This is a list of islands of the Maldives . There are 1,192 in total, of which 187 are inhabited. [1] They are listed by administrative division/atoll. The islands are divided into:
This list ranks the top 10 islands of the Maldives by area.
Some islands in the Maldives, although geographically one island, is divided into two administrative islands (for example, Gan and Maandhoo in Laamu Atoll). For such cases, this list ranks the entire (combined) area of the geographical island.
Inland water bodies such as lakes and ponds are included in the total area.
Rank | Island | Atoll | Total area (km2) [4] | Total area (sq mi) | Population (2014) [5] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Gamu-Maandhoo | Laamu | 7.3 | 2.81 | 2,809 (Gan) |
2 | Hithadhoo | Seenu | 5.4 | 2.08 | 10,398 |
3 | Fuvahmulah | Gnaviyani | 4.9 | 1.89 | 13,037 |
4 | Hulhumalé | Kaafu | 4.0 | 1.54 | 14,843 |
5 | Hulhumeedhoo | Seenu | 3.9 | 1.50 | 3,113 (Combined) |
6 | Isdhoo-Kalaidhoo | Laamu | 3.6 | 1.38 | 1,461 (Combined) |
7 | Gan | Seenu | 3.3 | 1.27 | - |
8 | Hanimaadhoo | Haa Dhaalu | 3.1 | 1.19 | 1,618 |
9 | Hulhulé | Kaafu | 3.0 | 1.15 | - |
10 | Filladhoo-Dhapparu | Haa Alif | 2.6 | 1.00 | 562 (Filladhoo) |
Note: The combined area of Malé, Hulhulé and Hulhumalé exceeds 9 km2, which surpasses the area of the largest natural island in the Maldives. However, these three as a whole are considered to be a city, not an island.
Taking into consideration the geography of the island along with its size and population, the 8 wards of Fuvahmulah are officially recognised as administrative divisions which act as the replacement for islands in other atolls. They are Dhadimago, Diguvāndo, Hōdhado, Mādhado, Miskimmago, Funādo, Mālegan, Dūndigan. For each ward a chief ('Katheeb') was appointed as in charge of the day-to-day affairs of the respective ward and held accountable for an Atoll chief. According to the Decentralisation Act 2010 an island council too have to be elected for each division of the island. There was formerly a ninth ward named Dhashokubaa which was merged with Miskimmago. [7]
Huvadhu, Suvadive, Suvaidu or Suvadiva is the atoll with the most islands in the world. The atoll is located in the Indian Ocean. It is south of the Suvadiva Channel in the Republic of Maldives with a total area of 3,152 km2, of which 38.5 km2 is dry land. The atoll contains 255 islands.
The Maldives are formed by 20 natural atolls, along with a few islands and isolated reefs today which form a pattern stretching from 7 degrees 10′ North to 0 degrees 45′ South. The largest of these atolls is Boduthiladhunmathi, while the atoll containing the most islands is Huvadhu.
Addu City is a city in Maldives that consists of the inhabited islands of Addu Atoll, the southernmost atoll of the archipelago. Addu City is the second-largest urban area in Maldives, in terms of population, and is one of the two urban areas to get the status of "city" other than the capital city, Malé, and Fuvahmulah. Addu City has 6 districts. They are Hithadhoo, Maradhoo-Feydhoo, Maradhoo, Feydhoo, Hulhudhoo and Meedhoo. These divisions are naturally islands, but are well connected. In addition, Addu Atoll has other uninhabited islands.
Trans Maldivian Airways (Pvt) Ltd. (TMA) is a private airline headquartered on the grounds of Velana International Airport in Malé, Maldives.
Kaafu Atoll is the code name given to an administrative division in the Republic of Maldives which consists of the geographical atolls of Kaashidhoo Island, Gaafaru, North Malé Atoll and South Malé Atoll. As the two Malé Atolls are the main islands of the administrative district, the entire Kaafu Atoll administrative division is officially named Malé Atoll or Malé Atolhu in the Dhivehi language.
Addu Atoll, also known as Seenu Atoll, is the southernmost atoll of the Maldives. Addu Atoll, together with Fuvahmulah, located 40 km north of Addu Atoll, extend the Maldives into the Southern Hemisphere. Addu Atoll is located 540 km south of Malé, the country's capital. Administratively, Addu Atoll is the location of Addu City, one of the four cities of the Maldives. Addu City consists of the inhabited areas of Addu Atoll, namely the natural islands of Hulhudhoo, Meedhoo, Maradhoo, Feydhoo, and Hithadhoo.. In addition to the areas that are included as a part of Addu City, Addu Atoll has a number of other inhabited and uninhabited islands, including the island of Gan, where Gan International Airport is located.
Maradhoo is one of the inhabited islands of the Addu Atoll.
Maradhoo-Feydhoo is a district of Addu City, in the Maldives. The district borders the district of Maradhoo to the north, as they both share the same natural island, and the district of Feydhoo to the south. After Addu City became a city, Maradhoo-Feydhoo was extended to include the previous administrative island and a part of Feydhoo. The district has a village known as Feydhooburi. People still often refer to this village by the district's name.
Kolhufushi or, (Dhivehi: ކޮޅުފުށި) is an inhabited island off the southwest coast of Meemu Atoll Or Mulaku Atoll. It is the third most populous island in Meemu Atoll.
Mahaddhoo is one of the uninhabited islands of Gaafu Alif Atoll belonging to the Maldives.
Hulhumeedhoo or Hulhudhoo-Meedhoo is an island located on the northeastern end of Addu City. It is the fifth largest island in the Maldives. Although Hulhumeedhoo is geographically one island, it is divided into two administrative constituencies of Addu City; Meedhoo and Hulhudhoo, which are roughly the northern half and southern half of the island respectively. The name Hulhumeedhoo is an amalgamation of Hulhudhoo and Meedhoo.
Kaafu Atoll is an administrative atoll in the Republic of Maldives. It consists of two separate atolls: North Malé Atoll and South Malé Atoll. Together with smaller geographic atolls of Kaashidhoo Island and Gaafaru, the group forms the administrative division of Male' Atoll which is referred to by its Thaana alphabet letter code name Kaafu Atoll.
There are broad channels between the Atolls of the Maldives known locally as 'kandu'. The deepness and broadness of the channels vary from channel to channel.
Abdulla Sodiq was the first mayor of Addu City, Maldives. He was elected mayor in February 2011 for a three-year term as mandated by the newly instated Decentralization Act. He was reelected on February 1, 2014. His tenure ended in 2021 and succeeded by the current mayor Ali Nizar.
The Human Rights Measurement Initiative finds that Maldives is fulfilling 72.0% of what it should be fulfilling for the right to health based on its level of income. When looking at the right to health with respect to children, Maldives achieves 98.0% of what is expected based on its current income. In regards to the right to health amongst the adult population, the country achieves 99.7% of what is expected based on the nation's level of income. Maldives falls into the "very bad" category when evaluating the right to reproductive health because the nation is fulfilling only 18.2% of what the nation is expected to achieve based on the resources (income) it has available.