Machchangolhi ( Dhivehi : މައްޗަންގޮޅީ ), also known as Machangolhi , is a district of Malé , Maldives .
85-403: [REDACTED] Maumoon Abdul Gayoom ( / ɡ aɪ ˈ j uː m / gah- YOOM ; Dhivehi : މައުމޫން ޢަބްދުލް ޤައްޔޫމް ; born Abdulla Maumoon Khairi ; 29 December 1937) is a Maldivian statesman, diplomat and scholar who served as the 3rd president of the Maldives from 1978 to 2008. He previously served as the Minister of Transport from 1977 to 1978, and as the Permanent Representative of
170-602: A vaavu ( ވ ). This means that Thaana is one of the few alphabets not derived graphically from the original Semitic alphabet – unless the Indic numerals were (see Brahmi numerals ). The Thaana alphabet ( hā, shaviyani, nūnu, rā, bā , ...) does not follow the ancient order of the other Indic scripts (like Tamil) or the order of the Arabic alphabet. Thaana, like Arabic, is written right to left . It indicates vowels with diacritic marks derived from Arabic. Each letter must carry either
255-520: A noonu at the end of a word, it indicates a velar nasal. The Maldivian language has had its own script since very ancient times, most likely over two millennia, when Maldivian Buddhist monks translated and copied the Buddhist scriptures. It used to be written in the earlier form (Evēla) of the Dhives Akuru ("Dhivehi/Maldivian letters") which are written from left to right. Dhives Akuru were used in all of
340-468: A German linguist who undertook the first research on Maldivian linguistics in the early 20th century, also called the language Divehi . An h was added to the name of the language— "Dhivehi"— in 1976, when the semi-official transliteration called Malé Latin was developed. Today the spelling with Dh has common and semi-official usage in the Maldives. Maldivian is an Indo-Aryan language closely related to
425-501: A Malé prison. After 50 days, he was released in September 1974 and ceased further public criticism. Gayoom was nominated for the presidential election in 1978 by his two brothers-in-law, who proposed his name to parliament. Both then-president Ibrahim Nasir and Gayoom were put forward as candidates to be selected as the sole presidential candidate, with Nasir receiving 41 votes and Gayoom securing 5 votes. However, Nasir decided not to seek
510-459: A consequence increasing from atoll to atoll towards north (in the Maldives)". Maldivian presents another aspect with which English speakers are not too familiar: diglossia , the distinction between what is spoken and what is written. Every language that has a written form has this distinction to a greater or lesser degree, but many Asian languages, including Maldivian exhibit major differences between
595-480: A firm stance on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict , which was a defining feature of his foreign policy. Within a week of taking office in 1978, Gayoom severed the diplomatic relations with Israel that had been established under the previous administration of Ibrahim Nasir . Gayoom supported for an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. He argued that this move was necessary to align with
680-530: A glottal stop. Gemination of nasals, however, is indicated by noonu + sukun preceding the nasal to be geminated. Maldivian is also written in " Malé Latin " (most commonly used, such as when romanising place names). IAST transliteration is also sometimes used, and also the Devanāgarī script (almost never used in Maldives, but used in Minicoy ) Towards the mid-1970s, during President Ibrahim Nasir 's tenure,
765-533: A migration of Sinhalese people which would result in such a connection. Maldives is completely absent from the pre-12th century records of Sri Lanka. A rare Maliku Thaana primer written in the Maliku dialect, published by Lakshadweep 's administration during the time of Rajiv Gandhi 's rule, was reprinted by Spanish researcher Xavier Romero Frías in 2003. There is a holiday, the Dhivehi Language Day , which
850-415: A more open and democratic political system. Both the 1968 and 1998 constitutions did not impose term limits on the presidency. However, under the 2008 constitution, a president could serve only two terms, rendering Gayoom ineligible to run in the 2008 election, as he had already served the maximum number of terms. He argued that the previous presidential terms should not be counted toward the term limit since
935-659: A presidential to a semi - presidential system , intending to increase political participation and transparency. However, his presidency faced criticism for restricting political freedoms and suppressing opposition. The 1988 coup attempt prompted a focus on strengthening the armed forces. The 2004 tsunami had a profound impact on his administration, leading to the loss of 62% of the GDP and nearly two decades of development, which reshaped his policies and necessitated extensive reconstruction efforts. Despite challenges, Gayoom's long tenure, strict policies, and human rights violations, earned him
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#17328591202371020-569: A proposal, which was accepted by the university, leading to his registration as a PhD student. However, when the government of Ibrahim Nasir recognised Israel and established diplomatic relations , Gayoom expressed his strong opposition by sending a letter to Nasir. As a result, he was banned from entering the Maldives and placed on a government blacklist , forcing him to live abroad for twenty-four years. During his time at Azhar University , Gayoom also spent six months learning Arabic and later joined
