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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 2011–2013 Maldives political crisis began as a series of peaceful protests that broke out in the Maldives on 1 May 2011. They would continue, eventually escalating into the resignation of President Mohamed Nasheed in disputed circumstances in February 2012. Demonstrators were protesting what they considered the government's mismanagement of the economy and were calling for the ouster of President Nasheed. The main political opposition party in the country, the Dhivehi Rayyithunge Party (Maldivian People's Party) led by the former president of the country Maumoon Abdul Gayoom (who was in power for over 30 years under an authoritarian system) accused President Nasheed of "talking about democracy but not putting it into practice." The protests occurred during the Arab Spring.

The primary cause for the protests was rising commodity prices and a poor economic situation in the country. (Full article...)

General images

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

Image 1A baby sleeping on a swingbed. The duty of the older siblings is to keep it swinging. 1980 (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 2Malé, the capital of the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 3The resort island of Landaa Giraavaru (Baa atoll) (from Maldives)
Image 4Flyboarding in Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 518th-century map by Pierre Mortier from the Netherlands, depicting with detail the islands of the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 6Gage 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 7Life expectancy in the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 8A mechanised traditional inter-island dhoni stripped of its sails (from Maldives)
Image 9Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hosts Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid. (from Maldives)
Image 10Copy of a magical drawing. Diguvando. Fuvahmulah. (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 11Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, President of the Maldives (1978–2008). (from History of the Maldives)
Image 12President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih congratulates Mohamed Nasheed Speaker of the People's Majlis in May 2019 (from Maldives)
Image 131920 British map of the Maldives (from History of the Maldives)
Image 14Velana International Airport (from Maldives)
Image 15Sign outside the Velana International Airport (from Maldives)
Image 16An RAF Short Sunderland moored in the lagoon at Addu Atoll, during WWII (from Maldives)
Image 17Dark clouds bringing heavy rain, common in the rainy season (from Maldives)
Image 18Isdhoo 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 19Detail of the 1662 Tabula Indiae orientalis by Frederik de Wit (from History of the Maldives)
Image 20Protesters in Malé in August 2005 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 21Each administrative atoll is marked, along with the thaana letter used to identify the atoll. Natural atolls are labelled in light blue. (from Maldives)
Image 221742 drawing of shells of the money cowry, Cypraea moneta (from History of the Maldives)
Image 2317th SAARC summit in Addu City, Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 24A boy sandboarding in Fuvahmulah, Maldives (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 25Protesters in Malé in August 2004 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 261753 Van Keulen Map of Huvadu Atoll (inaccurate) (from History of the Maldives)
Image 2717th-century Portuguese drawing of the fortress of Maldives and the archipelago. In Antonio Bocarro book of fortress (1632) (from Maldives)
Image 28Maahefun Festival in Fuvahmulah (from Maldives)
Image 29Butorides striata in the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 30The 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 31Portuguese presence in the Maldives was established in 1558, by order of Constantino of Braganza, Viceroy of Portuguese India. (from Maldives)
Image 32A 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 33Solih in November 2023 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 34Oriental sweetlips (Plectorhinchus vittatus) at Meeru Island, North Male Atoll (from Maldives)
Image 35Masroshi. Maldivian savory snacks (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 36Maalhosmadulu Atoll seen from space. Northern Maalhosmadulu Atoll and Southern Maalhosmadulu Atoll can be seen in this picture. (from Maldives)
Image 37Maldivian soldiers at a presidential address in February 2024 (from Maldives)
Image 38TMA Terminal (from Maldives)
Image 39Flag of the Sultan of the Maldives (from Maldives)
Image 4016th-century Portuguese illustration from the Códice Casanatense, depicting workers (from Maldives)
Image 411598 Bertius map of the Maldives, issued in Middelburg, Netherlands. (from History of the Maldives)
Image 42A beach of Bathala island (from Maldives)
Image 43Judaage 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 4418th-century map by Pierre Mortier of the Netherlands depicting with detail the islands of the Maldives. (from History of the Maldives)
Image 451753 Van Keulen Map of Ari Atoll (from History of the Maldives)
Image 46Woman rocking a traditional Maldivian swingbed (un'dholi) holding a baby in local fashion. (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 47Prime Minister Ibrahim Nasir signs independence agreement with the British on July 26, 1965. (from Maldives)
Image 48Kashimaage Hakimatu, daughter of an excellent master carpenter boatbuilder, 1983. Fuvahmulah Island (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 49A selection of traditional Maldivian oarblade patterns (from Culture of the Maldives)
Image 50Thaana script (from Maldives)
Image 51A demonstration (Muzhaahira) in Fua Mulaku in support of the government, 1981. (from History of the Maldives)
Image 52Yameen in 2014 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 53Maldives soft coral (from Maldives)
Image 54Filitheyo island beach with tall palm trees and blue fresh lagoons (from Maldives)
Image 55MNDF Marine Corps soldiers during a training exercise (from Maldives)
Image 56Building set on fire in Malé during the September 2003 protests (from History of the Maldives)
Image 57Malé harbour (from Maldives)
Image 58The wreck of the Corbin, 1865 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 59Muizzu in January 2024 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 60Maldives against Bangladesh at the 2021 SAFF Championship. (from Maldives)
Image 61Mohammed Waheed Hassan (from History of the Maldives)
Image 62Malé Friday Mosque Minaret, 1981 (from History of the Maldives)
Image 63Isdhoo 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)

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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.

Male Friday Mosque minaret

The Malé Friday Mosque or the Malé Hukuru Miskiy (Dhivehi: މާލެ ހުކުރު މިސްކިތް) also known as the Old Friday Mosque is one of the oldest and most ornate mosques in the city of Malé, Kaafu Atoll, Maldives. Coral boulders of the genus Porites, found throughout the archipelago, are the basic materials used for construction of this and other mosques in the country because of its suitability. Although the coral is soft and easily cut to size when wet, it makes sturdy building blocks when dry. The mosque was added to the tentative UNESCO World Heritage cultural list in 2008 as unique examples of sea-culture architecture.

Master carpenters of the Malé Hukuru Miskiy were Ali Maavadi Kaleyfaanu and Mahmud Maavadi Kaleyfaanu from Kondey, Huvadu. (Full article...)

More Good articles...
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 2000 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

Huraa (Dhivehi: ހުރާ) is one of the inhabited islands of Kaafu Atoll. (Full article...)

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