Maldives
|
| Basic Facts |
| Country name |
conventional long form: Republic of Maldives
conventional short form: Maldives local long form: Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa local short form: Dhivehi Raajje |
| Gevernment type | republic |
| Capital |
name: Male
geographic coordinates: 4 10 N, 73 31 E time difference: UTC+5 (10 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
| Flag description | red with a large green rectangle in the center bearing a vertical white crescent; the closed side of the crescent is on the hoist side of the flag |
| Currency | rufiyaa (MVR) |
| Internet country code | .mv |
| Ports and terminals | Male |
| Agriculture products | coconuts, corn, sweet potatoes; fish |
| Industries | fish processing, tourism, shipping, boat building, coconut processing, garments, woven mats, rope, handicrafts, coral and sand mining |
| Geography |
| Location | Southern Asia, group of atolls in the Indian Ocean, south-southwest of India |
| Coordinates | 3 15 N, 73 00 E |
| Continent | Asia |
| Area |
total: 300 sq km
land: 300 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Boundaries | 0 km |
| Coastline | 644 km |
| Climate | tropical; hot, humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November to March); rainy, southwest monsoon (June to August) |
| Terrain | flat, with white sandy beaches |
| Natural resources | fish |
| Natural hazards | low level of islands makes them very sensitive to sea level rise |
| People |
| Population | 359,008 (July 2006 est.) |
| Ethnic groups | South Indians, Sinhalese, Arabs |
| Religions | Sunni Muslim |
| Languages | Maldivian Dhivehi (dialect of Sinhala, script derived from Arabic), English spoken by most government officials |
