, 1594–1642? Livro das plantas de todas as fortalezas, cidades e povoaçoens do Estado da India Oriental / António Bocarro [1635]". Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
- Geary, Peter (17 May 1971). "The Sun never sets on the British Empire". gan.philliptsmall.me.uk. Archived from the original on 19 September 2013. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
- Davies, Laura (26 July 2015). "Maldives at Fifty: penning a chapter in history". Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. Archived from the original on 25 April 2021. Retrieved 26 July 2015.
- Hadi, Ahmedulla Abdul (26 July 2019). "The independence gained by the unyielding determination of Nasir". Sun News. Archived from the original on 23 September 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
- People's Majlis Archive
- Riyaz, Ahmed (11 November 2012). "ރާއްޖޭގެ ވެރިކަން ޖުމުހުރީ ވެރިކަމަކަށް ބަދަލުވުން" [Maldives Becomes a republic]. Utheemu (in Divehi). Archived from the original on 11 August 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
- Walker, James (26 July 2023). "How Maldives gained independence from the British empire". The National. Archived from the original on 30 July 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
- Kachroo-Levine, Maya (25 May 2021). "How the Maldives Transformed From a Fishing Archipelago to a Tropical Hot Spot in 50 Years". Travel + Leisure. Archived from the original on 26 May 2021. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
- "The Beginning of Maldives Tourism Industry – History of the First Resort, Kurumba Maldives". Maldives Travel. 27 September 2020. Archived from the original on 21 February 2024. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
- "Maldives - Population". Library of Congress Country Studies Archived 14 January 2021 at the Wayback Machine
- "MODERN HISTORY OF THE MALDIVES: BECOMING A REPUBLIC AND INDEPENDENCE". Facts and Details. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
- "Maldives". History's Greatest. 5 December 2014. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
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.
- "Sinking island nation seeks new home". CNN. 11 November 2008. Archived from the original on 6 December 2008. Retrieved 12 November 2008.
- "Nov 3rd attack mastermind Sikka arrives in the Maldives after more than a decade". The Maldives Journal. 7 December 2022. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 7 December 2022.
- Banka, Neha (3 November 2022). "Operation Cactus: How India helped Maldives thwart coup bid backed by Lankan militants". The Indian Express. Kolkata. Archived from the original on 18 September 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
- Maldives - Country Review Report on the implementation of the Brussels Programme of Action for LDCs (PDF) (Report). Ministry of Planning and National Development. January 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 September 2013 – via United Nations.
- Aldridge, Paul (24 March 2010). "Maldives Skyscraper - Floating States". eVolo. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
- "UNDP: Discussion Paper - Achieving Debt Sustainability and the MDGs in Small Island Developing States: The Case of the Maldives" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 20 December 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 January 2012.
- "Republic of Maldives - Tsunami: Impact and Recovery" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 March 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
- Brecehenmacher, Victor; Mendis, Nikhita (22 April 2015). "Autocracy and Back Again: The Ordeal of the Maldives". Brown Political Review. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
- "The Quality of Political Appointees in the Nasheed Administration". Raajje News Blog. 7 June 2009. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
- "Maldives president quits after protests". Al Jazeera. 7 February 2012. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2012.
- Mallawarachi, Bharatha (8 October 2012). "Mohamed Nasheed, Former Maldives President, Arrested after Failing to Appear in Court". The Huffington Post. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016.
- Naafiz, Ali (20 October 2015). "Maldives opposition seeks India's help in jailed leader's release". Haveeru Daily. Archived from the original on 21 October 2015. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- Iyengar, Rishi (28 September 2015). "Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Escapes Unhurt After Explosion on His Boat". TIME. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
- Muhsin, Mohamed Fathih Abdul (15 February 2021). "Was removed from office without being allowed a proper defense: Dr Jameel". The Times of Addu. Archived from the original on 9 May 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
- "Maldives declares 30-day emergency". BBC News. 4 November 2015. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
- "Majlis passes declaration to remove VP from office". People's Majlis. 5 November 2015. Archived from the original on 14 July 2016.
- "Maldives revokes state of emergency amid global outcry and tourism worries". The Guardian. Malé, Maldives. Associated Press. 10 November 2015. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
- Haidar, Suhasini; Radhakrishnan, Hariprasad (3 August 2019). "Adeeb returns to Maldives, arrested with quiet help from India". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2019.
- Zalif, Zunana (21 January 2021). "High Court upholds ex-president's five-year jail sentence". Raajje TV. Archived from the original on 22 January 2021. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
- Junayd, Mohamed (30 November 2021). "Maldives' ex-president Yameen walks free after graft conviction overturned". Reuters. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2022.
- Junayd, Mohamed (1 October 2023). "Maldives opposition candidate Muizzu wins presidential vote". Reuters. Archived from the original on 10 November 2023. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
- "Mohamed Muizzu sworn in as Maldives president, says will remove 'foreign' troops". The Times of India. Press Trust of India. 18 November 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 24 November 2023. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
- Eguegu, Ovigwe (24 January 2024). "What the China-Maldives-India Triangle Tells Us About 21st Century Balancing". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 22 March 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
- "Maldives High Court overturns ex-President Abdulla Yameen's prison sentence". Al Jazeera. 18 April 2024. Archived from the original on 2 May 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
- "Entire Maldives cabinet resigns". Al Jazeera. 29 June 2010. Archived from the original on 11 January 2012. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- Angelo, Megan (1 May 2009). "Honey, I Sunk the Maldives: Environmental changes could wipe out some of the world's most well-known travel destinations". Yahoo! Travel. Archived from the original on 17 July 2012.
- "Climate refugees in Pacific flee rising sea". The Washington Times. 19 April 2009. Archived from the original on 6 September 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
- "Climate". Maldives Meteorological Service. Archived from the original on 13 December 2021. Retrieved 13 December 2021.
- "Maldives". Atlapedia. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 27 July 2011.
- "World Weather Information Service – Malé". WMO. Archived from the original on 26 December 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- "Malé Climate 1961–90". NOAA. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- "Threat to islands". The Canberra Times. No. 19348, Vol. 63. Agence France-Presse. 26 September 1988. p. 6. Archived from the original on 15 November 2021. Retrieved 15 November 2021.
A gradual rise in average sea level is threatening to completely cover this Indian Ocean nation of 1196 small islands with- in the next 30 years, ac- cording to authorities. The Environmental Affairs Director, Mr Hussein Shihab, said an estimated rise of 20 to 30 centimetres in the next 20 to 40 years could be "catastrophic"
- "Where climate change threatens survival". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 January 2012. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
- 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. Archived from the original on 9 February 2015. Retrieved 9 February 2015.
Most Endangered Island nations at highest risk for flooding due to climate change 3 Maldives (Indian Ocean)
- Ramesh, Randeep (10 November 2008). "Paradise almost lost: Maldives seek to buy a new homeland". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
- "Climate Change Gridlock: Where Do We Go From Here? (Part 1)". Making Contact. National Radio Project. 28 June 2011. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
- Catoe, Linda. "Endangered island nations call for global action on climate change". The Guilfordian. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- "Exclusive - Mohamed Nasheed Extended Interview Pt. 2". The Daily Show. Comedy Central. 2 April 2012. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
- Lang, Olivia (17 October 2009). "Maldives leader in climate change stunt". BBC News. Archived from the original on 1 July 2010. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
- Taylor, Michael (10 June 2020). "Small islands may not disappear under rising seas, researchers find". Thomson Reuters Foundation. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- Gayoom, Maumoon Abdul. "Address by his Excellency Mr. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, President of the Republic of Maldives, at the nineteenth special session of the United Nations General Assembly for the purpose of an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of agenda 21 - 24 June 1997". Permanent Mission of the Republic of Maldives to the United Nations. Archived from the original on 13 June 2006. Retrieved 6 January 2006.
- "Physical impacts of climate change on coral reef islands". University of Plymouth. Archived from the original on 11 March 2023. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- Evans, Judith (24 April 2015). "Maldives island swamped by rising tide of waste". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 14 February 2017.
- "Protected Areas - Maldives". Environmental Protection Agency. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
- "Fourth National Report to the Convention on Biological Diversity of Maldives" (PDF). Convention on Biological Diversity. Ministry of Housing and Environment. p. 7. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 November 2015. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
- "Maldives Marine Life". Scuba Dive Maldives. Archived from the original on 22 December 2011. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
- "Sharks of the Maldives". The Maldives. Archived from the original on 10 January 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
- "Regional Workshop on the Conservation and Sustainable Management of Coral Reefs". Food and Agriculture Organization. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
- Wheatley, Alan (2 May 2004). "Maldives Nurses Its Coral Reefs Back to Life". Global Coral Reef Alliance. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
- "Coral Bleaching Updates". MarineSavers. Marine Savers and Four Seasons Resorts Maldives (2012–2017). 31 July 2016. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
- 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. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
- Ducarme, Frédéric (2016). Field observations of sea cucumbers in Ari Atoll, and comparison with two nearby atolls in Maldives (PDF) (Report). Beche-de-mer Information Bulletin. Vol. 36. South Pacific Commission. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
- Pisapia, C.; Burn, D.; Yoosuf, R.; Najeeb, A.; Anderson, K. D.; Pratchett, M. S. (2016). "Coral recovery in the central Maldives archipelago since the last major mass-bleaching, in 1998" (PDF). Scientific Reports. 6: 34720. Bibcode:2016NatSR...634720P. doi:10.1038/srep34720. PMC 5046149. PMID 27694823. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 January 2022. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
- Hingun, Handuvaree (2015). Fifth National Report of Maldives to the Convention on Biological Diversity (PDF) (Report). Maldives: Ministry of Environment and Energy. p. 24. ISBN 978-99915-59-11-7. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
- "Discovering the Maldives Underwater Marine Life". My Maldives. 3 December 2023. Archived from the original on 25 February 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- Howard, Jake (8 March 2016). "Crocs In Paradise! (aka The Maldives)". Stab. Archived from the original on 29 May 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
- "Wildlife of Maldives". Maladweep. Archived from the original on 16 August 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- Phillips, W.W.A. (1963). "The birds of the Maldive Islands, Indian Ocean". Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 60: 546–584.
- "President Dr Mohamed Muizzu". The President's Office. Archived from the original on 28 November 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
- "Dr Mohamed Muizzu sworn in as the 8th President of the Maldives". The President's Office. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
- "Maldives - History". Country Studies. Library of Congress. Archived from the original on 12 May 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- "Pro-China party on course for landslide victory in Maldives election". Al Jazeera. 22 April 202. Archived from the original on 22 April 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
- "Government of the Maldives: Branches, History, The President". Facts and Details. Archived from the original on 26 March 2024. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
- "Constitution of the Republic of Maldives 1998". AsianLII. 1998. Archived from the original on 24 August 2008.
- "Maldives crackdown an 'assault on democracy': UN rights chief". The New Indian Express. 8 February 2018. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 8 February 2018.
- "Maldives election: Early results show victory for president's party". BBC News. 6 April 2019. Archived from the original on 11 December 2020. Retrieved 25 February 2021.
- "Majlis 19: An overview in numbers". Avas. 11 April 2019. Archived from the original on 26 May 2019. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- "PM Modi conferred with Maldives' highest honour, Order of Nishanizzuddeen". narendramodi.in. 8 June 2019. Archived from the original on 11 July 2021. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- Rasheed, Zaheena. "'Absolute power': After pro-China Maldives leader's big win, what's next?". Al Jazeera.
