ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ
ޖުމުހޫރިއްޔާ
Divehi Rājje
ge
Jumhuriyyā
Republic
of
Maldives
|
|
 |
 |
|
Flag |
Coat of arms |
|
|
Motto: None
Anthem: Gavmii
mi
ekuverikan
matii
tibegen
kuriime
salaam
"In National
Unity Do We
Salute Our
Nation" |
|
|
 |
|
Location
of Maldives |
|
Capital
(and largest
city) |
Malé |
|
Official
languages |
Dhivehi |
|
Demonym |
Maldivian |
|
Government |
Presidential
Republic |
|
- |
President |
Maumoon
Abdul Gayoom |
|
Independence |
|
|
- |
from the UK |
26 July
1965 |
|
Area |
|
- |
Total |
298 km² (206th)
115 sq mi |
|
- |
Water (%) |
negligible |
|
|
Population |
|
- |
July
2006 estimate |
350,000 (176th1) |
|
- |
2006 census |
298,842
[1] |
|
- |
Density |
1,105/km² (9th)
2,862/sq mi |
|
GDP (PPP) |
2005 estimate |
|
- |
Total |
$1.569
billion (162nd) |
|
- |
Per capita |
$7,675 (109th) |
|
HDI (2007) |
▲0.741 (medium) (100th) |
|
Currency |
Maldivian
Rufiyaa (MRf) |
|
Time zone |
(UTC+5) |
|
Internet TLD |
.mv |
|
Calling code |
+960 |
|
The Maldives
([ˈmɒldaɪvz] (help·info)
or [ˈmɒldiːvz], or
Maldive Islands),
officially the
Republic of
Maldives, is an
island nation
consisting of a
group of atolls
belonging to the
Maldive and Suvadive
archiplagoes in the
Indian Ocean. The
Maldives is located
south of India's
Lakshadweep islands,
and about seven
hundred kilometres
(435 mi) south-west
of Sri Lanka. The
twenty-six atolls of
Maldives' encompass
a territory
featuring 1,192
islets, two hundred
and fifty islands of
which are inhabited.
The name
"Maldives" may
derive from Maale
Dhivehi Raajje ("The
Island Kingdom
[under the authority
of] Malé")."[1] Some
scholars believe
that the name
"Maldives" derives
from the Sanskrit
maladvipa, meaning
"garland of
islands",[2] or from
mahila dvipa,
meaning "island of
women",[citation
needed] but these
names are not found
in ancient Sanskrit
literature. Instead,
classical Sanskrit
texts mention the
"Hundred Thousand
Islands" (Lakshadweepa);
a generic name which
would include not
only the Maldives,
but also the
Laccadives and the
Chagos island
groups.[citation
needed] Another
theory suggests that
the name "Maldives"
derives from the
Tamil "mala tivu"
meaning "a garland
of islands." Some
medieval Arab
travellers such as
Ibn Batuta called
the islands "Mahal
Dibiyat" from the
Arabic word Mahal
("palace")." [3]
This is the name
presently inscribed
in the scroll of the
Maldive state
emblem.
The inhabitants were
Buddhist, probably
since Ashoka's
period, in the 3rd
century BC. Islam
was introduced in
1153. The Maldives
came then under the
influence of the
Portuguese (1558)
and the Dutch (1654)
seaborne empires.
And in 1887 it
became a British
protectorate. In
1965, the Maldives
obtained
independence from
Britain (originally
under the name "Maldive
Islands"), and in
1968 the Sultanate
was replaced by a
Republic.
The Maldives
is the smallest
Asian country in
terms of population.
It is also the
smallest
predominantly Muslim
nation in the world.