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Countries This article is within the scope of WikiProject Countries, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of countries on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.CountriesWikipedia:WikiProject CountriesTemplate:WikiProject Countriescountry WikiProject Countries to-do list: edit history watch purge Here are some tasks awaiting attention: Article requests : Check out the article alerts; see if anything catches your fancy. Cleanup : clean-up listing for Countries Stubs : de-stub articles in Category:Stubs by region. Other : add {{WPCountries}} to talk pages of related articles, and assess. Maldives Top‑importance This article is supported by WikiProject Maldives, an attempt to build a comprehensive and detailed guide to the Maldives on Wikipedia. For more information, or to get involved, visit the project page.MaldivesWikipedia:WikiProject MaldivesTemplate:WikiProject MaldivesMaldives Top This article has been rated as Top-importance on the project's importance scale. Islam Mid‑importance This article is within the scope of WikiProject Islam, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Islam-related articles on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.IslamWikipedia:WikiProject IslamTemplate:WikiProject IslamIslam-related Mid This article has been rated as Mid-importance on the project's importance scale. Asia Top‑importance This article is within the scope of WikiProject Asia, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Asia on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.AsiaWikipedia:WikiProject AsiaTemplate:WikiProject AsiaAsia Top This article has been rated as Top-importance on the project's importance scale. Islands This article is within the scope of WikiProject Islands, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of islands on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.IslandsWikipedia:WikiProject IslandsTemplate:WikiProject IslandsIslands

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Section sizes Section size for Maldives (39 sections) Section name Byte count Prose size (words) Header Total Header Total (Top) 16,975 16,975 463 463 Etymology 9,724 9,724 412 412 History 46 51,329 0 3,440 Ancient history and settlement 4,897 4,897 426 426 Buddhist period 2,520 2,520 220 220 Islamic period 11,315 11,315 783 783 Protectorate period 6,235 6,235 656 656 Independence and republic 10,313 10,313 633 633 21st century 16,003 16,003 722 722 Geography 3,660 32,686 303 1,868 Climate 5,042 5,042 223 223 Sea level rise 9,171 9,171 465 465 Environment 1,647 1,647 101 101 Marine ecosystem 7,105 7,105 397 397 Wildlife 6,061 6,061 379 379 Government and politics 7,906 25,547 384 1,403 Law 6,005 6,005 217 217 Foreign relations 5,074 5,074 244 244 Military 2,931 2,931 246 246 Human rights 1,491 1,491 75 75 Administrative divisions 2,140 2,140 237 237 Economy 2,832 11,517 198 836 Tourism 4,575 7,261 248 451 Visitors 2,686 2,686 203 203 Fishing industry 1,424 1,424 187 187 Demographics 6,173 24,967 366 1,647 Religion 3,813 3,813 283 283 Languages 3,350 3,350 291 291 Health 3,569 3,569 199 199 Transportation 3,373 3,373 294 294 Education 4,689 4,689 214 214 Culture 1,726 8,226 142 489 Media 3,137 3,137 156 156 Sports 3,363 3,363 191 191 See also 196 196 0 0 Notes 43 43 0 0 References 28 28 0 0 Further reading 2,588 2,588 0 0 External links 3,439 3,439 0 0 Total 187,265 187,265 10,558 10,558

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Historical context

Before Indo-Aryan (Prakrit-based) Dhivehi became dominant, the early inhabitants of the Maldives were Dravidian-speaking seafarers — probably Tamil or Malayalam speakers from South India. It is therefore entirely plausible that they called:

“Mālai-t-tīvu” → “Garland of islands.”

Over centuries: 1. Tamil Mālai-t-tīvu 2. Became Maladiv / Maladūpa in Prakrit/Sanskritized forms 3. Recorded in Arabic as Mahal-dibiyat 4. Rendered in Portuguese as Maldivas 5. Then in English as Maldives ~2025-31871-35 (talk) 04:29, 7 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

 Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. Day Creature (talk) 05:43, 7 November 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I removed Template:Largest localities of the Maldives but was reverted on the grounds that it's useful. This template was nominated with the rationale that it consisted of inhabited islands and "tiny settlements". The table is only the most populated 10 of the atolls and administrative divisions which are represented by the articles Atolls of the Maldives and Administrative divisions of the Maldives which are more comprehensive. I am not seeing this as useful. Logoshimpo (talk) 03:20, 18 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I disagree with the removal of this template. While the articles on 'Atolls' and 'Administrative divisions' provide more comprehensive data, this template serves a different purpose: quick navigation between the major population centers of the Maldives. For a small nation like the Maldives, knowing the top 10 populated islands is crucial for understanding the country's demographics at a glance. A reader on the 'Malé' page might want to jump directly to 'Addu City' or 'Fuvahmulah' without having to navigate through a dense administrative list. It follows the standard 'Largest cities' format used across thousands of other country articles on Wikipedia, providing a consistent user experience. Aazaru (talk) 11:13, 18 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I think there are fewer than a thousand countries. Template:Atolls of the Maldives is already used for navigation. You will have to be more specific. Logoshimpo (talk) 01:20, 19 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

It focuses specifically on localities rather than just administrative divisions. In the Maldives, an administrative atoll can cover a large area with many islands, but this template highlights the specific hubs where people actually live. Keeping this allows readers to distinguish between the geographical/administrative structure and the actual urban footprint of the country.

Restored the template because the proposed deletion of the template had no consensus. Aazaru (talk) 07:13, 19 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Yes: the Maldives are broken up into cities and islands but you are lumping them up together. I could propose to have 2 templates for each of those divisions but I would oppose that. This comes down to preference and a "it's useful" and "it's not useful" argument. It's better to remove. Logoshimpo (talk) 00:53, 20 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

While cities and islands are different administrative categories, they serve the same functional purpose in this template: identifying primary population centers. Combining them reflects the actual urban footprint of the country more accurately than strict administrative silos would. Aazaru (talk) 11:26, 20 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

Let me correct myself: the Maldives are broken up into cities, atolls, and islands [why didn't you catch this?]. Lumping them together isn't the intent of these templates. The norm is to make separate articles. Logoshimpo (talk) 21:00, 20 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

I disagree; the intent of the template is the largest localities of the Maldives, regardless of administrative categories. Aazaru (talk) 07:52, 21 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]

What is that definition? Is it original research or did you get it from government sources? Logoshimpo (talk) 20:29, 21 December 2025 (UTC)[reply]