- "Maldives 2008 Constitution". constituteproject.org. 2008. Archived from the original on 23 January 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
- "International Religious Freedom Report for 2017". United States Department of State. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- Ran Hirschl (5 May 2011). Constitutional Theocracy. Harvard University Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-674-05937-5. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- "Human Rights and Democracy". Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Maldives). Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- Davis, Thomas W. D. (2011). Human Rights in Asia. Edward Elgar Publishing. p. 33. ISBN 978-1-84844-680-9. Archived from the original on 15 September 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
- "New penal code comes into effect". 16 July 2015. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
- "Maldives Penal Code - Law No. 9/2014" (PDF). University of Pennsylvania. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
- "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. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 September 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
- Bloom, Laura Begley (25 November 2019). "20 Most Dangerous Places For Gay Travelers (And The 5 Safest)". Forbes. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
- "From South Africa to the Maldives: Surprising holiday destinations for LGBT travellers". The Independent. 19 October 2016. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- "Secretary-General statement on Maldives decision to leave the Commonwealth". The Commonwealth. 13 October 2016. Archived from the original on 17 May 2020. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
- Maldives quits Commonwealth over alleged rights abuses Archived 13 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine, The Guardian, 13 October 2016
- "The President's Office". Archived from the original on 21 November 2018. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
- "Maldives rejoins Commonwealth after evidence of reforms". The Guardian. PA Media. 1 February 2020. Archived from the original on 18 April 2020. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
- Oltermann, Peter (3 March 2022). "Germany seizes Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov's $600m superyacht - report". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
- "The Government decides to impose a ban on Israeli passports". The President's Office. Archived from the original on 3 June 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
- "Maldives bans Israeli passport holders over war on Gaza". Al Jazeera English. Archived from the original on 2 June 2024. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
- "Maldives to ban Israeli passport holders from entry in protest over Gaza war". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
- Saruna; President’s Office (2012). "National Security Policy 2012" (PDF). Digital Repository of Maldives National University. Government of the Republic of Maldives. p. 221. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - "Chapter XXVI: Disarmament – No. 9 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons". United Nations Treaty Collection. United Nations. 7 July 2017. Archived from the original on 6 August 2019. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
- "Maldives: Freedom in the World". Freedom House. Archived from the original on 13 March 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011: Maldives". United States Department of State. Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. 2012. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
- "Atolls of Maldives". Statoids. Archived from the original on 2 January 2010. Retrieved 30 June 2010.
- Divehiraajjege Jōgrafīge Vanavaru. Muhammadu Ibrahim Lutfee
- Lyon, James (October 2003). Maldives. Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd. p. 9. ISBN 978-1-74059-176-8. Archived from the original on 12 April 2016. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
- Hogendorn, Jan and Johnson Marion (1986). The Shell Money of the Slave Trade. African Studies Series 49, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge ISBN 0521541107.
- "Republic of Maldives Maldivian Labor Market: Spotlight on youth, tourism, and fisheries Analysis based on census 2014 data" (PDF). World Bank. 30 May 2017.
- Shakoor, Athif Ibrahim. "The tourism industry of the Maldives, - have we gone beyond 'regulatory capture'?" (PDF). The Maldives National Journal of Research. Saruna.mnu.edu.mv. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
- "Discover the islands". islands.mv. Archived from the original on 2 July 2019. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
- "Inhabited islands". isles.gov.mv. The President's Office. Archived from the original on 10 June 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
- "Coup? What coup? Tourists ignore Maldives turmoil". The Age. Melbourne. 13 February 2012. Archived from the original on 15 February 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2012.
- "Home". Ministry of Tourism. Archived from the original on 17 April 2009. Retrieved 3 April 2009.
- "1.7 million tourists visit the Maldives in 2019". Ministry of Tourism. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
- "ހަތުރުވެރިކަމުގެ ތަރައްޤީގެ 35 އަހަރު" [35 years of tourism] (PDF). Ministry of Tourism (in Divehi). Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 November 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
- "Coral Stone Mosques of Maldives". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 26 December 2019.
- "Entry into Maldives". Maldives Immigration. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
- "Flights to Maldives". British Airways. Archived from the original on 20 October 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
- "Census Population by Sex and Sex - Ratio, and Inter-Censal Variation of Population, 1911 - 2014" (PDF). National Bureau of Statistics (Maldives). Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- "Maldives Population Projections 2014–2054". statisticsmaldives.gov.mv. National Bureau of Statistics. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- Jaleel, Jana (20 July 2023). "An Untold Story - The Lost People of Giraavaru". Maldives Voice. Archived from the original on 16 April 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2023.
- "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.
- "Census Analysis 2006. Population Projection 2006 – 2050" (PDF). Ministry of Planning and National Development. p. 273. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 5 July 2014.
- May, John F.; Riyaza, Fathimath (July 2017). "Maldives' Population Dynamics". Population Reference Bureau. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
- "International Labour Day 2021". National Bureau of Statistics. Ministry of Housing, Land & Urban Development. 2 May 2021. Archived from the original on 2 May 2021. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
- "Anti-Human Trafficking Action Plan 2020–2022" (PDF). Government of the Maldives. Ministry of Defence. Archived (PDF) from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
- "Over 281,000 expats in the Maldives". Avas. 13 September 2021. Archived from the original on 13 September 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- "Conversion of the Maldives to Islam". Maldives Story. Archived from the original on 9 May 2003.
- Yoosuf, Muawwaz (28 February 2020). "Malé Friday Mosque". Coral Stone Mosques of Maldives. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- Wilfred, Felix (2014). The Oxford Handbook of Christianity in Asia. Oxford University Press. p. 45. ISBN 9780199329069.
- "2022 Report on International Religious Freedom: Maldives". United States Department of State. Office of International Religious Freedom. Archived from the original on 4 March 2024. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
- "National Profiles | World Religion". Association of Religion Data Archives. Archived from the original on 14 August 2023. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
- "Maldives Languages - Languages of Maldives - Language Spoken In Maldives". Maldives Tourism. Archived from the original on 11 November 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
- 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. S2CID 148650495. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
- "Maldives". Human Rights Measurement Initiative. Archived from the original on 19 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- "Maldives - HRMI Rights Tracker". rightstracker.org. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 25 March 2022.
- "Maldives". Commonwealth Health online. 2018. Archived from the original on 20 November 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- "At a Glance: Health and Nutrition in the Maldives". UNICEF. 2010. Archived from the original on 20 November 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- Bhuckory, Kamlesh (24 May 2021). "With Highest Covid Rate, Maldives Imposes 16-Hour Curfew". BloombergQuint. Archived from the original on 24 May 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
- Rasheed, Aishath Hanaan Hussain (24 May 2021). "Maldives reports 61st Covid-19 death in ongoing month of May". Raajje TV. Archived from the original on 24 May 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- "Maldives". Elite Diving Agency. Archived from the original on 18 December 2013.
- "Manta Air begins its first scheduled seaplane service". Corporate Maldives. 18 November 2019. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
- Green, Richard (2005). The Commonwealth Yearbook 2005. Nexus Strategic Partnerships. p. 209. ISBN 9780954962906.
- "Registered Higher Education Institute as of 19.05.2022" (PDF), Ministry of Higher Education, Labour and Skills Development, archived (PDF) from the original on 17 June 2022, retrieved 19 May 2022
- "History". Maldives National University. Archived from the original on 23 February 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
1st September 1973 Allied Health Services Training Centre was established – Forerunner to the Faculty of Health Sciences established by the Ministry of Health
- "Faculty of Engineering, Science and Technology". Maldives National University. Archived from the original on 24 February 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
The Vocational Training Center (VTC) was established on 14 October 1975 under the Department of Electricity to train a large number of workers required for the growing industrial and economic activities
- "Education Sector Analysis Maldives – 6.1 Quick Historical Development Of Higher Education" (PDF). Ministry of Education. Ministry of Education (Maldives). February 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 April 2021. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
The Vocational Training Center, the Institute for Teacher Education and the School of Hotel and Catering Services were also established before the amalgamation of such post-secondary institutions to form the Maldives College of Higher Education in 1998.
- "Profile & History". Islamic University of Maldives. Archived from the original on 19 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- "A new scholarship scheme called Merit Scholarship is being launched this year". Ministry of Higher Education, Labour and Skills Development. 16 May 2023. Archived from the original on 2 July 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
- Robinson, J. J. (2015). The Maldives: Islamic Republic, Tropical Autocracy. Hurst. ISBN 978-1849045896.
- Marcus, Anothony (2012). "Reconsidering Talaq" (PDF). Brandeis University Press. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 October 2017.
- "Public Service Media". SOE Gateway. Ministry of Finance. Retrieved 31 August 2024.
- "PSM News : Seven years of reliable reporting". PSM News. 3 May 2024. Archived from the original on 14 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- "2024 World Press Freedom Index". Reporters Without Borders. 2024. Archived from the original on 7 May 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2022.
- "Lost in translation: the story of Haveeru". Maldives Independent. 24 May 2016. Archived from the original on 16 October 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- "Constitution of the Republic of Maldives". Attorney General. p. 7. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 16 October 2020.
- "Maldives Newspapers Online – List of Maldives newspapers, magazines, and news sites covering business, finance, sports, travel, weather, jobs, and entertainments". w3newspapers.com.
- "Thulusdhoo Island Surf Guide – Maldives Local Island Surfing!". Stoked For Travel. 15 September 2020. Archived from the original on 25 September 2020. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
- "SNORKELING IN THE MALDIVES". Snorkeling Report. Archived from the original on 1 March 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- "Future of Football: When will a country from South Asia emerge as a powerhouse in the global game?". Sky Sports. Archived from the original on 10 January 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
- "Maldives". Soccerway. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
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. Beiträge zur Südasien-Forschung Südasien-Institut Universität 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.
