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.
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 by other nations 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. (Full article...)
Solih was first elected to the People's Majlis in 1994, then aged 32 as the MP from his home atoll of Faadhippolhu. He played a leading role in the formation of the Maldivian Democratic Party and the Maldives political reform movement from 2003 until 2008, which led to the country adopting a new modern constitution and the establishment of a multi-party democracy for the first time in its history. Solih was also a senior member of parliament and the Special Majlis which wrote the country's constitution. Solih was elected president of Maldives on 23 September 2018 following the 2018 presidential election. (Full article...)
Image 7A 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 is also read as "at-Tabrizi" instead of "al-Barbari". (from History of the Maldives)
Image 8Gage Naima dancing while she was a girl at the Royal Court in Male. Based on a picture taken around 1960. (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 15Judaage Aminat Didi in 1982, wearing the simple customary libaas worn by all southern Maldivian women before the modern islamification promoted by President Maumoon. First "burugaa" headscarf reached Fuvahmulah only in 1989. (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 26Prime Minister Ibrahim Nasir signs independence agreement with the British on July 26, 1965. (from Maldives)
Image 27Each administrative atoll is marked, along with the thaana letter used to identify the atoll. Natural atolls are labelled in light blue. (from Maldives)
Image 60Dark clouds bringing heavy rain, common in the rainy season (from Maldives)
Image 61The 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 63A mechanised traditional inter-island dhoni stripped of its sails (from Maldives)
Selected biography
Fauziyya Hassan (8 January 1942 – 31 August 2022) was a Maldivian film actress. She made her film debut in Sidha in 1985. In 1994 she was arrested by the Indian police on espionage charges relating to the Indian Space Research Organisation. She and a friend were accused of passing sensitive defence information to Pakistan. The espionage case against Hassan was not proven and eventually other charges were dropped, though she spent three years in prison under the National Security Act.
After her release Hassan appeared in a number of television dramas and films, including a run of horror films in the early 2000s. She afterwards appeared in a number of romantic dramas including Vaaloabi Engeynama, for which she was nominated for best supporting actress at the 2008 Gaumee Film Awards. Hassan took a break from acting between 2012 and 2019, before appearing in romantic drama Hahdhu, her performance in which was nominated in the best supporting actress category at the 2019 Gaumee Film Awards. Her final films were 2018 horror Reyvumun and 2021 drama Faree. She died in Sri Lanka in 2022 while undergoing medical treatment. (Full article...)
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The Maldives competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, from 13 to 29 August 2004. The delegation's participation in the Athens Olympics marked the Maldives' fifth appearance at the Summer Olympics since their debut at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Four athletes competed across two sports; Sultan Saeed and Shifana Ali in track and field, and Hassan Mubah and Aminath Rouya Hussain in swimming. None of the track or swimming athletes advanced past the first round in their events, and no Maldivian has won a medal in any events. Sultan Saeed bore the Maldives' flag during the parade of nations of the opening ceremony. (Full article...)
