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Maldives Overview and History

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Maldives is officially known as the Republic of Maldives and is a nation made up of 26 coral atolls on the top of an undersea mountain range (the Chagos Laccadive Ridge) in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives are south of the Lakshadweep islands of India, and about 435 miles southwest of Sri Lanka.

Among these atolls are 1,192 islets and of these about 200 are populated by people. The meaning of the name Maldives is debatable, some say it means "Palace" or "Mountain Islands" and still others say it means "a thousand islands."

The capital and largest city of the Maldives is Malé. The official language is Dhivehi. Maldives' form of government is a republic and the president as of this writing is Maumoon Abdul Gayyoom. The population of the area is 349,106 (as of July 2005) and the total land area is 300 square kilometers. The national anthem of Maldives is: Gavmii mi ekuverikan matii tibegen kuriime salaam, which means In National Unity Do We Salute Our Nation. The form of currency used on the islands is called the Rufiyaa (MVR). The time zone is UTC+5, internet TLD is .mv, and the calling code is +960.

• Island furthest north--
Haa Alifu is the most northern atoll and is 600 km southwest of mainland India.

• The Capital Island--
Malé is the capital island of Maldives. It is centrally located and is about 600 km southwest of Sri Lanka.

• Climate--
The climate of the Maldives islands is sunny, hot, and humid and regular rainfall is heavy and averages about 100 inches each year. The humidity level on the capital island of Malé hovers around 70 to 75% and on the southern islands, near the equator, it reaches 85%.

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