- , 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 Archived 14 January 2021 at the Wayback Machine, 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
Definitions from Wiktionary
Media from Commons
News from Wikinews
Quotations from Wikiquote
Texts from Wikisource
Travel information from Wikivoyage
- Official tourist guide to Maldives Archived 16 January 2020 at the Wayback Machine
- President's Office Archived 30 May 2023 at the Wayback Machine
- Official website of the Government of Maldives Archived 12 June 2020 at the Wayback Machine
- Maldives Archived 29 July 2022 at the Wayback Machine. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
- Maldives from UCB Libraries GovPubs
- Maldives Archived 29 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine from the BBC News
- Maldives Archived 2 December 2022 at the Wayback Machine Encyclopædia Britannica entry
Wikimedia Atlas of Maldives
The Maldives officially the Republic of Maldives and historically known as the Maldive Islands is a country and archipelagic state in South Asia in the Indian Ocean The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India about 750 kilometres 470 miles 400 nautical miles from the Asian continent s mainland The Maldives chain of 26 atolls stretches across the equator from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the north to Addu Atoll in the south Republic of Maldivesދ ވ ހ ރ އ ޖ ގ ޖ މ ހ ރ އ ޔ Dhivehi Dhivehi Raajjeyge JumhooriyyaaFlag EmblemMotto الدولة المحلديبية Arabic Ad Dawlat Al Mahaldibiyya State of the Mahal Dibiyat Anthem ޤ އ މ ސ ލ މ Dhivehi Qaumee Salaam National Salute source source track track track track track track track Show globeShow map of MaldivesCapitaland largest cityMale 4 10 31 N 73 30 32 E 4 17528 N 73 50889 E 4 17528 73 50889Official language and national languageDhivehiCommon languagesEnglishReligion98 7 Islam 98 58 Sunni official 0 10 Shia 1 3 Others 0 05 Agnostics 0 29 ChristianityDemonym s MaldivianGovernmentUnitary presidential republic PresidentMohamed Muizzu Vice PresidentHussain Mohamed Latheef Majlis SpeakerAbdul Raheem Abdulla Chief JusticeAhmed Muthasim AdnanLegislaturePeople s MajlisIndependence from the United Kingdom Independence declared26 July 1965 First Republic1 January 1953 Second Republic11 November 1968 Current constitution7 August 2008Area Total298 km2 115 sq mi 187th Population 2022 census515 132 167th Density1 728 63 km2 4 477 1 sq mi 7th GDP PPP 2024 estimate Total 13 867 billion 157th Per capita 34 322 54th GDP nominal 2024 estimate Total 6 984 billion 161st Per capita 17 287 58th Gini 2024 31 3 medium inequalityHDI 2022 0 762 high 87th CurrencyMaldivian rufiyaa MVR Time zoneUTC 5 MVT Date formatdd mm yyyyCalling code 960ISO 3166 codeMVInternet TLD mv The Maldives is the smallest country in Asia Its land area is only 298 square kilometres 115 sq mi but this is spread over roughly 90 000 square kilometres 35 000 sq mi of the sea making it one of the world s most spatially dispersed sovereign states With a population of 515 132 in the 2022 census it is the second least populous country in Asia and the ninth smallest country by area but also one of the most densely populated countries The Maldives has an average ground level elevation of 1 5 metres 4 ft 11 in above sea level and a highest natural point of only 2 4 metres 7 ft 10 in making it the world s lowest lying country Some sources state the highest point Mount Villingili as 5 1 metres or 17 feet Male is the capital and the most populated city traditionally called the King s Island where the ancient royal dynasties ruled from its central location The Maldives has been inhabited for over 2 500 years Documented contact with the outside world began around 947 AD when Arab travelers began visiting the islands In the 12th century partly due to the importance of the Arabs and Persians as traders in the Indian Ocean Islam reached the Maldivian Archipelago The Maldives was soon 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 came in 1965 and a presidential republic was established in 1968 with an elected People s Majlis The ensuing decades have seen political instability efforts at democratic reform and environmental challenges posed by climate change and rising sea levels The Maldives became a founding member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation SAARC The Maldives is a member of the United Nations the Commonwealth of Nations the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the Non Aligned Movement The World Bank classifies the Maldives as having an upper middle income economy The Maldives is a Dialogue Partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Fishing has historically been the dominant economic activity and remains the largest sector by far followed by the rapidly growing tourism industry The Maldives rates high on the Human Development Index with per capita income significantly higher than other SAARC nations The Maldives was a member of the Commonwealth of Nations from July 1982 until withdrawing from the organisation in October 2016 in protest of allegations of its human rights abuses and failing democracy The Maldives rejoined the Commonwealth on 1 February 2020 after showing evidence of functioning democratic processes and popular support EtymologyAccording to legends the first settlers of the Maldives were people known as Dheyvis The first Kingdom of the Maldives was known as bn During the 3rd century BCE visit of emissaries it was noted that the Maldives was known as Dheeva Mahal During c 1100 1166 the Maldives was also referred to as Diva Kudha and the Laccadive archipelago which was a part of the Maldives was then referred to as Diva Kanbar by the scholar and polymath al Biruni The name Maldives may also derive from Sanskrit म ल mala garland and द व प dvipa island or ම ල ද වය න Maala Divaina Necklace Islands in Sinhala The Maldivian people are called Dhivehin The word Dheeb Deeb archaic Dhivehi related to Sanskrit द व प dvipa means island and Dhives Dhivehin means islanders i e Maldivians In Tamil Garland of Islands can be translated as Malaitivu ம ல த த வ The venerable Sri Lankan chronicle Mahavamsa mentions an island designated as Mahiladiva Island of Women मह ल द भ in Pali likely arising from an erroneous translation of the Sanskrit term signifying garland Jan Hogendorn professor of economics at Colby College theorised that the name Maldives derives from the Sanskrit maladvipa म ल द व प meaning garland of islands In Malayalam Garland of Islands can be translated as Maladweepu മ ലദ വ പ In Kannada Garland of Islands can be translated as Maaledweepa ಮ ಲ ದ ವ ಪ None of these names are mentioned in any literature however 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 Medieval Muslim travellers such as Ibn Battuta called the islands Maḥal Dibiyat محل ديبية from the Arabic word maḥal palace which must be how the Berber traveller interpreted the name of Male having been through Muslim North India where Perso Arabic words were introduced to the local vocabulary This is the name currently inscribed on the scroll in the Maldives state emblem The classical Persian Arabic name for the Maldives is Dibajat The Dutch referred to the islands as the Maldivische Eilanden pronounced mɑlˈdivise ˈʔɛilɑnde n while the British anglicised the local name for the islands first to the Maldive Islands and later to Maldives In a conversational book published in 1563 Garcia de Orta writes 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 means island So that in that language the word signifies four islands while we corrupting the name call it Maldiva The local name for Maldives by the Maldivian people in Dhivehi language is Dhivehi Raajje Dhivehi ދ ވ ހ ރ އ ޖ HistoryAncient history and settlement In the 6th 5th century BCE the Maldives already had their kingdoms The country has an established history of over 2 500 years according to historical evidence and legends The Mahavaṃsa 300 BCE has records of people from Sri Lanka emigrating to the Maldives Assuming that cowrie shells come from the Maldives historians believe that there may have been people living in the Maldives during the Indus Valley civilisation 3300 1300 BCE Several artefacts show the presence of Hinduism in the country before the Islamic period According to the book Kitab fi athar Midhu al qadimah كتاب في آثار ميذو القديمة On the Ancient Ruins of Meedhoo written in the 17th century in Arabic by Allama Ahmed Shihabuddine Allama Shihab al Din of Meedhoo in Addu Atoll the first settlers of the Maldives were people known as Dheyvis They came from the Kalibanga in India The time of their arrival is unknown but it was before Emperor Asoka s kingdom in 269 232 BCE Shihabuddin s story tallies remarkably well with the recorded history of South Asia and that of the copperplate document of the Maldives known as Loamaafaanu The ancient history of the Maldives is told in copperplates ancient scripts carved on coral artefacts traditions language and different ethnicities of Maldivians The Maapanansa the copper plates on which recorded the history of the first Kings of the Maldives from the Solar Dynasty were lost quite early on A 4th century notice written by Ammianus Marcellinus 362 CE speaks of gifts sent to the Roman emperor Julian by a deputation from the nation of Divi The name Divi is very similar to Dheyvi who were the first settlers of Maldives The first Maldivians did not leave any archaeological artefacts 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 Comparative studies of Maldivian oral linguistic and cultural traditions confirm that the first settlers were people from the southern shores of the neighbouring Indian subcontinent including the Giraavaru people mentioned in ancient legends and local folklore about the establishment of the capital and kingly rule in Male A strong underlying layer of Dravidian and North Indian cultures survives in Maldivian society with a clear Elu substratum in the language which also appears in place names kinship terms poetry dance and religious beliefs The North Indian system was brought by the original Sinhalese from Sri Lanka Malabar and Pandya seafaring culture led to the settlement of the Islands by Tamil and Malabar seafarers Buddhist period Isdhoo Lōmafanu is the oldest copper plate book to have been discovered in the Maldives to date The book was written in 1194 CE 590 AH in the Evela 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 a 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 that survives today The Maldivian language early Maldive scripts architecture ruling institutions customs and manners of the Maldivians originated at the time when the Maldives were a Buddhist kingdom Buddhism probably spread to the Maldives in the 3rd century BCE at the time of Emperor Ashoka s expansion and became the dominant religion of the people of the Maldives until the 12th century Archeological evidence from an ancient Buddhist monastery in Kaashidhoo has been dated between 205 to 560 AD based on the radiocarbon dating of shell deposits unearthed from the foundations of stupas and other structures in the monastery The ancient Maldivian Kings promoted Buddhism and the first Maldive writings and artistic achievements in the form of highly developed sculpture and architecture originate from that period Nearly all archaeological remains in the Maldives are from Buddhist stupas and monasteries and all artefacts found to date display characteristic Buddhist iconography citation needed 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 the Maldives Dhovemi converted to Islam in the year 1153 or 1193 Adopting the Muslim title of Sultan Muhammad al Adil he initiated 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 A Moroccan traveller named Abu al Barakat Yusuf al Barbari is traditionally cited for this conversion According to the story told to Ibn Battutah a mosque was built with the inscription The Sultan Ahmad Shanurazah accepted Islam at the hand of Abu al Barakat Yusuf al Barbari 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 Persian origins account that was known as well at the time Others have it that he may have been from the Persian town of Tabriz This interpretation held by the more reliable local historical chronicles Raadavalhi and Taarikh is that Abu al Barakat Yusuf al Barbari was Abdul Barakat Yusuf Shams ud Din at Tabrizi also locally known as Tabrizugefanu In the Arabic script the words al Barbari and al Tabrizi are very much alike since at the time Arabic had several consonants that looked identical and could only be differentiated by overall context this has since changed by the addition of dots above or below letters to clarify pronunciation For example the letter B in modern Arabic has a dot below whereas the letter T looks identical except there are two dots above it ٮوسڡ الٮٮرٮرى could be read as Yusuf at Tabrizi or Yusuf al Barbari The venerated tomb of the scholar now stands on the grounds of Medhu Ziyaaraiy across the street from the Friday Mosque or Hukuru Miskiy in Male Originally built in 1153 and re built in 1658 this is one of the oldest surviving mosques in the 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 Nonetheless the cultural influence of Buddhism remains a reality directly experienced by Ibn Battuta during his nine months there sometime between 1341 and 1345 serving as a chief judge and marrying into the royal family of Omar I For he became embroiled in local politics and left when his strict judgments in the laissez faire island kingdom began to chafe with its rulers In particular he was angered at the local women going about with no clothing above the waist a cultural epithet of the region at the time was seen as a violation of Middle Eastern Islamic rules of modesty and the locals taking no notice when he complained Compared to the other areas of South Asia the conversion of the Maldives to Islam happened relatively late The Maldives remained a Buddhist kingdom for another 500 years Arabic became the prime language of administration instead of Persian and Urdu and the Maliki school of jurisprudence was introduced both hinting at direct contact with the core of the Arab world citation needed Middle Eastern seafarers had just begun to take over the Indian Ocean trade routes in the 10th century and found the 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 fibre 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 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 Protectorate period Portuguese presence in the Maldives was established in 1558 by order of Constantino of Braganza Viceroy of Portuguese India 16th century Portuguese illustration from the Codice Casanatense depicting workers18th 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 Viyazoaru or overseer of a factory trading post in the Maldives which they administered from their main colony in Goa Their attempts to forcefully impose Christianity with the threat of death provoked a local revolt led by Muhammad Thakurufaanu al A uẓam his two brothers and Dhuvaafaru Dhandahele who fifteen years later drove the