Maldives

Lore & Background

According to legends, the first settlers of the Maldives were people known as Dheyvis. The first Kingdom of the Maldives was known as Kingdom of Dheeva Maari. 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 mālaittīvu (மாலைத்தீவு). The 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 māladvīpŭ (മാലദ്വീപ്). In Kannada, 'garland of islands' can be translated as māledvīpa (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' (Lakṣadvīpa), 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 Maldives is Dibajat. The Dutch referred to the islands as the Maldivische Eilanden, 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 Their Own Story

The morning mist clings to the surface of the Indian Ocean as the first light touches the white sands of a remote atoll. A dhoni, its hull painted in vibrant blues and greens, cuts silently through the glassy lagoon, carrying the day's catch back to Malé. The air smells of salt and drying fish, mingling with the distant call to prayer echoing from the island mosque. Here, time moves with the tides; life is dictated by the rhythm of the sea, where a rising wave can reshape a shoreline overnight, reminding every soul that this paradise is borrowed, not owned.

Reader's Guide

The Maldives has been inhabited for over 2,500 years. Documented contact with the outside world began around 947 CE when Arab travellers 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). Fishing has historically been the dominant economic activity, and remains the second largest sector, behind the rapidly growing tourism industry. The Maldives rates 'high' on the Human Development Index, with a per capita income significantly higher than other SAARC nations. The World Bank classifies the Maldives as having an upper-middle income economy. The Maldives is a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, and the Non-Aligned Movement, and is a Dialogue Partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. It temporarily withdrew from the Commonwealth in October 2016 after being threatened with expulsion from the organisation for its human rights infringements and democratic backsliding. It was readmitted to the Commonwealth on 1 February 2020 after showing evidence of reform and functioning democratic processes.

Did You Know?

• The Maldives is the smallest country in Asia by land area, at only 298 square kilometres.
• The highest natural point in the Maldives is only 2.4 metres (7 ft 10 in) above sea level, making it the world's lowest-lying country.
• The Maldives' chain of 26 atolls stretches across the equator from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the north to Addu Atoll in the south.
• The local name for the Maldives in Dhivehi is Dhivehi Raajje.