1105-426: A reputation as a dictator. Following his defeat in the 2008 presidential election to Mohamed Nasheed , which marked the Maldives's first multi-party elections, Gayoom adopted a low public profile. In 2018, Gayoom was arrested on charges of conspiring to overthrow the government as a part of the 2018 political crisis , and was sentenced to 19 months in prison for obstructing justice after refusing to cooperate with
1190-980: A slight variation in speech.Such as the huvadhu accent which from islands from thinadhoo to gadhoo have differences even though it's the same accent The sound system of Maldivian is similar to that of Dravidian languages. Like other modern Indo-Aryan languages the Maldivian phonemic inventory shows an opposition of long and short vowels, of dental and retroflex consonants, and of single and geminate consonants but no aspirates. Nouns in Maldivian inflect for definiteness , number and case. Definiteness may be one of definite, indefinite or unspecified. Number may be singular or plural. Case may be one of nominative , dative , ablative , genitive , locative , instrumental or emphatic . The nominal system of Maldivian comprises nouns, pronouns, adjectives and numerals as parts of speech. Maldivian uses two numeral systems. Both of them are identical up to 30. After 30, however, one system places
1275-478: A sudden there was a very high wave which came into Malé, and it dragged the vehicle I was driving. And the people there, they held onto the vehicle, and in fact, they saved me. Otherwise, I would have been dragged into the sea. The wave caused remarkable damage to both the outer and inner seawalls of Malé . In response, the Maldivian government sought assistance from Japan , which sent a team of scientists to assess
1360-551: A third term due to health concerns. The Citizen's Majlis nominated three candidates for the presidency: the Minister of Education and former Vice President Abdul Sattar Moosa Didi , the Minister of Health Moomina Haleem , and the Minister of Transport, Gayoom. In July 1978, the Majlis selected Gayoom as the sole candidate for the election—as required by the constitution. During his campaign, Gayoom pledged to visit every inhabited island in
1445-645: A vote in the Citizen's Majlis which selected Gayoom as the candidate. In July 1978, Gayoom won the presidential referendum with 92.96% of the vote. During his administration, economic policies prioritised infrastructure development and tourism , which significantly boosted the nation's economic growth . He introduced educational reforms that expanded access to primary and secondary education and improved healthcare by establishing new health facilities . In response to political unrest and calls for greater democracy, Gayoom initiated constitutional reforms transitioning from
1530-549: A vowel or a sukun , which indicates "no vowel". The only exception to this rule is noonu which, when written without a diacritic, indicates prenasalisation of a following stop . The vowels are written with diacritical signs called fili . There are five fili for short vowels (a, i, u, e, o), with the first three being identical to the Arabic vowel signs ( fatha, kasra and damma ). Long vowels (aa, ee, oo, ey, oa) are denoted by doubled fili , except oa, which
1615-541: Is a consistent script system that is well adapted to writing almost all languages of South Asia. However, this scheme lacks a few sounds used in Maldivian. ISO 15919 has been used by Xavier Romero-Frias to romanize Maldivian in his book The Maldive Islanders - A Study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom . The government reinstated the Thaana script shortly after President Maumoon took power in 1978. There
1700-436: Is a dialectal offspring of Sinhalese and therefore is a "daughter language" of Sinhalese. However, the material he collected was not sufficient to judge the "degree of relationship" of Maldivian and Sinhalese. Geiger concludes that Maldivian must have split from Sinhalese not earlier than the 10th century CE. However, there is nothing in the history of these islands or Sinhalese chronicles, even in legendary form, that alludes to
1785-400: Is a mark to indicate an abrupt stop (vowel deletion) on the sound of the letter on which it is placed. However, if it is on a shaviyani or alif and comes within the word, the following consonant is geminated; if it comes on a shaviyani or alif at the end of a word, it signifies the glottal stop; if it comes on a thaa , the sound is replaced by a y off-glide; if it comes on
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#17328591202371870-413: Is a modification of the short obofili . The letter alifu represents the glottal stop . It has three different purposes: It can act as a carrier for a vowel, that is, a word-initial vowel or the second part of a diphthong ; when it carries a sukun , it indicates gemination of the following consonant; and if alifu + sukun occurs at the end of a word, it indicates that the word ends in
1955-517: Is celebrated in the Maldives on 14 April, the birthday of the writer Husain Salahuddin . Maldivian is spoken in the Maldives and a variation of it in Minicoy . Maldivian is the official language of the Maldives and a semi-official language in the union territory of Lakshadweep , India. The Maldivian language has multiple dialects due to the wide distribution of the islands, causing differences in pronunciation and vocabulary to develop during
