Abū Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Abd Allāh Al-Lawātī, commonly known as Ibn Battuta, was a Maghrebi traveller, explorer and scholar. Over a period of thirty years from 1325 to 1354, Ibn Battuta visited most of North Africa, the Middle East, East Africa, Central Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, China, the Iberian Peninsula, and West Africa. Near the end of his life, he dictated an account of his journeys, titled A Gift to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders of Cities and the Marvels of Travelling, but commonly known as The Rihla.
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 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 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 This office has since been replaced by the Embassy of the People's Republic of China.
Malé is the capital and most populous city of the Maldives. With a population of 211,908 in 2022 within its administrative area and coterminous geographical area of 8.30 square kilometres (3.20 sq mi), Malé is also one of the most densely populated cities in the world. The city is geographically located in the southern edge of North Malé Atoll.
Islam is the state religion of Maldives. The 2008 Constitution or "Fehi Gānoon" declares the significance of Islamic law in the country. The constitution requires that citizenship status be based on adherence to the state religion, which legally makes the country's citizens 100% Muslim.
The red heifer, a heifer which is never pregnant, milked, yoked, also known as the red cow, is a heifer sacrificed by the priests as a sacrifice to Yahweh in the Torah, Bible, Quran. Its ashes after being sacrificed and burned were used for the ritual purification as a prelude to building their temple.
Kinolhas is one of the inhabited islands of the Raa Atoll administrative division of the Maldives.
The Judiciary in the Maldives has been a systematic institution throughout the history of the nation. It has always been an institution which is under the full control of the Head of State and is still to some degree. However a radical change occurred during the past decades, the introduction of the English legal system into the country; a result of the Maldivian society coming in close contact with the outside world. Consequently, the present legal system of the country is a mixture of not only Shari’ah and customs, but the English legal system also.
Hinduism in the Maldives describes the practice of the Hindu religion in the Maldives archipelago. Evidence suggests that Hinduism had a presence in the ancient Maldives. Hinduism may have marginally existed during the Buddhist period of the islands but disappeared sometime later during that same period. Traces of its influences are still found in modern Maldivian culture and art.
Maldivian mythology or Maldivian folklore is the body of myths, tales and anecdotes belonging to the oral tradition of Maldivians. Even though some of the Maldivian myths were already mentioned briefly by British commissioner in Ceylon HCP Bell towards the end of the 19th century, their study and publication were carried out only quite recently by Spanish writer and artist Xavier Romero-Frias, at a time when that ancestral worldview was quickly disappearing.
Haddhunmathi or LaamuAtoll is an administrative division of the Maldives. The administrative capital is Fonadhoo Island. It corresponds to the natural atoll of the same name. It is mostly rimmed by barrier reefs, the broadest of which are topped by islands. There are many islands along its eastern and southern boundaries. This atoll is quite regular excepting for the projection of the reef at its NE corner. It closely resembles Kolhumadulhu, its neighbour further north. Owing to its typical atoll shape, it differs in no respect from atolls in the Pacific Ocean, save for its greater size. Its reefs are generally of little breadth, with no signs of vilu, except for its eastern fringes which are covered with islands that are quite large by Maldivian standards. The lagoon is comparatively open, containing scattered shoal patches; the bottom is muddy and the average depth is from 30 to 34 fathoms.
Dhovemi Kalaminja Siri Thiribuvana-aadiththa Maha Radun or Donei Kalaminjaa was the second king of the Maldives from 1141 to 1166 or 1176 according to the Raadhavalhi and the Loamaafaanu copper plate writings. The Tarikh chronicles however, calls this king Sultan Muhammad al-Adil which is probably the Muslim name of the king after his conversion to Islam in the 12th year of his reign. Later on the title of Dharumavantha (Dharumas) Rasgefaanu or the Benevolent King was bestowed upon him. He is also known as the first ruler of the Theemuge Dynasty. This name was derived from his house's name, Theemuge, some sourced refer to the royal house as the Maalei Dharikolhu. Though it was being called Theemuge Darikolhu they were descendants of the Buddhist Kings of the Lunar Dynasty or Soma Vansa.
Islam is the state religion of Maldives. The 2008 Constitution or "Fehi Qānoon" declares the significance of Islamic law in the country. The constitution requires that citizenship status be based on adherence to the state religion, which legally makes the country's citizens hundred percent Muslim. However residents, tourists and workers in the Maldives are free to be of any religion and practise them in private. However, in 2020, studies found that 0.29% of the population is Christian. During the late 1990s, the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs issued warnings, cautioning individuals against listening to radio programs broadcast in the Dhivehi language by the Far East Broadcasting Association, headquartered in the Seychelles. In 1998, 50 Maldivian Christians faced arrest and were detained on the prison island of Dhoonidhoo, while foreign Christians suspected of engaging in missionary activities were expelled from the country.
Buddhism was the predominant religion in the Maldives until at least the 12th century CE. It isn't clear how and when Buddhism was introduced into the islands.
Al-Sultana Khadeejah Sri Raadha Abaarana Mahaa Rehendhi or more famously known as just Rehendhi Khadeejah meaning, Queen Khadeejah, was the Sultana of the Maldives from 1347 to 1379. She was one of the few female rulers in the recorded history of Maldives.
Maldives has been known by many different names during its long history of more than two thousand years. Although several different names are given, the location and the description of the islands confirm the fact that they are part of the Maldives Archipelago.
Maldivians are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group and nation native to the historic region of the Maldive Islands, present day Republic of Maldives and the island of Minicoy in Union Territory of Lakshadweep, India. Maldivians share one culture and speak the Maldivian language, which is a member of the southern group of Indo-Aryan languages. For ethnographic and linguistic purposes as well as geopolitical reasons, anthropologists divide the Maldivian people into three subgroups.
Yusuf bin Ahmad al-Kawneyn, popularly known as Aw Barkhadle or Yusuf Al Kownayn, was an Islamic scholar and traveler based in Zeila, Somalia. Based on reference to Yusuf Al Kawneyn in the Harar manuscripts, Dr. Enrico Cerulli.
The Rihla, formal title A Masterpiece to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders of Cities and the Marvels of Traveling, is the travelogue written by Ibn Battuta, documenting his lifetime of travel and exploration, which according to his description covered about 73,000 miles. Rihla is the Arabic word for a journey or the travelogue that documents it.
The Sultanate of Maldive Islands was an Islamic monarchy that controlled the Maldives for 815 years (1153–1968), with one interruption from 1953–1954.
