Maldives: History, Politics, Population and Geography
Created: 04/01/2022 11:53 am
Archipelago of the Maldives © IMAGO / blickwinkel
The Maldives is an island chain in the Indian Ocean consisting of 1,196 islands.
The republic is becoming increasingly popular with tourists, but the archipelago's continued existence is under threat due to climate change and rising sea levels.
The Maldives have around 26 atolls and more than 1,000 coral islands.
The presidential republic is heavily influenced by Islam, which is why nudism and bikinis are forbidden on most beaches.
The underwater world, which is extremely popular with divers and snorkelers, is increasingly suffering from climate change.
Malé – The approximately 298 square kilometer island paradise of the Maldives, with its paradisiacal sandy beaches, has been one of the most popular tourist destinations for years.
Behind the picturesque backdrop, however, the strictly religious country has to contend with a number of challenges.
The state has not only been politically shaken by unrest in recent decades, but also the lack of space for the growing population and the threat of land loss due to rising sea levels pose a challenge for the residents.
Maldives: From Early Settlement to British Protectorate
Little is known about the first settlement of the Maldives.
It is believed that Buddhist fishermen from India and Ceylon settled here as early as the 5th century BC.
However, references to Hindu beliefs and sun worship cults can also be found.
According to legend, the Maldives were converted to Islam by an Arab traveler in the 12th century.
In the centuries that followed, a large number of sultans and sultanas were in power.
Portuguese seafarers occupied the archipelago for the first time in the mid-16th century.
These were, however, soon expelled.
Only in the 17th century did the Netherlands succeed in subjugating the Maldives.
When the Dutch colonial power lost Ceylon to Great Britain at the end of the 18th century, the chain of islands also came under British influence.
From 1887 to 1965 the Maldives was a British protectorate.
Maldives: The island state becomes independent
The Maldives received their first constitution from Sultan Mohammed Shamsudeen III in 1932.
But the republic was not proclaimed until 21 years later.
After a referendum, however, the sultanate was reinstated.
In 1956 the Maldives were granted internal autonomy.
The United Kingdom nevertheless held on to the islands and continued to expand its military base with aircraft bases.
In 1963 Great Britain finally gave up the archipelago.
In 1965 the Maldives finally gained their independence.
Three years later, the sultanate was transformed back into a republic with a constitutional amendment.
The British finally withdrew from the island chain in the 1970s.
In 1982 the Maldives joined the Commonwealth of Nations.
Maldives: struggle for democracy
Although the Maldives is a republic, the country was ruled authoritarian by President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom from 1978 to 2008.
Civil rights, freedom of speech and freedom of the press were severely restricted.
In the early 2000s, resistance to the regime increased.
In a first democratic multi-party election in 2008, Mohamed Nasheed was elected the new president.
Nasheed wanted to reform the country and was also a strong advocate for environmental protection.
During his efforts, there were conflicts with tourism companies.
In 2012 he was ousted from office.
Nasheed fled to British exile in London.
He was eventually succeeded by Abdulla Yameen - brother of former President Gayoom.
He declared a state of emergency in 2018 after a court order allowed twelve MPs to return to parliament, leaving Yameen without a majority.
On November 17, 2018, Ibrahim Mohamed Solih took over the government.
Maldives: The political system
After a new constitution came into force in 1998, the Maldives is a presidential republic in terms of government.
This grants the President and Prime Minister unrestricted power over the executive branch.
The unicameral parliament (Majilis), consisting of 50 members, elects him for five years.
After the election, there will be a referendum, which the President must face.
The party landscape is quite manageable.
A permitted opposition has only existed since 2005.
In the end, Gayoom only tolerated five parties, whereby the members of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), to which Mohammed Nasheed belonged, were subjected to considerable restrictions and repression in their political work.
Maldives: facts at a glance
Capital: Male
Official language: Dhivehi
Area: 298 square kilometers
Population: 531,000 (as of 2019)
Currency: Rufiyaa (MVR)
Administrative division: 19 districts (administrative atolls), 2 cities
Religion: Islam (state religion)
Maldives: languages and population
Dhivehi is spoken by the locals in the Maldives.
It is a completely separate language derived from medieval Sinhala.
It is the country's only official language.
But Arabic has also been gaining in importance for some time.
In the tourism departments, communication is also in English.
The approximately 531,000 inhabitants are predominantly Sunni Muslims.
That is why Islam is the sole state religion.
Freedom of religion or the practice of other religions are strictly forbidden.
A high birth rate had also caused an enormous population increase in the Maldives in recent decades.
Life expectancy has also increased.
The downside: This put a heavy strain on the country's resources and even triggered a major lack of space.
Maldives: Geography and Cities
The island chain of the Maldives stretches 871 kilometers north-south to just south of the equator.
The archipelago is not of volcanic origin, but is seen as a tipped and sunken marginal floe of the Indian landmass.
Most of the islands are just a meter above sea level, which is why they are also threatened by the constant rise in sea levels.
Of the 1,196 islands, only 220 islands are inhabited.
A third of the Maldivian population lives on the main island of Malé, which is also the country's capital.
Malé is even considered one of the most densely populated cities in the world.
In just 5.7 square kilometers, there are multi-storey houses that can accommodate over 130,000 people.
Since the late 1990s, land reclamation has therefore also been a major issue in the Maldives.
The neighboring island of Hulhumalé, which is only three kilometers away, will offer around 60,000 people space to live and work after the first construction phase has been completed.
The largest places in the Maldives at a glance
1
Male: Population 92,555, Male Region
2
Hithadhoo: 9,465 inhabitants, Seenu region
3
Fuvahmulah: population 7,636, Gnaviyani region
4
Kulhudhuffushi: Population 6,998, Haa Dhaalu Region
5
Villingili: 6,956 inhabitants, Malé region
6
Thinadhoo: Population 4,442, Gaafu Dhaalu Region
7
Naifaru: 3,687 inhabitants, Lhaviyani region
8
Hinnavaru: 3,017 inhabitants, Lhaviyani region
9
Un'goofaaru: Population 2,988, Region of Raa
10
Hulhumalé: 2,866 inhabitants, Malé region
Maldives: Interesting facts about the country
In the early 1970s, the Maldives gradually began to open up to tourism.
There are islands for locals and islands for tourists.
On the tourist islands, Maldivians are only admitted as staff, while tourists are also allowed to vacation on the local islands.
However, due to the religious background, there are stricter rules here: nudist and bikini holidays are strictly prohibited on most beaches.
More skin is only allowed to be shown on the hotel beaches.
Above all, sailing tours or diving are very popular in the island paradise.
The underwater world not only impresses with coral reefs, but also with its biodiversity.
Moray eels, perch, clown fish, parrot fish, scorpion fish and manta rays cavort here.
The reefs are also controlled by sharks, such as nurse sharks, blacktip sharks or the gray reef shark.
However, these do not pose a great danger to humans.
However, the picturesque paradise has long been threatened by climate change and the associated rise in sea levels.
Climate protection is therefore at the top of the agenda for the Maldivian government.
In 2016 alone, record global temperatures caused seawater to warm, triggering widespread coral bleaching in the Maldives.
At that time, more than 60 percent of all reefs were affected, in some regions even up to 90 percent.
As a result, increased coral die-off was also observed.