2040-466: Is characterised by a derivational relationship between active, causative and involitive/intransitive verb forms. The word order in Maldivian is not as rigid as in English, though changes in the order of words in a sentence may convey subtle differences in meaning. To ask for some fish in a market, one uses the following words: mashah (to me) mas (fish) vikkaa (sell), which may be put in any of
2125-411: Is favoured as the second script. Maldivian is now written using a different script, called Taana or Thaana, written from right to left. This script is relatively recent. The literacy rate of the Maldives is very high (98%) compared to other South Asian countries. Since the 1960s English has become the medium of education in most schools although they still have Maldivian language classes, but Maldivian
2210-400: Is still the language used for the overall administration. Maldivian uses mainly the Thaana script for writing. It is an alphabet , with obligatory vowels derived from the vowel diacritics of the Arabic abjad . It is a largely phonemic script: With a few minor exceptions, spelling can be predicted from pronunciation, and pronunciation from spelling. The origins of Thaana are unique among
2295-449: Is that of the capital city of Malé . The greatest dialectal variation exists in the southern atolls of Huvadhu , Addu and Fuvahmulah . Each of these atolls has its own distinct dialect often thought to be interconnected with each other while being widely different from the dialect spoken in the northern atolls. The southern dialects are so distinct that those only speaking northern dialects cannot understand them. The ethnic endonym for
2380-469: The lōmāfānu (copper-plate grants ) of the 12th and 13th centuries. Earlier inscriptions on coral stone have also been found. The oldest inscription found to date is an inscription on a coral stone, which is estimated to be from around the 6th-8th centuries. Maldivian is an Indo-Aryan language of the Sinhalese-Maldivian subfamily. It developed in relative isolation from other languages until
2465-455: The Rādavaḷi . It is also used by people of southern atolls when writing songs or poetry in their language variant. According to Sonja Fritz, "the dialects of Maldivian represent different diachronial stages in the development of the language. Especially in the field of morphology, the amount of archaic features steadily increase from the north to the south. Within the three southernmost atolls (of
2550-737: The 1948 Arab–Israeli War , he stayed in Colombo, Sri Lanka , for two and a half years, during which he studied at Buona Vista College in Galle and Royal College in Colombo. Gayoom arrived in Cairo on 6 March 1950 at the age of twelve, at 4:00 a.m. Upon his arrival in Cairo, he enrolled at Al-Azhar University , where he completed both his first degree and master's degree in Islamic Sharia and Law. Gayoom identified his area of research for his thesis and submitted
2635-612: The British Special Air Service (SAS) to carry out an assassination and coup attempt against Gayoom. The mercenaries reportedly operated from a base in Sri Lanka , conducting several reconnaissance trips in preparation for the mission. They were provided with arms and promised a payment of US$ 60,000 each for their services. However, the assassination attempt was ultimately called off by the SAS operatives due to emerging doubts about
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2720-567: The Elu Prakrit of ancient and medieval Sri Lanka. These Prakrits were originally derived from Old Indo-Aryan vernaculars related to Vedic Sanskrit . Whereas formerly Maldivian was thought to be a descendant of Sinhalese, in 1969 Sinhalese philologist M. W. S. de Silva for the first time proposed that Maldivian and Sinhalese had branched off from a common mother language. The following are some phonological features shared by Sinhala, or unique to Maldivian: The earliest official writings were on
2805-445: The Maldives experienced a GDP growth rate of 13.75% in 2003; however, this plummeted to -11.223% in 2004 as a direct consequence of the tsunami. Regardless of various recovery efforts, many damages remained unresolved by the end of Gayoom's presidency. Gayoom declared a state of emergency following the national disaster on the same day, and a special task force was established to deliver aid and supplies. Rescue efforts were hindered by
2890-534: The People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) allowed him to negotiate for military support in the form of an 80-member raiding party. Strategic discussions regarding a sea-borne raid began in 1987, influenced by the deployment of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka . Additionally, Luthufi secured support from sympathetic members of the Maldivian military, highlighting the complexities of
2975-559: The Prime Minister's Office . Gayoom later served as the deputy ambassador of the Maldives to Sri Lanka and was appointed deputy minister of transport under minister Hassan Zareer . After serving as deputy minister, he was appointed Permanent Representative of the Maldives to the United Nations in 1976. Following the vacancy of minister of transport, Gayoom was appointed to the position. As president Nasir chose not to seek re-election,