Portuguese out of the Maldives This event is now commemorated as National Day which is known as Qaumee Dhuvas literally meaning National and Day It is celebrated on the 1st of Rabi al Awwal the third month of Hijri Islamic calendar 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 the Maldives as a British protectorate The status of the Maldives as a British protectorate was officially recorded in an 1887 agreement in which the sultan Muhammad Mueenuddeen II 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 17th century Portuguese drawing of the fortress of Maldives and the archipelago In Antonio Bocarro s book of Fortress 1632 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 Sultan nor the 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 The 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 Mohamed Amin Didi While serving as prime minister during the 1940s Didi nationalised the fish export industry As president he is remembered as a reformer of the education system and an advocate of women s rights Conservatives in Male 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 the Maldives was largely influenced by the British military presence on 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 Afeef as president and Hithadhoo as its capital One year later the Suvadive Republic was scrapped after Nasir sent gunboats from Male with government police and Abdullah Afeef went into exile Meanwhile in 1960 the Maldives allowed the United Kingdom to continue to use both the Gan and the Hithadhoo facilities for thirty years with the payment of 750 000 from 1960 to 1965 for the Maldives economic development The base was closed in 1976 as part of the larger British withdrawal of permanently stationed forces East of Suez Independence and republic Flag of the Sultan of the MaldivesPrime Minister Ibrahim Nasir signs independence agreement with the British on July 26 1965 When the British became increasingly unable to continue their colonial hold on Asia and were losing their colonies to the indigenous populations who wanted freedom on 26 July 1965 an agreement was signed on behalf of the Sultan by Ibrahim Nasir Rannabandeyri Kilegefan Prime Minister and on behalf of the British government by Sir Michael Walker British Ambassador designate to the Maldive Islands which formally ended the British authority on the defence and external affairs of the Maldives The islands thus achieved 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 Sir Muhammad Fareed Didi who declared himself King upon independence 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 40 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 people living in the Maldives Political infighting during the 1970s 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 given Maumoon s priority to develop the poorer islands Tourism flourished and increased foreign contact spurred development However Maumoon s rule was controversial with some critics saying Maumoon was an autocrat who quelled dissent by limiting freedoms and practising political favouritism 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 strong mercenary force of the PLOTE who seized the airport and caused Maumoon to flee from house to house until the intervention of 1 600 Indian troops airlifted into Male restored order The November 1988 coup d etat was headed by Ibrahim Lutfee a businessman and Sikka Ahmed Ismail Manik the father of the former first lady of the Maldives Fazna Ahmed The attackers were defeated by then National Security Services of Maldives 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 By the time Indian armed forces reached the Maldives the mercenary forces has already left Male on the hijacked ship MV Progress Light The Indian paratroopers landed at Hulhule and secured the airfield and restored the government rule at Male within hours The brief operation labelled Operation Cactus also involved the Indian Navy that assisted in capturing the freighter MV Progress Light and rescued the hostages and crew 21st century 17th SAARC summit in Addu City Maldives The Maldives were devastated by a tsunami on 26 December 2004 following the Indian Ocean earthquake Only nine islands were reported to have escaped any flooding 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 102 Maldivians and 6 foreigners reportedly died in the tsunami 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 During the later part of Maumoon s rule independent political movements emerged in the 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 Maumoon into allowing gradual political reforms In 2008 a new constitution was approved and the first direct presidential elections occurred which were won by 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 using overprinting of local currency the rufiyaa unemployment corruption and increasing drug use unreliable source Taxation on goods was imposed for the first time in the country and import duties were reduced on many goods and services Universal health insurance Aasandha and social welfare benefits were given to those aged 65 years or older single parents and those with special needs Social and political unrest grew in late 2011 following opposition campaigns in the name of protecting Islam Nasheed controversially resigned from office after a large number of police and army mutinied in February 2012 Nasheed s vice president Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik was sworn in as president Nasheed was later arrested 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 The election in late 2013 were highly contested Former president 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 the half brother of the former president Maumoon assumed the presidency Yameen survived an assassination attempt in late 2015 Vice president Mohamed Jameel Ahmed was removed from office after a no confidence motion from the People s Majlis it was alleged that he was conspiring with opposition political parties and planning riots Vice president Ahmed Adeeb was later arrested together with 17 supporters for public order offences and the government instituted a broader crackdown against his accomplices A state of emergency was later declared ahead of a planned anti government rally and the People s Majlis parliament accelerated the removal of Adeeb In the 2018 election Ibrahim Mohamed Solih won the most votes and was sworn in as the Maldives new president in November 2018 Adeeb was freed by courts in Male in July 2019 after his conviction on charges of terrorism and corruption was overruled but was placed under a travel ban after the state prosecutor appealed the order in a corruption and money laundering case Adeeb escaped in a tugboat to seek asylum in India It is understood that the Indian Coast Guard escorted the tugboat to the International Maritime Boundary Line IMBL and he was then transferred to a Maldivian Coast Guard ship where officials took him into custody Former president Abdulla Yameen was sentenced to five years in prison in November 2019 for money laundering The High Court upheld the jail sentence in January 2021 However Supreme Court overturned Yameen s conviction in November 2021 In the 2023 election People s National Congress PNC candidate Mohamed Muizzu won the second round runoff of the Maldives presidential election beating incumbent president Ibrahim Solih with 54 of the vote On 17 October 2023 Mohamed Muizzu was sworn in as the eighth President of the Republic of Maldives Mohamed Muizzu is widely seen to be pro China meaning souring relations with India In 2024 ex President Abdulla Yameen Abdul Gayoom was freed from his 11 year conviction and the High Court ordered a new trial GeographyMaalhosmadulu Atoll seen from space Northern Maalhosmadulu Atoll and Southern Maalhosmadulu Atoll can be seen in this picture Dark clouds bringing heavy rain common in the rainy season The Maldives consists of 1 192 coral islands grouped in a double chain of 26 atolls that stretch along a length of 871 kilometres 541 miles north to south 130 kilometres 81 miles east to west spread over roughly 90 000 square kilometres 35 000 sq mi of which only 298 km2 115 sq mi is dry land 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 the Maldives For administrative purposes the Maldivian government organised these atolls into 21 administrative divisions The largest island of the Maldives is that of 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 The 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 percent of the country s land is composed of coral islands which rise less than one metre above sea level As a result the Maldives are in danger of being submerged due to rising sea levels The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has warned that at current rates sea level rise would be high enough to make the Maldives uninhabitable by 2100 Climate A beach of Bathala island The Maldives has a tropical monsoon climate Am under the Koppen 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 the Maldives weather the dry season associated with the winter northeastern monsoon and the rainy season associated with the southwest monsoon 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 the Maldives at the beginning of June and lasts until the end of November However the weather patterns of the 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 The monsoonal influence is greater in the north of the Maldives than in the south more influenced by the equatorial currents The average high temperature is 31 5 degrees Celsius and the average low temperature is 26 4 degrees Celsius Climate data for Male 1981 2010 Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec YearMean daily maximum C F 30 3 86 5 30 7 87 3 31 4 88 5 31 6 88 9 31 2 88 2 30 6 87 1 30 5 86 9 30 4 86 7 30 2 86 4 30 2 86 4 30 1 86 2 30 1 86 2 30 6 87 1 Daily mean C F 28 0 82 4 28 3 82 9 28 9 84 0 29 2 84 6 28 8 83 8 28 3 82 9 28 2 82 8 28 0 82 4 27 8 82 0 27 8 82 0 27 7 81 9 27 8 82 0 28 2 82 8 Mean daily minimum C F 25 7 78 3 25 9 78 6 26 4 79 5 26 8 80 2 26 3 79 3 26 0 78 8 25 8 78 4 25 5 77 9 25 3 77 5 25 4 77 7 25 2 77 4 25 4 77 7 25 8 78 4 Average rainfall mm inches 114 2 4 50 38 1 1 50 73 9 2 91 122 5 4 82 218 9 8 62 167 3 6 59 149 9 5 90 175 5 6 91 199 0 7 83 194 2 7 65 231 1 9 10 216 8 8 54 1 901 4 74 86 Average precipitation days 1 0 mm 6 3 5 9 15 13 12 13 15 15 13 12 131Average relative humidity 78 0 77 0 76 9 78 1 80 8 80 7 79 1 80 5 81 0 81 7 82 2 80 9 79 7Mean monthly sunshine hours 248 4 257 8 279 6 246 8 223 2 202 3 226 6 211 5 200 4 234 8 226 1 220 7 2 778 2Source 1 World Meteorological OrganizationSource 2 NOAA relative humidity and sun 1961 1990 Sea level rise In 1988 Maldivian authorities claimed that sea rise would completely cover this Indian Ocean nation of 1 196 small islands within the next 30 years The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change s 2007 report predicted the upper limit of the sea level rise will be 59 centimetres 23 in by 2100 which means that most of the republic s 200 inhabited islands may need to be abandoned According to researchers from the University of Southampton the Maldives are the third most endangered island nation due to flooding from climate change as a percentage of population In 2008 Nasheed announced plans to look into purchasing new land in India Sri Lanka and Australia because he was concerned 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 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 At the 2009 International Climate Talks Nasheed stated that For us swearing off fossil fuels is not only the right thing to do but it is also 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 Former president Mohamed Nasheed said in 2012 If carbon emissions continue at the rate they are climbing today my country will be underwater in seven years He has called for more climate change mitigation action while on the American television shows The Daily Show and the Late Show with David Letterman and hosted the world s first underwater cabinet meeting in 2009 to raise awareness of the threats posed by climate change Concerns over rising sea levels have also been expressed by Nasheed s predecessor Maumoon Abdul Gayoom In 2020 a three year study at the University of Plymouth which looked at the Maldives and the Marshall Islands found that tides move sediment to create a higher elevation a morphological response that the researchers suggested could help low lying islands adjust to sea level rise and keep the islands habitable The research also reported that sea walls were compromising islands ability to adjust to rising sea levels and that island drowning is an inevitable outcome for islands with coastal structures like sea walls Hideki Kanamaru natural resources officer with the Food and Agriculture Organization in Asia Pacific said the study provided a new perspective on how island nations could tackle the challenge of sea level rise and that even if islands can adapt naturally to higher seas by raising their own crests humans still needed to double down on global warming and protection for island populations Environment Environmental issues other than sea level rise include bad waste disposal and sand theft Although the Maldives are kept relatively pristine and little litter can be found on the islands most waste disposal sites are often substandard The bulk of the waste from Male and nearby resorts in the Maldives is disposed of at Thilafushi an industrial island on top of a lagoon reclaimed in the early 90s to sort waste management issues which had plagued the capital and surrounding islands 31 protected areas are administered by the Ministry of Climate Change Environment and Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency EPA of the Maldives Marine ecosystem Maldives soft coralOriental 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 1 100 species of fish 5 species of sea turtle 21 species of whale and dolphin 400 species of mollusk and 83 species of echinoderms The area is also populated by several crustacean species 120 copepods and 15 amphipods as well as more than 145 crab and 48 shrimp species 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 wrasse and barracuda 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 In 1998 sea temperature warming of as much as 5 C 9 0 F due to a single El Nino phenomenon event caused coral bleaching killing two thirds of the nation s coral reefs 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 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 Nino gave us a wake up call that these things are not going to be there forever Not only this but they also act as a natural barrier against tropical storms floods and tsunamis Seaweeds grow on the skeletons of dead coral 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 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 Wildlife Clockwise from top left Tawny nurse sharks near Vaavu Atoll pier in Addu City Butorides striata and Ixora sp The wildlife of the Maldives includes the flora and fauna of the islands reefs and the surrounding ocean