Outline of the Maldives

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Maldives:

The Maldives – island nation comprising a group of atolls in the Indian Ocean.^[1] The Maldives is located south of India's Lakshadweep islands, and about seven hundred kilometres (435 mi) south-west of Sri Lanka. The twenty-six atolls of Maldives' encompass a territory featuring 1,192 islets, two hundred and fifty islands of which are inhabited.

The name "Maldives" may derive from Maale Dhivehi Raajje ("The Island Kingdom [under the authority of] Malé")."^[2] Some scholars believe that the name "Maldives" derives from the Sanskrit maladvipa, meaning "garland of islands",^[3] or from mahila dvipa, meaning "island of women",^{[citation needed]} but these names are not found in ancient Sanskrit literature. Instead, classical Sanskrit texts mention the "Hundred Thousand Islands" (Lakshadweepa); a generic name which would include not only the Maldives, but also the Laccadives and the Chagos island groups.^{[citation needed]} Another theory suggests that the name "Maldives" derives from the Tamil "malai tivu" meaning "island of hills." Some medieval Arab travellers such as Ibn Batuta called the islands "Mahal Dibiyat" from the Arabic word Mahal ("palace")." ^[4] This is the name presently inscribed in the scroll of the Maldive state emblem.

The inhabitants were Buddhist, probably since Ashoka's period, in the 3rd century BC. Islam was introduced in 1153. The Maldives came then under the influence of the Portuguese (1558) and the Dutch (1654) seaborne empires. And in 1887 it became a British protectorate. In 1965, the Maldives obtained independence from Britain (originally under the name "Maldive Islands"), and in 1968 the Sultanate was replaced by a Republic.

The Maldives is the smallest Asian country in terms of population. It is also the smallest predominantly Muslim nation in the world.

General reference

Pronunciation:/ˈmɒldaɪvz/ or /ˈmɒldiːvz/
Common English country name: Maldives
Official English country name: The Republic of Maldives
Common endonym(s):
Official endonym(s):
Adjectival(s): Maldivian
Demonym(s): Maldivians
Etymology: Name of Maldives
ISO country codes: MV, MDV, 462
ISO region codes: See ISO 3166-2:MV
Internet country code top-level domain: .mv

Geography of Maldives

Maldives is: an island country
Location:
- Northern Hemisphere and Eastern Hemisphere
- Indian Ocean
  - between the Arabian Sea and the Laccadive Sea
- Eurasia
  - Asia
    - South Asia
      - Indian subcontinent (off the coast of India, rising above the oceanic crust)
- Time zone: UTC+05
- Extreme points of Maldives:
  - High: unnamed location on Villingili 2.4 m (8 ft) – lowest high point of any country
  - Low: Indian Ocean 0 m
- Land boundaries: none
- Coastline: Indian Ocean 644 km
Population of Maldives: 306,000 - 173rd most populous country
Area of Maldives: 298 km²
Atlas of Maldives

Environment of Maldives

An enlargeable satellite image of Maldives

Natural geographic features of Maldives

Glaciers of Maldives: None
Islands of Maldives
Lakes of Maldives
Mountains of Maldives: None
- Volcanoes in Maldives
Rivers of Maldives
- Waterfalls of Maldives
Valleys of Maldives
World Heritage Sites in Maldives: None

Regions of Maldives

Ecoregions of Maldives

Administrative divisions of Maldives

None

Municipalities of Maldives

Capital of Maldives: Malé
Cities of Maldives

Demography of Maldives

Government and politics of Maldives

Main article: Government of Maldives and Politics of Maldives

Form of government:
Capital of Maldives: Malé

Branches of the government of Maldives

Executive branch of the government of Maldives

Legislative branch of the government of Maldives

Parliament of Maldives (bicameral)
- Upper house: Senate of Maldives
- Lower house: House of Commons of Maldives

Judicial branch of the government of Maldives

Supreme Court of Maldives

Foreign relations of Maldives

International organization membership

The Republic of Maldives is a member of:^[1]

Asian Development Bank (ADB)
Colombo Plan (CP)
Commonwealth of Nations
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Group of 77 (G77)
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD)
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)
International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol)
International Development Association (IDA)
International Finance Corporation (IFC)
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
International Maritime Organization (IMO)
International Monetary Fund (IMF)
International Olympic Committee (IOC)
International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)
Islamic Development Bank (IDB)
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)

Nonaligned Movement (NAM)
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)
South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP)
South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)
United Nations (UN)
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
Universal Postal Union (UPU)
World Customs Organization (WCO)
World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU)
World Health Organization (WHO)
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
World Meteorological Organization (WMO)
World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)
World Trade Organization (WTO)

Law and order in Maldives

Military of Maldives

Local government in Maldives

History of Maldives

Main article: History of Maldives, Timeline of the history of Maldives, and Current events of Maldives

Military history of Maldives

Culture of Maldives

Art in Maldives

Sports in Maldives

Economy and infrastructure of Maldives

Economic rank, by nominal GDP (2007): 165th (one hundred and sixty fifth)

Currency of Maldives: Rufiyaa
- ISO 4217: MVR

Education in Maldives

References

^ ^a ^b "Maldives". The World Factbook. United States Central Intelligence Agency. July 7, 2009. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
^ Caldwell, Comparative Dravidian Grammar, p. 27-28
^ J Hogendorn and M Johnson, The Shell Money of the Slave Trade, p. 20-22
^ Ibn Batuta, Travels in Asia and Africa, translated by A.R. Gibb

External links

Wikimedia Atlas of Maldives

Government

Maps

Overviews and Data

CIA World Fact Book on Maldives
"Maldives: Paradise soon to be lost". BBC News. 2004-07-28. Retrieved 2008-08-05.

History and Culture

[CIA_World_Factbook-1] "Maldives". The World Factbook. United States Central Intelligence Agency. July 7, 2009. Retrieved July 23, 2009.

[2] Caldwell, Comparative Dravidian Grammar, p. 27-28

[3] J Hogendorn and M Johnson, The Shell Money of the Slave Trade, p. 20-22

[4] Ibn Batuta, Travels in Asia and Africa, translated by A.R. Gibb

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