3060-450: The Sinhalese language of Sri Lanka . Maldivian represents the southernmost Indo-Aryan language, as well as the southernmost Indo-European language prior to European colonization. Maldivian and Sinhalese together constitute a subgroup within the modern Indo-Aryan languages, called Insular Indo-Aryan . However, they are not mutually intelligible. Maldivian and Sinhalese are descended from
3145-588: The United States after serving at the United Nations , Gayoom accepted President Nasir's request to serve as Minister of transport. At the time, the position was vacant; Nasir appointed Gayoom as the minister of transport in March 1977. During his tenure, Gayoom focused on improving the country's transportation infrastructure . During his tenure as minister, Gayoom oversaw developments in transportation and aviation in
3230-457: The retroflex n sound common to many Indic languages ( Gujarati , Hindi , etc.), was abolished from official documents in by Muhammad Amin in 1950. Ṇaviyani's former position in the Thaana alphabet, between the letters Gaafu and Seenu, is today occupied by the palatal nasal Ñaviyani (ޏ). It is still seen in reprints of traditional old books like the Boḍu Tarutību and official documents like
3315-438: The 12th century. Since the 16th century, Maldivian has been written in a unique script called Thaana which is written from right to left , like Arabic (with which it shares several common diacritics for vowel sounds). The foundation of the historical linguistic analysis of both Maldivian and Sinhalese was laid by Wilhelm Geiger (1856–1943). In Geiger's comparative study of Maldivian and Sinhalese, he assumes that Maldivian
3400-431: The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, President Gayoom addressed the nation on the evening of the disaster, stating that citizens should work together with the government to recover from the losses. The tsunami caused extensive devastation, resulting in the loss of more than three decades of development and an estimated 62% of the country's GDP and a damage cost of approximately US$ 460 million. According to World Bank estimates,
3485-505: The Maldives in November 1978. During the early 1970s, efforts were underway to expand the tourism industry in the Maldives, led by president Ibrahim Nasir . Tensions between Gayoom and the authorities—arising from earlier disputes during his time in Egypt —continued to grow. His remarks on alcohol and drugs drew widespread attention and sparked discussions across Malé . The government investigated
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3570-627: The Maldives to the United Nations from 1976 to 1977. The longest-serving Maldivian president, Gayoom was the longest-serving leader in Asia. Gayoom was born and raised in Malé . After serving as a lecturer at the Ahmadu Bello University in Nigeria, he returned to the Maldives in 1971 and worked as a teacher at Aminiya School . He was later appointed the manager of shipping department at the government. Gayoom
3655-439: The Maldives within his first five years in office, if elected. He also promised to develop the tourism sector and improve education across the country. On 28 July 1978, a public referendum was held, in which Gayoom received 92.96% of the vote, making him president-elect. Following his election, Gayoom faced criticism from the public opposition, who argued he was unfit for the presidency. In the 1983 presidential election , Gayoom
3740-520: The Maldives' broader support for Palestinian self-determination. In 1984, Gayoom invited Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to the Maldives, and he under took an state visit in July the same year. Gayoom also attempted economic partnerships to strengthen ties with Palestine. His administration launched " Maldives Airways " in collaboration with the Palestinian government , with a fleet of four airplanes. However,
3825-579: The Maldives), the dialect of the Addu islands which form the southern tip of the whole archipelago is characterized by the highest degree of archaicity". However, the Huvadhu Atoll dialect is characterized by the highest degree of archaicity. From Huvadhu Atoll the archaic features decrease toward the south and north. Fritz also adds that "the different classes of verb conjugation and nominal inflection are best preserved there, morphological simplifications and, as
3910-425: The Maldives, Gayoom won the first round of the elections with 40.63% votes. In the second round of the elections, Gayoom secured 45.79% votes however he did not win the elections as his opponent Mohamed Nasheed won with 54.21% votes. Following the election results, Gayoom addressed and stated "I accept the results of the ... run-off election and I respectfully congratulate Mr. Mohamed Nasheed and his party". Gayoom
3995-483: The Maldives. He encouraged the use of engine-powered boats, which were not widely popular among the population at the time. He also contributed to the improvement of Hulhulé Airport by upgrading its systems. Gayoom worked on expanding the aviation sector by increasing flights between the Maldives and international destinations, supporting the growth of the tourism industry and improving travel options for Maldivians. His tenure ended upon his inauguration as president of