Recent scientific studies suggest that the fauna varies greatly between atolls following a north south gradient but important differences between neighbouring atolls were also found especially in terms of sea animals which may be linked to differences in fishing pressure including poaching The terrestrial habitats of the Maldives are confronted with a significant threat as extensive development encroaches swiftly upon the limited land resources Once seldom frequented previously uninhabited islands now teeter on the brink of extinction virtually devoid of untouched expanses Over recent decades of intensive development numerous natural environments crucial to indigenous species have suffered severe endangerment or outright destruction Coral reef habitats have been damaged as the pressure for land has brought about the creation of artificial islands Some reefs have been filled with rubble with little regard for the changes in the currents on the reef shelf and how the new pattern would affect coral growth and its related life forms on the reef edges Mangroves thrive in brackish or muddy regions of the Maldives The archipelago hosts fourteen species spanning ten genera among which is the fern Acrostichum aureum indigenous to these islands The waters surrounding the Maldives boast an extensive array of marine life showcasing a vibrant tapestry of corals and over 2 000 species of fish From the dazzling hues of reef fish to the majestic presence of the blacktip reef shark moray eels and a diverse range of rays including manta rays stingrays and eagle rays the seas teem with life Notably the Maldivian waters harbor the magnificent whale shark Renowned for its biodiversity these waters host rare species of both biological and commercial significance with tuna fisheries representing a longstanding traditional resource Within the limited freshwater habitats such as ponds and marshes freshwater fish such as the milkfish Chanos chanos and various smaller species thrive Additionally the introduction of the tilapia or mouth breeder facilitated by a United Nations agency in the 1970s further enriches the aquatic diversity of the Maldives Butorides striata in the Maldives Due to their diminutive size land dwelling reptiles are scarce on the Maldivian islands Among the limited terrestrial reptilian inhabitants are a species of gecko and the oriental garden lizard Calotes versicolor alongside the white spotted supple skink Riopa albopunctata the Indian wolf snake Lycodon aulicus and the brahmin blind snake Ramphotyphlops braminus In the surrounding seas however a more diverse array of reptilian life thrives Maldivian beaches serve as nesting grounds for the green sea turtle Chelonia mydas the hawksbill sea turtle and the leatherback sea turtle Furthermore saltwater crocodiles have been reported to occasionally reach the islands taking residence in marshy regions The location of this Indian Ocean archipelago means that its avifauna is mainly restricted to pelagic birds Most of the species are Eurasian migratory birds only a few being typically associated with the Indian sub continent Some like the frigatebird are seasonal Some birds dwell in marshes and island bush like the grey heron and the moorhen White terns are found occasionally on the southern islands due to their rich habitats Government and politicsMohamed Muizzu President since 2023Hussain Mohamed Latheef Vice President since 2023 The Maldives is a presidential constitutional republic with extensive influence of the president as head of government and head of state The president heads the executive branch and appoints the cabinet which is approved by the People s Majlis Parliament He leads the armed forces The current president serving since 17 November 2023 is Mohamed Muizzu President of the Maldives and Members of the unicameral Majlis serve five year terms The total number of members are determined by atoll populations At the 2024 parliamentary election the People s National Congress PNC won a super majority over the 93 constituencies 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 then President Maumoon This Constitution came into force on 1 January 1998 The current Constitution of Maldives was ratified by President Maumoon on 7 August 2008 and came into effect immediately replacing and repealing the constitution of 1998 This new constitution includes a judiciary run by an independent commission and independent commissions to oversee elections and fight corruption It also reduces the executive powers vested under the president and strengthens the parliament All state that the president is head of state head of government and Commander in Chief of the armed forces of the Maldives In 2018 the then ruling Progressive Party of Maldives PPM Y s tensions with opposition parties and the subsequent crackdown was termed as an assault on democracy by the UN Human Rights chief President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih congratulates Mohamed Nasheed Speaker of the People s Majlis in May 2019 In the April 2019 parliamentary election The Maldivian Democratic Party MDP of President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih won a landslide victory It took 65 of 87 seats of the parliament This was the first time a single party was able to get such a high number of seats in the parliament in Maldivian history Order of Nishanizzuddeen is the Maldives highest civilian honor that can be bestowed upon a person It is awarded by the president usually in an elaborate ceremony In April 2024 President Mohamed Muizzu s pro China People s National Congress PNC won 66 seats in the 2024 Maldivian parliamentary election while its allies took nine giving the president the backing of 75 legislators in the 93 member house meaning a super majority and enough to change the constitution 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 Islam is the official religion of the Maldives and open practice of any other religion is forbidden 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 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 the Maldives has recently become party and was addressed in the 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 Maldives A new penal code came into effect on 16 July 2015 replacing the 1968 law the first modern comprehensive penal code to incorporate the major tenets and principles of Islamic law Same sex relations are illegal in the Maldives although tourist resorts typically operate as exceptions to this law Foreign relations 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 update 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 the Maldives announced its withdrawal from the Commonwealth in protest at allegations of human rights abuse and failing democracy 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 Following his election as president in 2018 Ibrahim Mohamed Solih and his Cabinet decided that the Maldives would apply to rejoin the Commonwealth with readmission occurring on 1 February 2020 As a result of sanctions imposed upon the Russian oligarchs by the West in response to Russia s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 many of them sought refuge for their mega yachts in the Maldives due to the absence of an extradition treaty with the United States and other countries Following a cabinet meeting in June 2024 the government of the Maldives decided to ban Israeli passport holders from entering the country as a response to the ongoing Israel Hamas war in the Gaza Strip Military Maldivian soldiers at a presidential address in February 2024 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 Defence Intelligence Service Military Police Corps of Engineers Special Protection Group Medical Corps Adjutant General s Corps Air Corps and Fire and Rescue Service The Maldives has an arrangement with India allowing cooperation on radar coverage As a water bound nation much of its security concerns life 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 the 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 maritime distress calls and to conduct search and rescue operations promptly In 2019 the Maldives signed the UN treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons 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 that had made headway in 2009 and 2010 had stalled 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 abuse and unequal treatment of women Administrative divisions Each administrative atoll is marked along with the thaana letter used to identify the atoll Natural atolls are labelled in light blue 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 17 administrative atolls and cities of Male Addu Fuvahmulah Thinadhoo and Kulhudhuffushi Each atoll is administered by an elected Atoll Council The islands are administered by an elected Island Council 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 certain islands in different atolls 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 The introduction of code letter names has been a source of much puzzlement and misunderstanding 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 EconomyMale harbour Historically the Maldives provided enormous quantities of cowry shells an international currency of the early ages From the 2nd century CE the islands were known as the Money Isles by the Arabs Monetaria moneta was 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 The cowry is now the symbol of the Maldives Monetary Authority In the early 1970s and 1980s 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 neighbouring countries and East Asian countries The Maldivian government began a largely successful economic reform programme in the 1980s initiated by lifting import quotas and giving more opportunities to the 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 lesser roles 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 200 islands are home to its 382 751 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 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 update 89 resorts in the Maldives offered over 17 000 beds and hosted over 600 000 tourists annually In 2019 over 1 7 million visitors came to the islands The number of resorts increased from 2 to 92 between 1972 and 2007 As of 2007 update over 8 380 000 tourists had visited the Maldives The country has six heritage Maldivian coral mosques listed as UNESCO tentative sites Visitors Sign outside the Velana International Airport 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 Most visitors arrive at Velana International Airport on Hulhule Island adjacent to the capital Male The airport is served by flights to and from India Sri Lanka Doha Dubai Abu Dhabi Singapore Dhaka Istanbul and major airports in South East Asia like Kuala Lumpur International in Malaysia as well as charters from Europe like Charles De Gaulle in France Gan Airport on the southern atoll of Addu also serves an international flight to Malpensa in Milan several times a week British Airways offers direct flights to the Maldives from Heathrow Airport Fishing industry 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 update fisheries contributed over 15 of the country s GDP and engaged about 30 of the country s workforce Fisheries were also the second largest foreign exchange earner after tourism DemographicsMale the capital of the MaldivesMaldives population Year Population1911 72 2371966 100 8832000 270 1012020 est 557 426 The largest ethnic group is Dhivehin 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 has now been almost completely absorbed into the larger Maldivian society but was once native to the island of Giraavaru which 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 befulhu and common people in the Maldives Members of the social elite are concentrated in Male Life expectancy in the Maldives The population doubled by 1978 and the population growth rate peaked at 3 4 in 1985 By the 2006 census the population had reached 298 968 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 The 2014 Population and Housing Census listed the total population in the Maldives as 437 535 339 761 resident Maldivians and 97 774 resident foreigners approximately 16 of the total population However it is believed that foreigners have been undercounted As of May 2021 update there were 281 000 expatriate workers an estimated 63 000 of whom are undocumented in the Maldives 3 506 Chinese 5 029 Nepalese 15 670 Sri Lankans 28 840 Indians and the largest group of foreigners working in the country 112 588 Bangladeshis Other immigrants include Filipinos as well as various Western foreign workers Religion Religion in the Maldives Islam 98 69 98 4 Christianity 0 29 0 29 Agnostics 0 29 0 29 Hindu 0 29 0 29 Others 0 74 0 74 After the long Buddhist 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 the Maldives s cultural heritage Other aspects of tassawuf such as ritualised dhikr ceremonies called Mauludu Mawlid the liturgy of which included recitations and certain supplications in a melodic tone existed until very recent times These Mauludu 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 Arab traveller Ibn Battuta the person responsible for this conversion was a Sunni Muslim visitor named Abu al Barakat Yusuf al Barbari sailing from what is today Morocco He is also referred to as Tabrizugefaanu His venerated tomb now stands on the grounds of Medhu Ziyaaraiy across the street from the Friday Mosque or Hukuru Miskiy in Male Originally built in 1153 and re built in 1658 this is one of the country s oldest surviving mosques In 2013 scholar Felix Wilfred of Oxford University estimated the number of Christians in Maldives as 1 400 or 0 4 of the country s population Since the adoption of the 2008 constitution citizens and anyone wishing to become citizens is required by law to nominally follow Sunni Islam which would make Maldives a 100 Muslim country in theory But residents tourists and guest workers are free to be of any religion and practise them in private However in 2020 studies found that 0 29 of the population is Christian roughly split between Catholic and Protestant Languages Thaana script The official and national 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 the 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 derived from a mix of the old indigenous script of Dhives akuru and Arabic abjad Thaana is said to have been introduced during the reign of Mohamed Thakurufaanu English is widely spoken by the locals of the Maldives Following the nation s opening to the outside world the introduction of English as a medium of instruction at the secondary and tertiary levels 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 The nation is undergoing vast societal change and English is part of this Otherwise Arabic is taught in schools and mosques as Sunni Islam is the state religion The Maldivian population has formal or informal education in the reading writing and pronunciation of the Arabic language as part of the compulsory religious education for all primary and secondary school students Thikijehi Thaana These additional