The Maldives, officially known as the Republic of Maldives, is an archipelagic state in South Asia located in the Indian Ocean. It lies southwest of Sri Lanka and India, about 750 kilometers (470 miles) or 400 nautical miles from the mainland of Asia. In this topic we covered about Maldives island.
The Maldives is a sovereign state located in Asia, and it is one of the world’s most geographically dispersed countries. It is also the smallest Asian country. It is also one of the smallest Muslim-majority countries by land area, with around 557,751 inhabitants. It was the 2nd least populous country in Asia continent.
The capital of the Maldives is Male, the most populous city and traditionally known as the King’s Island. The ancient “Royal Dynasties” used to rule from its central location.
The Maldivian archipelago is located on the Chagos and Laccadive Ridge, a vast submarine mountain range that forms a terrestrial ecoregion with the Chagos Archipelago and Lakshadweep.
Islam arrived in the Maldivian archipelago in the 12th century and developed as a sultanate with strong commercial and cultural ties to Asia and Africa.
Information about Maldives Island
The region came under increasing influence from European colonial powers, and the Maldives became a British protectorate in 1887. The Maldives gained independence from the United Kingdom in the year of 1965.
The Maldives became a presidential republic in 1968, with the elected People’s Majlis. The Maldives became a founding member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
The Maldives was a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth of Nations, the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation, and the Non-Aligned Movement. It was classified as having an upper middle income economy by the World Bank.
Fishing was historically the dominant economic activity in the Maldives, and it remains the largest sector, followed by the rapidly growing tourism industry.
The Maldives ranks high in tourism on the Human Development Index and has a per capita income significantly higher than other SAARC nations. The Maldives became a member of the Commonwealth Nations in July 1982.
However, in October 2016, the Maldives withdrew from the organization in protest of allegations of human rights violations and failing democracy. The Maldives rejoined the Commonwealth on February 1, 2020, after providing evidence of functioning democratic processes and popular support.
The first settlers of the Maldives were known as the Dheyvis.
The first kingdom, Dheeva Maari, was established in the 3rd century BCE. Emissaries visiting the Maldives noted that it was also known as Dheeva Mahal. The Maldives were also referred to as Diva Kudha.
The Laccadive archipelago, which is part of the Maldives, was referred to as Diva Kanbar by scholar and polymath al-Biruni in the 973-1048. The name “Maldives” is derived from Sanskrit, “Maala Divaina,” which means “necklace islands” in Sinhala. The Maldivian people are called Dhivehin.
The ancient Sri Lankan chronicle, the Mahavamsa, refers to an island called Mahila divas, which may be a mistranslation of the Sanskrit word “garland.” The Dutch referred to the Maldives as Maldivische Eilanden, while the British anglicized the local name to “Maldives Islands,” which was later shortened to just “Maldives.”
The Maldives was influenced by the cultures of various ethnicities who settled on the islands.
There were some Arab influences on the culture and language of the Maldives due to the conversion to Islam and the Maldives’ location as a crossroads in the central Indian Ocean with a long trading history between the Far East and the Middle East.
The Allied Health Services Training Centre was established by the Ministry of Health in the Maldives. The Vocational Training Centre, established in 1974, provides training in mechanical and electrical trades.
The Institute for Teacher Education and the School of Hotel and Catering Services were established in 1987 to provide trained personnel for the tourist industry.
The Institute of Management and Administration was created in 1991 to train staff for public and private services. The Maldives College of Higher Education was founded in 1998. In January 1999, the Institute of Shar’ah and Law was founded.
The college launched its first degree program, a Bachelor of Arts, in 2000. The Maldives National University Act was passed by the President of the Maldives, and the Maldives National University was named on February 15, 2011. The College of Islamic Studies was changed to the Islamic University of the Maldives (IUM) in 2015.
