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Introduction

The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as the Maldive Islands, is an archipelagic country in South Asia, located in the Indian Ocean, near the southeastern boundary of the Arabian Sea. The Maldives is located southwest of India and Sri Lanka, 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.

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 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. (Full article...)

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The history of the Maldives is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent and surrounding areas in South Asia and the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is formed of 26 natural atolls, comprising 1,194 islands.

The Maldives historically has held strategic importance due to its location on the major marine routes of the Indian Ocean. Its closest neighbours are the British Indian Ocean Territory, Sri Lanka, and India. The United Kingdom, Sri Lanka, and some Indian kingdoms in the past have had deep cultural and economic ties with the Maldives for centuries. Maldivians also traded with Aceh and many other kingdoms in what is now Indonesia and Malaysia. The Maldives were a primary source of cowrie shells, which were then used as currency throughout Asia and parts of the East African coast. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from Maldives-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Filitheyo island beach with tall palm trees and blue fresh lagoons (from Maldives)
Image 2Protesters in Malé in August 2005 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 3Oriental sweetlips (Plectorhinchus vittatus) at Meeru Island, North Male Atoll (from Maldives)
Image 4An RAF Short Sunderland moored in the lagoon at Addu Atoll, during WWII (from Maldives)
Image 5President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih congratulates Mohamed Nasheed Speaker of the People's Majlis in May 2019 (from Maldives)
Image 6Each administrative atoll is marked, along with the thaana letter used to identify the atoll. Natural atolls are labelled in light blue. (from Maldives)
Image 717th-century Portuguese drawing of the fortress of Maldives and the archipelago. In Antonio Bocarro's book of Fortress (1632) (from Maldives)
Image 81598 Bertius map of the Maldives, issued in Middelburg, Netherlands (from History of the Maldives)
Image 9Maldives soft coral (from Maldives)
Image 10Sign outside the Velana International Airport (from Maldives)
Image 11The Buddhist stupa at Kuruhinna in Gan Island (Haddhunmathi Atoll), western side (from History of the Maldives)
Image 12Prime Minister Ibrahim Nasir signs independence agreement with the British on 26 July 1965. (from Maldives)
Image 13Flyboarding in Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 141753 Van Keulen map of Ari Atoll (from History of the Maldives)
Image 15Protesters in Malé in August 2004 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 16Maldivian soldiers at a presidential address in February 2024 (from Maldives)
Image 171920 British map of the Maldives (from History of the Maldives)
Image 181742 drawing of cowry shells (from History of the Maldives)
Image 19Solih in November 2023 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 2017th SAARC summit in Addu City, Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 21Thaana script (from Maldives)
Image 22Mohamed Waheed Hassan (from History of the Maldives)
Image 23A demonstration (Muzhaahira) in Fua Mulaku in support of the government (1981) (from History of the Maldives)
Image 24Masroshi. Maldivian savoury snacks (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 25Muizzu in January 2024 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 26Yameen in 2014 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 27Building set on fire in Malé during the September 2003 protests (from History of the Maldives)
Image 28A beach of Bathala island (from Maldives)
Image 29Malé Friday Mosque minaret (1981) (from History of the Maldives)
Image 30A boy sandboarding in Fuvahmulah, Maldives (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 31The wreck of the Corbin, 1865 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 32Malé harbour (from Maldives)
Image 33A plaque in Hukuru Mosque, Malé, Maldives, placed by Sultan Ibrahim Iskandhar on which Abu al-Barakat Yusuf al-Barbari's name is written; his last name can also be read as "at-Tabrizi" instead of "al-Barbari" (from History of the Maldives)
Image 34Maahefun Festival in Fuvahmulah (from Maldives)
Image 35Portuguese presence in Maldives was established in 1558, by order of Constantino of Braganza, Viceroy of Portuguese India. (from Maldives)
Image 3618th-century map by Pierre Mortier of the Netherlands depicting, with detail, the islands of the Maldives (from History of the Maldives)
Image 37A selection of traditional Maldivian oarblade patterns (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 381753 Van Keulen map of Huvadu Atoll (inaccurate) (from History of the Maldives)
Image 39The resort island of Landaa Giraavaru (Baa atoll) (from Maldives)
Image 40Dark clouds bringing heavy rain, common in the rainy season (from Maldives)
Image 41Life expectancy in the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 4216th-century Portuguese illustration from the Códice Casanatense, depicting workers (from Maldives)
Image 43A mechanised traditional inter-island dhoni stripped of its sails (from Maldives)
Image 44Map from the 1662 Tabula Indiae orientalis by Frederik de Wit (from History of the Maldives)
Image 45The tsunami that struck Malé on 26 December 2004; photo taken by Sofwathulla Mohamed while standing on his doorstep; his apartment was entirely washed out, damaging all his belongings (from History of the Maldives)
Image 46Copy of a magical drawing. Diguvando. Fuvahmulah. (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 4718th-century map by Pierre Mortier from the Netherlands, depicting with detail the islands of Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 48Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, President of the Maldives (1978–2008) (from History of the Maldives)
Image 49Maalhosmadulu Atoll seen from space. Northern Maalhosmadulu Atoll and Southern Maalhosmadulu Atoll can be seen in this picture. (from Maldives)
Image 50Butorides striata in the Maldives (from Maldives)

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Selected biography

Aishath Lahfa (born 21 November 1997) is a Maldivian film actress. Before pursuing a career in acting, Lahfa was an active TikTok user, which won her recognition as a performer. She made her acting debut in the web series Girlfriends (2021) and continued playing main roles in several other web series including four-part anthology crime web series Mazloom (2021–2022), family romantic dramas Rimsha (2022) and Yasna (2022). In 2023, she made her first appearance in a feature film with the horror film Kalhaki. (Full article...)

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The Maldives competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, from 15 September to 1 October 2000. The delegation's participation in the Sydney Olympics marked the Maldives' fourth appearance at the Summer Olympics since their debut at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Four athletes competed across two sports; Naseer Ismail and Shamha Ahmed in track and field, and Hassan Mubah and Fariha Fathimath in swimming. Neither advanced past the first round in their respective events, and no Maldivian has won a medal in any events. Naseer Ismail bore the Maldives' flag during the parade of nations of the opening ceremony. (Full article...)

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... that Ithaa in Maldives is the world's first and only underwater restaurant?
... that Fathimath Dheema Ali is the first Olympic qualifier from the Maldives?
... that the minaret adjoining the Malé Friday Mosque has a wide base like a ship's funnel and resembles a wedding cake?
... that after being shipwrecked on Malé Atoll in 1973, Tony Hussein Hinde pioneered surfing in the Maldives, which was previously unknown in the country?
... that Indo-Maldivian relations grew stronger after India responded to Maldives' request for help and thwarted a militant plot to overthrow the government in 1988?