letters were added to the Thaana alphabet by adding dots nukuthaa to existing letters to allow for transliteration of Arabic loanwords as previously Arabic loanwords were written using the Arabic script Their usage is inconsistent and becoming less frequent as the spelling changes to reflect pronunciation by Maldivians rather than the original Arabic pronunciation as the words get absorbed into the Maldivian language Population by locality vte Largest localities in Maldives by registered population as of December 31 2018Rank Name Division Pop Male Addu City 1 Male Male 252 768 Fuvahmulah Kulhudhuffushi2 Addu City Addu Atoll 34 5033 Fuvahmulah Gnaviyani Atoll 13 0374 Kulhudhuffushi Haa Dhaalu 10 2105 Thinadhoo Gaafu Dhaalu 7 4876 Naifaru Lhaviyani 5 5427 Hinnavaru Lhaviyani 4 9018 Dhuvaafaru Raa 4 7609 Dhidhdhoo Haa Alifu 4 24610 Gan Laamu 3 860 Health The Human Rights Measurement Initiative reports that Maldives is meeting 5 1 out of 10 of the expected fulfillment for the right to health considering its income level Specifically for children s health rights Maldives attains 98 0 of the anticipated level based on its current income Regarding adult health rights the country achieves 99 7 of the expected fulfillment considering its income level However in terms of reproductive health rights Maldives falls into the very bad category as it fulfills only 18 2 of the expected achievement based on its available resources Life expectancy at birth in Maldives was 77 years in 2011 Infant mortality fell from 34 per 1 000 in 1990 to 15 in 2004 There is an increasing disparity between health in the capital and on the other islands There is also a problem of malnutrition Imported food is expensive On 24 May 2021 the Maldives had the world s fastest growing COVID 19 outbreak with the highest number of infections per million people over the prior 7 and 14 days according to data compiled by Bloomberg Doctors warned that increasing demand for COVID 19 care could hinder their ability to handle other health emergencies in the Maldives The reason for the outbreak was the Delta variant Transportation Velana International AirportTMA Terminal Velana International Airport is the principal gateway to the Maldives it is adjacent to the capital city Male and is connected by a bridge International travel is available on government owned Island Aviation Services branded as Maldivian which operates DHC 6 Twin Otter seaplanes and to nearly all Maldivian domestic airports with several Bombardier Dash 8 aircraft and one Airbus A320 with international service to India Bangladesh Sri Lanka Malaysia and Thailand In the Maldives there are three main ways to travel between islands by domestic flight by seaplane or by boat For several years two seaplane companies were 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 Villa Air which operates using ATR planes to domestic airports principally Villa Maamigili Dharavandhoo and some others Manta Air began its first scheduled seaplane service in 2019 Its seaplane fleet is made up of DHC 6 Twin Otter aircraft In addition to the seaplane service Manta Air utilises ATR 72 600 aircraft to operate domestic flights to Dhaalu Airport Dharavandhoo Airport and Kooddoo Airport from the main Velana International Airport Depending on the distance of the destination island from the airport resorts organise speedboat transfers or seaplane flights directly to the resort island jetty for their guests Several daily flights operate from Velana International Airport to the 18 domestic and international airports in the country Scheduled ferries also operate from Male to many of the atolls The traditional Maldivian boat is called a dhoni one of the oldest known sea vessels in the Maldives 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 institutions of higher education 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 In 2015 under a Presidential decree the College of Islamic Studies was changed into the Islamic University of Maldives IUM The Maldivian government now offers 3 different scholarships to students who have completed their higher secondary education with results above a certain threshold with ranks of the scholarship received depending on the merits achieved by students on their year 12 examinations CultureMaahefun Festival in Fuvahmulah The culture of the Maldives is influenced by the cultures of the people of different ethnicities who have settled on the islands throughout the times 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 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 Media PSM News serves as the country s main media owned by the government of the Maldives The newspaper was founded on 3 May 2017 in the celebration of World Press Freedom Day Maldives has been ranked one hundred in the World Press Freedom Index 2023 and 106 in 2024 The country s first daily newspaper Haveeru Daily News was the first and longest serving newspaper in the history of the Maldives which was registered on 28 December 1978 and dissolved in 2016 Article 28 of the Maldives Constitution guarantees freedom of the press and stipulates that No person shall be compelled to disclose the source of any information that is espoused disseminated or published by that person However this protection is compromised by the Evidence Act which came into effect in January 2023 and grants courts the authority to compel journalists to reveal their confidential sources The Maldives Media Council MMC and the Maldives Journalists Association MJA serve as crucial watchdogs in addressing and combating these threats Newspapers Sun Online Mihaaru and its English edition The Edition and Avas serves one of the most well known private news outlets Sports Sports in the Maldives are deeply ingrained in the culture of the island nation with a diverse array of activities reflecting both traditional pastimes and modern sporting pursuits Given its unique geography of scattered islands surrounded by the Indian Ocean water sports naturally hold a prominent position Surfing in particular has gained international recognition with waves that cater to both beginners and seasoned surfers Locations such as the atolls of North and South Male Thulusdhoo and Himmafushi offer ideal conditions for enthusiasts to ride the waves throughout the years Additionally diving and snorkeling are immensely popular allowing locals and tourists alike to explore the rich marine life that thrives in the crystal clear waters surrounding the Maldives Maldives against Bangladesh at the 2021 SAFF Championship Football or soccer stands out as one of the most widely played and passionately followed sports in the Maldives The Maldives national football team competes in regional and international tournaments with a fervent fan base supporting their endeavors The country has its own domestic football league the Dhivehi Premier League featuring clubs from various atolls vying for supremacy Matches often draw large crowds contributing to the vibrant sporting atmosphere of the Maldives Moreover futsal enjoys popularity especially among younger generations with numerous indoor facilities providing spaces for friendly matches and competitive leagues Flyboarding in Maldives Traditional Maldivian sports also play a significant role in preserving cultural heritage and promoting physical activity Bodu Beru a rhythmic drumming and dance performance often accompanies traditional sports events adding to the festive ambiance One such traditional sport is Baibalaa a game resembling volleyball but played with a woven ball made from dried coconut palm leaves Fenei Bashi a form of wrestling is another traditional sport that showcases strength and agility These indigenous sports serve as a reminder of the Maldives rich cultural heritage and continue to be cherished by communities across the islands See alsoMaldives portalAsia portalList of Maldives related topics Outline of the Maldives Maldives Sign Language Maldives Inland Revenue AuthorityNotesThe total area including its exclusive economic zone territory is approximately 89 999 square kilometers behind Jordan 89 342 square kilometers and ahead of Portugal 92 220 square kilometers With the EEZ the Maldives would be the 110th largest country The Maldives predominantly utilizes the Maldivian Rufiyaa MVR as its official currency However United States dollars are commonly accepted in tourist establishments due to the high number of visitors from USD based countries See List of date formats by country ˈ m ɔː l d i v z MAWL deevz Dhivehi ދ ވ ހ ރ އ ޖ romanized Dhivehi Raajje pronounced diʋehi ɾaːd ʒːe ދ ވ ހ ރ އ ޖ ގ ޖ މ ހ ރ އ ޔ Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa pronounced diʋehi ɾaːd ʒːeːge d ʒumhuːɾijjaː There are 209 registered Higher Education Institutes as of May 2022 References National Emblems of the Maldives Maldives Mission to the United Nations Archived from the original on 6 June 2011 Retrieved 29 October 2010 Regional Profiles Maldives The Association of Religion Data Archives World Religion Database Archived from the original on 6 May 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Economic Profile Embassy of the Republic of Maldives Archived from the original on 13 August 2022 Retrieved 13 August 2022 Maldives The World Factbook Central Intelligence Agency Archived from the original on 29 July 2022 Retrieved 30 November 2023 Census Results Summary Maldives Population and Housing Census National Bureau of Statistics Archived from the original on 1 September 2023 Retrieved 30 November 2023 World Economic Outlook Database October 2024 Edition Maldives International Monetary Fund 10 October 2024 Retrieved 28 December 2024 Gini Index coefficient The World Factbook Central Intelligence Agency Archived from the original on 17 July 2021 Retrieved 16 July 2021 Human Development Report 2023 24 PDF United Nations Development Programme 13 March 2024 Archived PDF from the original on 13 March 2024 Retrieved 13 March 2024 List of all left amp right driving countries around the world worldstandards eu 31 December 2024 Retrieved 31 December 2024 Henley Jon 11 November 2008 The last days of paradise The Guardian London Archived from the original on 4 September 2013 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 Male Geography Facts amp Points of Interest Britannica Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 11 June 2020 Home Permanent Mission of the Republic of the Maldives to the United Nations Archived from the original on 15 March 2024 Retrieved 15 May 2024 Maldives Country report Freedom in the World 2015 Freedom House 21 January 2015 Archived from the original on 14 August 2016 Retrieved 19 June 2016 National Adaptation Program of Action Republic of Maldives PDF Report Ministry of Environment Energy and Water 2007 Archived PDF from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 24 February 2019 Data for Upper middle income Maldives World Bank Archived from the original on 15 May 2024 Retrieved 15 May 2024 Nepal Maldives To Join Shanghai Cooperation Organisation As Observer Spotlight Xinhua News Agency 1 August 2022 Archived from the original on 15 March 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Human Development Report 2020 The Next Frontier Human Development and the Anthropocene PDF United Nations Development Programme 15 December 2020 pp 343 346 ISBN 978 92 1 126442 5 Archived from the original PDF on 2 January 2021 Retrieved 16 December 2020 2016 Human Development Report Statistical Annex PDF United Nations Development Programme 2016 p 13 Archived from the original on 25 December 2018 Retrieved 4 May 2019 Safi Michael 13 October 2016 Maldives quits Commonwealth over alleged rights abuses The Guardian ISSN 0261 3077 Archived from the original on 13 October 2016 Retrieved 15 May 2024 Maldives rejoins Commonwealth after evidence of reforms The Guardian 1 February 2020 Archived from the original on 18 April 2020 Retrieved 4 February 2020 Mohamed Naseema 2005 First Settlers Note on the Early History of the Maldives 70 1 7 14 doi 10 3406 arch 2005 3970 ISSN 0044 8613 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 28 November 2019 Dhivehisitee 30 May 2014 The Long Road From Islam to Islamism A Short History Dhivehi Sitee Archived from the original on 29 August 2014 Retrieved 30 May 2014 Hogendorn Jan The Shell Money of the Slave Trade pp 23 24 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 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 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 1 August 2013 Wilhelm Geiger trans Mrs J C Willis Maldivian Linguistic Studies Journal of the Ceylon Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 27 Colombo 1911 149 52 ISBN 8120612019 Altername Names for Republic of Maldives GeoNames Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 23 September 2013 Melton Gregory 16 April 2024 How did Maldives get its name Geographic FAQ Hub Archived from the original on 16 April 2024 Retrieved 15 May 2024 Maldives Summary Studocu University of Sydney Retrieved 15 May 2024 Apte Vaman Shivram 1985 Sanskrit English Dictionary Motilal Banarsidass New Delhi full citation needed Minicoy in English dictionary Glosbe Archived from the original on 16 April 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Battuta Ibn 1929 Travels in Asia and Africa 1325 1354 translated by A R Gibb London Routledge and Keegan Paul page needed Akhbar al Sin wa l Hind Notes on China and India which dates from 851 full citation needed Lunde Paul July August 2005 The Seas of Sinbad Saudi Aramco World Vol 56 no 4 pp 20 29 Archived from the original on 8 February 2007 Retrieved 24 September 2008 Pacific Islands Business Law Handbook Volume 1 Strategic Information Regulations Contact Global Pro Info USA June 2015 p 69 ISBN 978 1 5145 0229 7 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 16 November 2020 IBPUS com Orta Garcia 2016 Colloquies on the Simple and Drugs of India India Sri Satguru Publications p 22 ISBN 978 81 7030 117 2 Dhivehi Bahaai Thareekhah Khidhumaikuraa Qaumee Marukazu 1 August 1990 Dhivehiraajje Digital Repository of the Maldives National University Dhivehi Bahaai Thareekhah Khidhumaikuraa Qaumee Marukazu Archived from the original on 16 April 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 via Saruna ދ ވ ހ ނ ގ އ ސ ލ in Divehi Maldives ދ ވ ހ ތ ރ ޚ ށ ޚ ދ މ ތ ކ ރ ޤ އ މ މ ރ ކ ޒ 1998 p 3 ދ ވ ހ ނ ގ އ ސ ލ in Divehi ދ ވ ހ ތ ރ ޚ ށ ޚ ދ މ ތ ކ ރ ޤ އ މ މ ރ ކ ޒ Kalpana Ram 1993 Mukkuvar Women Macquarie University Xavier Romero Frias The Maldive Islanders A Study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom Ellis Royston 2008 Maldives Bradt Travel Guides ISBN 9781841622668 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 16 November 2020 Maloney Clarence Where Did the Maldives People Come From International Institute for Asian Studies Archived from the original on 29 January 2002 Retrieved 22 June 2008 Maloney Clarence People of the Maldive Islands Orient Longman Mikkelsen Egil 2000 Archaeological Excavations of a Monastery at Kaashidhoo Cowrie shells and their Buddhist context in the Maldives PDF National Centre