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Introduction

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...)

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The history of the Maldives is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent and the surrounding regions, comprising the areas of South Asia and Indian Ocean. The modern nation consists of 26 natural atolls, comprising 1194 islands. Historically, the Maldives has held a strategic importance due to its location on the major marine routes of the Indian Ocean. The Maldives's nearest neighbours are the British Indian Ocean Territory, Sri Lanka and India. The United Kingdom, Sri Lanka and some Indian kingdoms have had cultural and economic ties with the Maldives for centuries. In addition to these countries, Maldivians also traded with Aceh and many other kingdoms in what is today Indonesia and Malaysia. The Maldives provided the main source of cowrie shells, then used as a currency throughout Asia and parts of the East African coast. Most probably, Maldives were influenced by Kalingas of ancient India who were earliest sea traders to Sri Lanka and the Maldives from India, and who were responsible for the spread of Buddhism. Stashes of Chinese crockery found buried in various locations in the Maldives also show that there was direct or indirect trade contact between China and the Maldives. In 1411 and 1430, the Chinese admiral Zheng He (鄭和) visited the Maldives. The Chinese also became the first country to establish a diplomatic office in the Maldives, when the Chinese nationalist government based in Taipei opened an embassy in Malé in 1966. This office has since been replaced by the Embassy of the People's Republic of China.

After the 16th century, when colonial powers took over much of the trade in the Indian Ocean, politics in the Maldives were interfered with by first the Portuguese, then the Dutch, and the French. However, this interference ended when the Maldives became a British Protectorate in the 19th century and the Maldivian monarchs were granted a good measure of self-governance. (Full article...)

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General images

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

Image 1Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, President of the Maldives (1978–2008). (from History of the Maldives)
Image 2Flyboarding in Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 3Gage 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 4A beach of Bathala island (from Maldives)
Image 517th SAARC summit in Addu City, Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 6A mechanised traditional inter-island dhoni stripped of its sails (from Maldives)
Image 7Kashimaage Hakimatu, daughter of an excellent master carpenter boatbuilder, 1983. Fuvahmulah Island (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 8Judaage 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 9Malé Friday Mosque Minaret, 1981 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 10A boy sandboarding in Fuvahmulah, Maldives (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 11Maldives against Bangladesh at the 2021 SAFF Championship. (from Maldives)
Image 12Muizzu in January 2024 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 131753 Van Keulen Map of Huvadu Atoll (inaccurate) (from History of the Maldives)
Image 14A selection of traditional Maldivian oarblade patterns (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 15Prime Minister Ibrahim Nasir signs independence agreement with the British on July 26, 1965. (from Maldives)
Image 16Maahefun Festival in Fuvahmulah (from Maldives)
Image 17Isdhoo Lōmāfānu is the oldest copper-plate book to have been discovered in the Maldives to date. The book was written in 1194 CE (590 AH) in the Evēla form of the Divehi akuru, during the reign of Siri Fennaadheettha Mahaa Radun (Dhinei Kalaminja). (from Maldives)
Image 181753 Van Keulen Map of Ari Atoll (from History of the Maldives)
Image 191920 British map of the Maldives (from History of the Maldives)
Image 20Woman rocking a traditional Maldivian swingbed (un'dholi) holding a baby in local fashion. (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 21Oriental sweetlips (Plectorhinchus vittatus) at Meeru Island, North Male Atoll (from Maldives)
Image 22Maldivian soldiers at a presidential address in February 2024 (from Maldives)
Image 23Filitheyo island beach with tall palm trees and blue fresh lagoons (from Maldives)
Image 24Maldives soft coral (from Maldives)
Image 25Protesters in Malé in August 2005 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 26Detail of the 1662 Tabula Indiae orientalis by Frederik de Wit (from History of the Maldives)
Image 27Yameen in 2014 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 2817th-century Portuguese drawing of the fortress of Maldives and the archipelago. In Antonio Bocarro book of fortress (1632) (from Maldives)
Image 29Solih in November 2023 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 30An RAF Short Sunderland moored in the lagoon at Addu Atoll, during WWII (from Maldives)
Image 31Building set on fire in Malé during the September 2003 protests (from History of the Maldives)
Image 32Thaana script (from Maldives)
Image 33The 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 34Velana International Airport (from Maldives)
Image 351742 drawing of shells of the money cowry, Cypraea moneta (from History of the 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 37Malé, the capital of the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 38MNDF Marine Corps soldiers during a training exercise (from Maldives)
Image 39Mohammed Waheed Hassan (from History of the Maldives)
Image 40Copy of a magical drawing. Diguvando. Fuvahmulah. (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 41TMA Terminal (from Maldives)
Image 42President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih congratulates Mohamed Nasheed Speaker of the People's Majlis in May 2019 (from Maldives)
Image 43Life expectancy in the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 44Isdhoo Lōmāfānu is the oldest copper-plate book to have been discovered in the Maldives to date. The book was written in AD 1194 (590 AH) in the Evēla form of the Divehi akuru, during the reign of Siri Fennaadheettha Mahaa Radun (Dhinei Kalaminja). (from History of the Maldives)
Image 45A 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 46Maalhosmadulu Atoll seen from space. Northern Maalhosmadulu Atoll and Southern Maalhosmadulu Atoll can be seen in this picture. (from Maldives)
Image 47Masroshi. Maldivian savory snacks (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 48Malé harbour (from Maldives)
Image 49A demonstration (Muzhaahira) in Fua Mulaku in support of the government, 1981. (from History of the Maldives)
Image 50Each administrative atoll is marked, along with the thaana letter used to identify the atoll. Natural atolls are labelled in light blue. (from Maldives)
Image 51Butorides striata in the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 521598 Bertius map of the Maldives, issued in Middelburg, Netherlands. (from History of the Maldives)
Image 53A baby sleeping on a swingbed. The duty of the older siblings is to keep it swinging. 1980 (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 5416th-century Portuguese illustration from the Códice Casanatense, depicting workers (from Maldives)
Image 55The resort island of Landaa Giraavaru (Baa atoll) (from Maldives)
Image 56Protesters in Malé in August 2004 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 57Flag of the Sultan of the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 58Sign outside the Velana International Airport (from Maldives)
Image 59Portuguese presence in the Maldives was established in 1558, by order of Constantino of Braganza, Viceroy of Portuguese India. (from Maldives)
Image 60Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hosts Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid. (from Maldives)
Image 61The wreck of the Corbin, 1865 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 6218th-century map by Pierre Mortier from the Netherlands, depicting with detail the islands of the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 63Dark clouds bringing heavy rain, common in the rainy season (from Maldives)

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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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This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

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...)

More Good articles...
Malé Friday Mosque Maldives at the 2020 Summer Olympics Maldives at the 2016 Summer Olympics Maldives at the 2012 Summer Olympics Maldives at the 2004 Summer Olympics Maldives at the 1996 Summer Olympics Maldives at the 1992 Summer Olympics Maldives at the 1988 Summer Olympics

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... that Ithaa iin 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?

Selected Island - show another

Maafushi (Dhivehi: މާފުށި) is one of the inhabited islands of Kaafu Atoll and the leading Local Toursim Island of the Maldives. (Full article...)

List of selected islands
Malé Hulhumalé Fuvahmulah Hulhumeedhoo Hulhulé Island Hanimaadhoo (Haa Dhaalu Atoll) Gan (Addu Atoll) Funadhoo (Shaviyani Atoll) Milandhoo Gaafaru Gulhi Huraa (Kaafu Atoll) Vilimalé Thulusdhoo Hithadhoo (Addu)