Maldives and also referred to as the Maldive Islands. It
is an island nation in the Indian Ocean-Arabian Sea area, consisting of a
double chain of twenty-six atolls, oriented north-south, that lie between Minicoy
Island (the southernmost part of Lakshadweep, India and the Chagos Archipelago.
The chains stand in the Laccadive Sea, about 700 kilometres (430 mi)
south-west of Sri Lanka and 400 kilometres (250 mi) south-west of India.
The Maldives is located on top of the Chagos-Maldives-Laccadive Ridge, a
vast submarine mountain range in the Indian Ocean. Maldives also form a terrestrial
ecoregion together with the Chagos and the Lakshadweep. The Maldives atolls
encompass a territory spread over roughly 90,000 square kilometres
(35,000 sq mi), making the country one of the world's most
geographically dispersed. Its population of 328,536 (2012) inhabits 192 of its
1,192 islands. In 2006, Maldives' capital and largest city Male, located at the
southern edge of North Malé Atoll, had a population of 103,693. Malé is one of the
Maldives' administrative divisions and, traditionally, it was the "King's
Island" where the ancient Maldives royal dynasties were enthroned.
The Maldives is the smallest Asian
country in both population and land area. With an average ground level
elevation of 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) above sea level, it is the
planet's lowest country. It is also the country with the lowest natural highest
point in the world, at 2.4 metres.
Capital :
|
Male
|
Area:
|
115
square km
|
National Bird:
|
Peagon
|
National Animal:
|
Yellow
Fin Tuna
|
National Flower:
|
Pink
Rose
|
National Language:
|
Maldivian
|
National Sport:
|
Diving
|
National Dance:
|
Langiri
|
Prime Minister:
|
Abdulla
Yameen
|
Major Occupation:
|
Fishing
|
Time Zone:
|
GMY/UTC+5:00
|