for Linguistic and Historical Research University of Oslo Norway ISBN 99915 1 013 3 Retrieved 25 January 2025 Battutah Ibn 2002 The Travels of Ibn Battutah London Picador pp 235 236 320 ISBN 9780330418799 The Adventures of Ibn Battuta A Muslim Traveller of the Fourteenth Century Archived 12 April 2016 at the Wayback Machine Honchell Stephanie 2018 Sufis Sea Monsters and Miraculous Circumcisions Comparative Conversion Narratives and Popular Memories of Islamization PDF Fairleigh Dickinson University and the University of Cape Town p 5 archived PDF from the original on 16 May 2024 retrieved 16 May 2024 In reference to Ibn Battuta 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 a fellow Maghribi Ibn Battuta likely felt partial to the Moroccan version Paul Ludwig 2003 Persian Origins Early Judaeo Persian and the Emergence of New Persian Collected Papers of the Symposium Gottingen 1999 Otto Harrassowitz Verlag p 31 ISBN 978 3 447 04731 9 Archived from the original on 15 September 2015 Retrieved 20 June 2015 Kamala Visweswaran 6 May 2011 Perspectives on Modern South Asia A Reader in Culture History and Representation John Wiley amp Sons pp 164 ISBN 978 1 4051 0062 5 Archived from the original on 3 May 2021 Retrieved 2 October 2020 Ishtiaq Ahmed 2002 Ingvar Svanberg David Westerlund eds Islam Outside the Arab World Routledge p 250 ISBN 9780253022608 Archived from the original on 3 May 2021 Retrieved 2 October 2020 HCP Bell The Maldive Islands Monograph on the History Archaeology and Epigraphy with W L De Silva Colombo 1940 Paul Ludwig 2003 Persian Origins Early Judaeo Persian and the Emergence of New Persian Collected Papers of the Symposium Gottingen 1999 Otto Harrassowitz Verlag p 31 ISBN 978 3 447 04731 9 Archived from the original on 15 September 2015 Retrieved 30 April 2017 Yoosuf Muawwaz 28 February 2020 Male Friday Mosque Coral Stone Mosques of Maldives Retrieved 25 October 2024 Buchan James 21 December 2002 Mackintosh Smith Tim ed The Travels of Ibn Battutah The Guardian ISSN 0261 3077 Archived from the original on 7 December 2017 Retrieved 6 December 2017 Jerry Bently Old World Encounters Cross Cultural Contacts and Exchanges in Pre Modern Times New York Oxford University Press 1993 126 Boomgaard P 1 January 2008 Linking Destinies Trade Towns and Kin in Asian History BRILL ISBN 9789004253995 Archived from the original on 6 January 2017 Retrieved 23 August 2016 via Google Books BOCARRO Antonio 1594 1642 Livro das plantas de todas as fortalezas cidades e povoacoens do Estado da India Oriental Antonio Bocarro 1635 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 20 June 2020 Geary Peter 17 May 1971 The Sun never sets on the British Empire gan philliptsmall me uk Archived from the original on 19 September 2013 Retrieved 2 April 2013 Davies Laura 26 July 2015 Maldives at Fifty penning a chapter in history Foreign Commonwealth amp Development Office Archived from the original on 25 April 2021 Retrieved 26 July 2015 Hadi Ahmedulla Abdul 26 July 2019 The independence gained by the unyielding determination of Nasir Sun News Archived from the original on 23 September 2023 Retrieved 26 July 2019 People s Majlis Archive Riyaz Ahmed 11 November 2012 ރ އ ޖ ގ ވ ރ ކ ނ ޖ މ ހ ރ ވ ރ ކ މ ކ ށ ބ ދ ލ ވ ނ Maldives Becomes a republic Utheemu in Divehi Archived from the original on 11 August 2014 Retrieved 11 November 2012 Walker James 26 July 2023 How Maldives gained independence from the British empire The National Archived from the original on 30 July 2023 Retrieved 26 July 2023 Kachroo Levine Maya 25 May 2021 How the Maldives Transformed From a Fishing Archipelago to a Tropical Hot Spot in 50 Years Travel Leisure Archived from the original on 26 May 2021 Retrieved 25 May 2021 The Beginning of Maldives Tourism Industry History of the First Resort Kurumba Maldives Maldives Travel 27 September 2020 Archived from the original on 21 February 2024 Retrieved 27 September 2020 Maldives Population Library of Congress Country Studies Archived 14 January 2021 at the Wayback Machine MODERN HISTORY OF THE MALDIVES BECOMING A REPUBLIC AND INDEPENDENCE Facts and Details Archived from the original on 16 April 2024 Retrieved 16 May 2024 Maldives History s Greatest 5 December 2014 Archived from the original on 16 April 2024 Retrieved 16 May 2024 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 Sinking island nation seeks new home CNN 11 November 2008 Archived from the original on 6 December 2008 Retrieved 12 November 2008 Nov 3rd attack mastermind Sikka arrives in the Maldives after more than a decade The Maldives Journal 7 December 2022 Archived from the original on 8 December 2022 Retrieved 7 December 2022 Banka Neha 3 November 2022 Operation Cactus How India helped Maldives thwart coup bid backed by Lankan militants The Indian Express Kolkata Archived from the original on 18 September 2022 Retrieved 3 November 2022 Maldives Country Review Report on the implementation of the Brussels Programme of Action for LDCs PDF Report Ministry of Planning and National Development January 2009 Archived from the original PDF on 21 September 2013 via United Nations Aldridge Paul 24 March 2010 Maldives Skyscraper Floating States eVolo Archived from the original on 10 October 2017 Retrieved 27 July 2011 UNDP Discussion Paper Achieving Debt Sustainability and the MDGs in Small Island Developing States The Case of the Maldives PDF United Nations Development Programme 20 December 2010 Archived from the original PDF on 12 January 2012 Republic of Maldives Tsunami Impact and Recovery PDF United Nations Development Programme Archived from the original PDF on 28 March 2012 Retrieved 18 September 2015 Brecehenmacher Victor Mendis Nikhita 22 April 2015 Autocracy and Back Again The Ordeal of the Maldives Brown Political Review Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 16 May 2024 The Quality of Political Appointees in the Nasheed Administration Raajje News Blog 7 June 2009 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 21 February 2012 Maldives president quits after protests Al Jazeera 7 February 2012 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 6 February 2012 Mallawarachi Bharatha 8 October 2012 Mohamed Nasheed Former Maldives President Arrested after Failing to Appear in Court The Huffington Post Associated Press Archived from the original on 10 March 2016 Naafiz Ali 20 October 2015 Maldives opposition seeks India s help in jailed leader s release Haveeru Daily Archived from the original on 21 October 2015 Retrieved 24 October 2015 Iyengar Rishi 28 September 2015 Maldives President Abdulla Yameen Escapes Unhurt After Explosion on His Boat TIME Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 16 May 2024 Muhsin Mohamed Fathih Abdul 15 February 2021 Was removed from office without being allowed a proper defense Dr Jameel The Times of Addu Archived from the original on 9 May 2024 Retrieved 16 May 2024 Maldives declares 30 day emergency BBC News 4 November 2015 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 16 May 2024 Majlis passes declaration to remove VP from office People s Majlis 5 November 2015 Archived from the original on 14 July 2016 Maldives revokes state of emergency amid global outcry and tourism worries The Guardian Male Maldives Associated Press 10 November 2015 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 10 November 2015 Haidar Suhasini Radhakrishnan Hariprasad 3 August 2019 Adeeb returns to Maldives arrested with quiet help from India The Hindu Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 3 August 2019 Zalif Zunana 21 January 2021 High Court upholds ex president s five year jail sentence Raajje TV Archived from the original on 22 January 2021 Retrieved 16 May 2024 Junayd Mohamed 30 November 2021 Maldives ex president Yameen walks free after graft conviction overturned Reuters Archived from the original on 3 March 2022 Retrieved 5 March 2022 Junayd Mohamed 1 October 2023 Maldives opposition candidate Muizzu wins presidential vote Reuters Archived from the original on 10 November 2023 Retrieved 10 November 2023 Mohamed Muizzu sworn in as Maldives president says will remove foreign troops The Times of India Press Trust of India 18 November 2023 ISSN 0971 8257 Archived from the original on 24 November 2023 Retrieved 24 November 2023 Eguegu Ovigwe 24 January 2024 What the China Maldives India Triangle Tells Us About 21st Century Balancing The Diplomat Archived from the original on 22 March 2024 Retrieved 16 May 2024 Maldives High Court overturns ex President Abdulla Yameen s prison sentence Al Jazeera 18 April 2024 Archived from the original on 2 May 2024 Retrieved 16 May 2024 Entire Maldives cabinet resigns Al Jazeera 29 June 2010 Archived from the original on 11 January 2012 Retrieved 30 June 2010 Angelo Megan 1 May 2009 Honey I Sunk the Maldives Environmental changes could wipe out some of the world s most well known travel destinations Yahoo Travel Archived from the original on 17 July 2012 Climate refugees in Pacific flee rising sea The Washington Times 19 April 2009 Archived from the original on 6 September 2015 Retrieved 28 August 2015 Climate Maldives Meteorological Service Archived from the original on 13 December 2021 Retrieved 13 December 2021 Maldives Atlapedia Archived from the original on 10 October 2017 Retrieved 27 July 2011 World Weather Information Service Male WMO Archived from the original on 26 December 2018 Retrieved 17 March 2016 Male Climate 1961 90 NOAA Archived from the original on 10 October 2017 Retrieved 17 March 2016 Threat to islands The Canberra Times No 19348 Vol 63 Agence France Presse 26 September 1988 p 6 Archived from the original on 15 November 2021 Retrieved 15 November 2021 A gradual rise in average sea level is threatening to completely cover this Indian Ocean nation of 1196 small islands with in the next 30 years ac cording to authorities The Environmental Affairs Director Mr Hussein Shihab said an estimated rise of 20 to 30 centimetres in the next 20 to 40 years could be catastrophic Where climate change threatens survival The Sydney Morning Herald 9 January 2012 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 18 September 2015 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 Archived from the original on 9 February 2015 Retrieved 9 February 2015 Most Endangered Island nations at highest risk for flooding due to climate change 3 Maldives Indian Ocean Ramesh Randeep 10 November 2008 Paradise almost lost Maldives seek to buy a new homeland The Guardian London Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 12 May 2010 Climate Change Gridlock Where Do We Go From Here Part 1 Making Contact National Radio Project 28 June 2011 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 30 June 2011 Catoe Linda Endangered island nations call for global action on climate change The Guilfordian Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 30 December 2018 Exclusive Mohamed Nasheed Extended Interview Pt 2 The Daily Show Comedy Central 2 April 2012 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 14 February 2017 Lang Olivia 17 October 2009 Maldives leader in climate change stunt BBC News Archived from the original on 1 July 2010 Retrieved 19 October 2010 Taylor Michael 10 June 2020 Small islands may not disappear under rising seas researchers find Thomson Reuters Foundation Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Gayoom Maumoon Abdul Address by his Excellency Mr Maumoon Abdul Gayoom President of the Republic of Maldives at the nineteenth special session of the United Nations General Assembly for the purpose of an overall review and appraisal of the implementation of agenda 21 24 June 1997 Permanent Mission of the Republic of Maldives to the United Nations Archived from the original on 13 June 2006 Retrieved 6 January 2006 Physical impacts of climate change on coral reef islands University of Plymouth Archived from the original on 11 March 2023 Retrieved 11 March 2023 Evans Judith 24 April 2015 Maldives island swamped by rising tide of waste Financial Times Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 14 February 2017 Protected Areas Maldives Environmental Protection Agency Archived from the original on 4 March 2016 Retrieved 25 May 2013 Fourth National Report to the Convention on Biological Diversity of Maldives PDF Convention on Biological Diversity Ministry of Housing and Environment p 7 Archived PDF from the original on 4 November 2015 Retrieved 2 April 2013 Maldives Marine Life Scuba Dive Maldives Archived from the original on 22 December 2011 Retrieved 2 April 2013 Sharks of the Maldives The Maldives Archived from the original on 10 January 2017 Retrieved 12 February 2017 Regional Workshop on the Conservation and Sustainable Management of Coral Reefs Food and Agriculture Organization Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 2 April 2013 Wheatley Alan 2 May 2004 Maldives Nurses Its Coral Reefs Back to Life Global Coral Reef Alliance Archived from the original on 21 September 2013 Retrieved 2 April 2013 Coral Bleaching Updates MarineSavers Marine Savers and Four Seasons Resorts Maldives 2012 2017 31 July 2016 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 12 February 2017 Ducarme Frederic 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 Archived PDF from the original on 10 October 2017 Retrieved 31 March 2016 Ducarme Frederic 2016 Field observations of sea cucumbers in Ari Atoll and comparison with two nearby atolls in Maldives PDF Report Beche de mer Information Bulletin Vol 36 South Pacific Commission Archived PDF from the original on 10 October 2017 Retrieved 31 March 2016 Pisapia C Burn D Yoosuf R Najeeb A Anderson K D Pratchett M S 2016 Coral recovery in the central Maldives archipelago since the last major mass bleaching in 1998 PDF Scientific Reports 6 34720 Bibcode 2016NatSR 634720P doi 10 1038 srep34720 PMC 5046149 PMID 27694823 Archived PDF from the original on 21 January 2022 Retrieved 3 October 2016 Hingun Handuvaree 2015 Fifth National Report of Maldives to the Convention on Biological Diversity PDF Report Maldives Ministry of Environment and Energy p 24 ISBN 978 99915 59 11 7 Archived PDF from the original on 6 December 2017 Retrieved 13 October 2018 Discovering the Maldives Underwater Marine Life My Maldives 3 December 2023 Archived from the original on 25 February 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Howard Jake 8 March 2016 Crocs In Paradise aka The Maldives Stab Archived from the original on 29 May 2016 Retrieved 8 March 2016 Wildlife of Maldives Maladweep Archived from the original on 16 August 2022 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Phillips W W A 1963 The birds of the Maldive Islands Indian Ocean Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 60 546 584 President Dr Mohamed Muizzu The President s Office Archived from the original on 28 November 2023 Retrieved 17 November 2023 Dr Mohamed Muizzu sworn in as the 8th President of the Maldives The President s Office Archived from the original on 15 December 2023 Retrieved 17 November 2023 Maldives History Country Studies Library of Congress Archived from