Welcome to the Maldives
The Maldives
Welcome to the Maldives, where sands are white as the smiles of the locals, where fish swim happily in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean, where the weather is a dream, and the deep rays of the sun wait to engulf you their arms.
In ancient times, the shores of the Maldives welcomed lost travellers. Still welcoming, these shores remain, providing a tranquil haven for visitors.
(in thaana script):
Hindhu emaa kandu therein, Mala fehi ruhgas hedhey
Meemagey ufan bimey, Dheebu Dhivehi mee
Kula ali maa Kandu therein, Ali raiy mui hen dhirey
Meemagey ufan bimey, dheebu Dhivehi mee
Translation:
In horizon of the vast Indian Ocean grow green palms
This is my homeland, this is the Maldives
From the clear blue seas, we grow like pearls,
This is my homeland, this is the Maldives
(Dheebu Dhivehi Mee, Old Maldivian Folk song)
d Geography
Location and Geography
The Maldives lies in two rows of atolls in the Indian Ocean, just across the equator. The country is made up of 1,190 coral islands formed around 26 natural ring-like atolls, spread over 90,000 square kilometers. These atolls structures are formed upon a sharp ridge rising from the ocean, making way for their secluded uniqueness.
Each atoll in the Maldives is made of a coral reef encircling a lagoon, with deep channels dividing the reef ring. A string of islands take their places among this atoll ring; each island has its own reef encircling the island lagoon. The reefs of the islands, alive with countless types of underwater creatures and vibrant corals, protect the islands from wind and wave action of the surrounding vast oceans. This unique structure of reefs and channels makes navigation almost impossible for the passer-by without sufficient information about these waters.
Ninety-nine percent of the Maldives is made up of sea. The people of the islands are widely dispersed across the atolls, with about 200 inhabited islands. About 90 islands are developed as tourist resort and the rest are uninhabited or used for agriculture and other livelihood purposes.
History
For Maldivians, who love a good story, it is somehow fitting that the early history of the country is enshrined in myth and legend. There is the story of the Rannamaari, a tale about a sea monster than demands a virgin sacrifice every full moon, until a brave man from Morocco, Mr Abdul Barakaath-Ul Barbary decides to confront the monster and prohibit him from coming into the Maldives.
There is the story of Bodu Thakurufaanu, renowned for its length, who saved the Maldives from Portuguese Invaders. These stories, while very
much anecdotal, are based on the real facts that form the history of the country. Written accounts portray a Maldives whose people have traveled far and wide, adventurers whose geographical isolation had not limited the boundaries of their world. Maldives today remains very much like it had then – small, but not lacking;
isolated, but not invisible.
1st Century AD - The Roman manual of Navigation, the Periplus Maris Erythraei mentions islands that are assumed to be theMaldives
2nd Century AD - Ptolemy refers to the Maldives in his geography 362 AD Roman historian records a visit of a Maldivian delegation to Rome, bearing gifts to emperor Julian 662 AD A historical Chinese document records that the King of the Maldives sent gifts to the Chinese Emperor Kao-Tsung of Tang Dynasty
1153 - Maldives converts to Islam
1558 - The Portuguese invade the Maldives
1573 - Mohamed Thakurufaanu liberates the Maldives from the Portuguese
1752 - The Malabars invade the Maldives for three months
1887 - Protectorate signed with Great Britain
1932 - The first Constitution of the Republic of Maldives enacted
1953 - The first Republic with Mohamed Ameen as President
1954 - End of the first Republic as Ameen is ousted; the Maldives reverts to Sultanate with Mohamed Fareed as ruler
1965 - Independence from the British
1968 - End of the Sultanate; second Republic begins with Ibrahim
Nasir as President
1972 - The first island resort is developed; tourists begin arriving to
the Maldives