the original on 12 May 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Pro China party on course for landslide victory in Maldives election Al Jazeera 22 April 202 Archived from the original on 22 April 2024 Retrieved 18 April 2024 Government of the Maldives Branches History The President Facts and Details Archived from the original on 26 March 2024 Retrieved 1 February 2022 Constitution of the Republic of Maldives 1998 AsianLII 1998 Archived from the original on 24 August 2008 Maldives crackdown an assault on democracy UN rights chief The New Indian Express 8 February 2018 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 8 February 2018 Maldives election Early results show victory for president s party BBC News 6 April 2019 Archived from the original on 11 December 2020 Retrieved 25 February 2021 Majlis 19 An overview in numbers Avas 11 April 2019 Archived from the original on 26 May 2019 Retrieved 18 May 2024 PM Modi conferred with Maldives highest honour Order of Nishanizzuddeen narendramodi in 8 June 2019 Archived from the original on 11 July 2021 Retrieved 28 February 2022 Rasheed Zaheena Absolute power After pro China Maldives leader s big win what s next Al Jazeera Maldives 2008 Constitution constituteproject org 2008 Archived from the original on 23 January 2022 Retrieved 25 December 2021 International Religious Freedom Report for 2017 United States Department of State Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 30 December 2018 Ran Hirschl 5 May 2011 Constitutional Theocracy Harvard University Press p 34 ISBN 978 0 674 05937 5 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 30 December 2018 Human Rights and Democracy Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maldives Archived from the original on 21 September 2013 Retrieved 30 June 2010 Davis Thomas W D 2011 Human Rights in Asia Edward Elgar Publishing p 33 ISBN 978 1 84844 680 9 Archived from the original on 15 September 2015 Retrieved 20 June 2015 New penal code comes into effect 16 July 2015 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 10 July 2020 Maldives Penal Code Law No 9 2014 PDF University of Pennsylvania Archived PDF from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 10 July 2020 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 Archived from the original PDF on 2 September 2017 Retrieved 20 June 2017 Bloom Laura Begley 25 November 2019 20 Most Dangerous Places For Gay Travelers And The 5 Safest Forbes Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 19 November 2020 From South Africa to the Maldives Surprising holiday destinations for LGBT travellers The Independent 19 October 2016 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Secretary General statement on Maldives decision to leave the Commonwealth The Commonwealth 13 October 2016 Archived from the original on 17 May 2020 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Maldives quits Commonwealth over alleged rights abuses Archived 13 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine The Guardian 13 October 2016 The President s Office Archived from the original on 21 November 2018 Retrieved 26 November 2018 Maldives rejoins Commonwealth after evidence of reforms The Guardian PA Media 1 February 2020 Archived from the original on 18 April 2020 Retrieved 4 February 2020 Oltermann Peter 3 March 2022 Germany seizes Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov s 600m superyacht report The Guardian London Archived from the original on 3 March 2022 Retrieved 3 March 2022 The Government decides to impose a ban on Israeli passports The President s Office Archived from the original on 3 June 2024 Retrieved 2 June 2024 Maldives bans Israeli passport holders over war on Gaza Al Jazeera English Archived from the original on 2 June 2024 Retrieved 2 June 2024 Maldives to ban Israeli passport holders from entry in protest over Gaza war The Guardian Retrieved 3 June 2024 Saruna President s Office 2012 National Security Policy 2012 PDF Digital Repository of Maldives National University Government of the Republic of Maldives p 221 Archived PDF from the original on 16 April 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 a href wiki Template Cite web title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Chapter XXVI Disarmament No 9 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons United Nations Treaty Collection United Nations 7 July 2017 Archived from the original on 6 August 2019 Retrieved 18 October 2019 Maldives Freedom in the World Freedom House Archived from the original on 13 March 2024 Retrieved 19 May 2024 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2011 Maldives United States Department of State Bureau of Democracy Human Rights and Labor 2012 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 24 August 2012 Atolls of Maldives Statoids Archived from the original on 2 January 2010 Retrieved 30 June 2010 Divehiraajjege Jōgrafige Vanavaru Muhammadu Ibrahim Lutfee Lyon James October 2003 Maldives Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd p 9 ISBN 978 1 74059 176 8 Archived from the original on 12 April 2016 Retrieved 9 November 2015 Hogendorn Jan and Johnson Marion 1986 The Shell Money of the Slave Trade African Studies Series 49 Cambridge University Press Cambridge ISBN 0521541107 Republic of Maldives Maldivian Labor Market Spotlight on youth tourism and fisheries Analysis based on census 2014 data PDF World Bank 30 May 2017 Shakoor Athif Ibrahim The tourism industry of the Maldives have we gone beyond regulatory capture PDF The Maldives National Journal of Research Saruna mnu edu mv Retrieved 1 August 2020 Discover the islands islands mv Archived from the original on 2 July 2019 Retrieved 7 January 2020 Inhabited islands isles gov mv The President s Office Archived from the original on 10 June 2023 Retrieved 26 July 2023 Coup What coup Tourists ignore Maldives turmoil The Age Melbourne 13 February 2012 Archived from the original on 15 February 2012 Retrieved 26 February 2012 Home Ministry of Tourism Archived from the original on 17 April 2009 Retrieved 3 April 2009 1 7 million tourists visit the Maldives in 2019 Ministry of Tourism Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 9 January 2020 ހ ތ ރ ވ ރ ކ މ ގ ތ ރ އ ޤ ގ 35 އ ހ ރ 35 years of tourism PDF Ministry of Tourism in Divehi Archived from the original PDF on 22 November 2009 Retrieved 2 April 2013 Coral Stone Mosques of Maldives UNESCO World Heritage Centre Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 26 December 2019 Entry into Maldives Maldives Immigration Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 9 February 2012 Flights to Maldives British Airways Archived from the original on 20 October 2022 Retrieved 20 October 2022 Census Population by Sex and Sex Ratio and Inter Censal Variation of Population 1911 2014 PDF National Bureau of Statistics Maldives Archived PDF from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 24 May 2020 Maldives Population Projections 2014 2054 statisticsmaldives gov mv National Bureau of Statistics Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 24 May 2020 Jaleel Jana 20 July 2023 An Untold Story The Lost People of Giraavaru Maldives Voice Archived from the original on 16 April 2024 Retrieved 20 July 2023 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 Census Analysis 2006 Population Projection 2006 2050 PDF Ministry of Planning and National Development p 273 Archived from the original PDF on 3 March 2016 Retrieved 5 July 2014 May John F Riyaza Fathimath July 2017 Maldives Population Dynamics Population Reference Bureau Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 1 February 2019 International Labour Day 2021 National Bureau of Statistics Ministry of Housing Land amp Urban Development 2 May 2021 Archived from the original on 2 May 2021 Retrieved 2 May 2021 Anti Human Trafficking Action Plan 2020 2022 PDF Government of the Maldives Ministry of Defence Archived PDF from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 18 May 2020 Over 281 000 expats in the Maldives Avas 13 September 2021 Archived from the original on 13 September 2021 Retrieved 19 May 2024 Conversion of the Maldives to Islam Maldives Story Archived from the original on 9 May 2003 Yoosuf Muawwaz 28 February 2020 Male Friday Mosque Coral Stone Mosques of Maldives Retrieved 25 October 2024 Wilfred Felix 2014 The Oxford Handbook of Christianity in Asia Oxford University Press p 45 ISBN 9780199329069 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom Maldives United States Department of State Office of International Religious Freedom Archived from the original on 4 March 2024 Retrieved 18 February 2024 National Profiles World Religion Association of Religion Data Archives Archived from the original on 14 August 2023 Retrieved 1 September 2023 Maldives Languages Languages of Maldives Language Spoken In Maldives Maldives Tourism Archived from the original on 11 November 2018 Retrieved 12 June 2017 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 S2CID 148650495 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 31 March 2019 Maldives Human Rights Measurement Initiative Archived from the original on 19 May 2024 Retrieved 19 May 2024 Maldives HRMI Rights Tracker rightstracker org Archived from the original on 19 May 2022 Retrieved 25 March 2022 Maldives Commonwealth Health online 2018 Archived from the original on 20 November 2018 Retrieved 20 November 2018 At a Glance Health and Nutrition in the Maldives UNICEF 2010 Archived from the original on 20 November 2018 Retrieved 20 November 2018 Bhuckory Kamlesh 24 May 2021 With Highest Covid Rate Maldives Imposes 16 Hour Curfew BloombergQuint Archived from the original on 24 May 2021 Retrieved 24 May 2021 Rasheed Aishath Hanaan Hussain 24 May 2021 Maldives reports 61st Covid 19 death in ongoing month of May Raajje TV Archived from the original on 24 May 2021 Retrieved 19 May 2024 Maldives Elite Diving Agency Archived from the original on 18 December 2013 Manta Air begins its first scheduled seaplane service Corporate Maldives 18 November 2019 Archived from the original on 14 January 2021 Retrieved 14 December 2019 Green Richard 2005 The Commonwealth Yearbook 2005 Nexus Strategic Partnerships p 209 ISBN 9780954962906 Registered Higher Education Institute as of 19 05 2022 PDF Ministry of Higher Education Labour and Skills Development archived PDF from the original on 17 June 2022 retrieved 19 May 2022 History Maldives National University Archived from the original on 23 February 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 1st September 1973 Allied Health Services Training Centre was established Forerunner to the Faculty of Health Sciences established by the Ministry of Health Faculty of Engineering Science and Technology Maldives National University Archived from the original on 24 February 2024 Retrieved 18 May 2024 The Vocational Training Center VTC was established on 14 October 1975 under the Department of Electricity to train a large number of workers required for the growing industrial and economic activities Education Sector Analysis Maldives 6 1 Quick Historical Development Of Higher Education PDF Ministry of Education Ministry of Education Maldives February 2019 Archived PDF from the original on 28 April 2021 Retrieved 1 February 2019 The Vocational Training Center the Institute for Teacher Education and the School of Hotel and Catering Services were also established before the amalgamation of such post secondary institutions to form the Maldives College of Higher Education in 1998 Profile amp History Islamic University of Maldives Archived from the original on 19 May 2024 Retrieved 19 May 2024 A new scholarship scheme called Merit Scholarship is being launched this year Ministry of Higher Education Labour and Skills Development 16 May 2023 Archived from the original on 2 July 2023 Retrieved 16 May 2023 Robinson J J 2015 The Maldives Islamic Republic Tropical Autocracy Hurst ISBN 978 1849045896 Marcus Anothony 2012 Reconsidering Talaq PDF Brandeis University Press Archived from the original PDF on 10 October 2017 Public Service Media SOE Gateway Ministry of Finance Retrieved 31 August 2024 PSM News Seven years of reliable reporting PSM News 3 May 2024 Archived from the original on 14 May 2024 Retrieved 19 May 2024 2024 World Press Freedom Index Reporters Without Borders 2024 Archived from the original on 7 May 2022 Retrieved 12 May 2022 Lost in translation the story of Haveeru Maldives Independent 24 May 2016 Archived from the original on 16 October 2023 Retrieved 19 May 2024 Constitution of the Republic of Maldives Attorney General p 7 Archived from the original on 6 June 2011 Retrieved 16 October 2020 Maldives Newspapers Online List of Maldives newspapers magazines and news sites covering business finance sports travel weather jobs and entertainments w3newspapers com Thulusdhoo Island Surf Guide Maldives Local Island Surfing Stoked For Travel 15 September 2020 Archived from the original on 25 September 2020 Retrieved 15 September 2020 SNORKELING IN THE MALDIVES Snorkeling Report Archived from the original on 1 March 2024 Retrieved 19 May 2024 Future of Football When will a country from South Asia emerge as a powerhouse in the global game Sky Sports Archived from the original on 10 January 2024 Retrieved 4 August 2023 Maldives Soccerway Archived from the original on 26 March 2023 Retrieved 18 May 2024 Further readingDivehiraajjege Jōgrafige Vanavaru Muhammadu Ibrahim Lutfee G Sōsani Male 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 Male 1989 H C P Bell Excerpta Maldiviana Reprint Colombo 1922 35 edn Asian Educational Services New Delhi 1999 Divehi Tarikhah Au Alikameh Divehi Bahai Tarikhah Khidmaiykura Qaumi Markazu Reprint 1958 edn Male Maldives 1990 Christopher William 1836 38 Transactions of the Bombay Geographical Society Vol I Bombay Lieut I A Young amp 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 Beitrage zur Sudasien Forschung Sudasien Institut Universitat 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 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 Archived 14 January 2021 at the Wayback Machine International Relations and Security Network ISN Zurich September 2013 Djan Sauerborn Failing to Transition Democratization under Stress in the Maldives South Asia Democratic Forum SADF February 2015External linksThe Maldives at Wikipedia s sister projects Definitions from WiktionaryMedia from CommonsNews from WikinewsQuotations from WikiquoteTexts from WikisourceTravel information from Wikivoyage Official tourist guide to Maldives Archived 16 January 2020 at the Wayback Machine President s Office Archived 30 May 2023 at the Wayback Machine Official website of the Government of Maldives Archived 12 June 2020 at the Wayback Machine Maldives Archived 29 July 2022 at the Wayback Machine The World Factbook Central Intelligence Agency Maldives from UCB Libraries GovPubs Maldives Archived 29 July 2018 at the Wayback Machine from the BBC News Maldives Archived 2 December 2022 at the Wayback Machine Encyclopaedia Britannica entry Wikimedia Atlas of Maldives