4080-579: The Maldivian government introduced telex machines in the local administration. This was viewed as great progress, but the local Thaana script was deemed to be an obstacle because messages on the telex machines could only be written in the Latin script . Following this, in 1976 the government approved a new official Latin transliteration, Dhivehi Latin , which was quickly implemented by the administration. Booklets were printed and dispatched to all Atoll and Island Offices, as well as schools and merchant liners. This
4165-434: The addition of ve , which is never used to end a sentence in spoken Maldivian. In using ve a strict word order also has to be maintained, but in spoken Maldivian word order is not considered to be very rigid. One of the very important things one has to take into account in written Maldivian which is not so important in spoken Maldivian is the ‘ sukun ’ on the letters alif and shaviyani . Sukun in general
4250-436: The airline faced financial challenges, attributed to international sanctions and economic pressure, which led to its bankruptcy by 1984. Due to the airline's failure, Gayoom's administration continued efforts to support Palestine through other means, such as organising nationwide fundraising campaigns, with donation boxes set up throughout the Maldives. During Gayoom's presidency, his foreign policy towards South and East Asia
4335-503: The attack with his own hands. Jaisham sustained injuries during this act and required medical treatment, later being treated at Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital . Following the incident, Gayoom stated, "By the grace of Almighty Allah, I am well and safe, but severe injuries have been inflicted on this brave young man from this island, Mohamed Jaisham. He is a true hero. I sincerely thank him and his family, and I pray to Almighty Allah for his speedy recovery." During his presidency, Gayoom took
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#17328591202374420-497: The authorities declared that clerics or mullahs with beards would be prohibited from entering the country unless specifically invited by the government. On 8 January 2008, Gayoom was visiting Hoarafushi in Haa Alif Atoll . Mohamed Murshid attempted to stab Gayoom in the stomach with a kitchen knife; however, the attack was thwarted by Mohamed Jaisham Ibrahim, a 16-year-old boy scout from Kudahuvadhoo , who intervened and blocked
4505-527: The centuries. The most divergent dialects of the language are to be found in the southern atolls, namely Huvadhu , Fuvahmulah and Addu . The other variants show less difference to the official dialect, including the dialects spoken in a few islands in Kolhumadulu Atoll and the now obsolete dialect once spoken in Giraavaru , which are hardly recognised and known. The letter Ṇaviyani (ޱ), which represented
4590-480: The coup attempt, planner Abdulla Lutfi and his assistant Sagar Nasir were sentenced to death. However, according to Gayoom, the sentences were reduced to a life sentence of 25 years. Following the coup attempt, a small number of Indian soldiers remained in Malé for a year to protect Gayoom from further threats. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami was a major turning point in Gayoom's presidential administration. In response to
4675-507: The development of Dhivehi through the ages. They include Arabic , Hindi , Persian , Tamil , French , Portuguese , and English . The English words atoll (a ring of coral islands or reefs) and dhoni (a vessel for inter-atoll navigation) are anglicised forms of the Maldivian words atoḷu and dōni . Before European colonization of the Southern Hemisphere, it was the southernmost Indo-European language. The origin of
4760-411: The election was conducted under a new constitution. The Supreme Court concurred, stating that the term limits applied only to those served "under this Constitution," allowing Gayoom to be eligible to contest the election. In his 2008 bid for re-election since the new constitution, Gayoom was running against five candidates with his running mate Ahmed Thasmeen Ali . In the first multi-party elections in
4845-630: The faculty, graduating in 1966. Additionally, he obtained a secondary level certificate in English from the American University in Cairo . In 1965, the 27-year old Gayoom met 15-year old Nasreena Ibrahim in Cairo while she was there to study. Four years later, on 14 July 1969, the couple married in Cairo, Egypt , before moving to Nigeria for Gayoom to study at Ahmadu Bello University . A year after their marriage, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and Nasreena welcomed their first children, twins Dunya and Yumna , on 20 March 1970. Their first son, Ahmed Faris ,
4930-455: The islands between the conversion to Islam and until the 18th century. These ancient Maldivian letters were also used in official correspondence with Addu Atoll until the early 20th century. Perhaps they were used in some isolated islands and rural communities until the 1960s, but the last remaining native user died in the 1990s. Today Maldivians rarely learn the Dhives Akuru alphabet, for Arabic
5015-487: The language, Divehi , is occasionally found in English as Dhivehi (spelled according to the locally used Malé Latin for the romanisation of the Maldivian language), which is the official spelling as well as the common usage in the Maldives. Dhivehi is written in Thaana script. Dhivehi is a descendant of Elu Prakrit and is closely related to Sinhalese , but not mutually intelligible with it. Many languages have influenced
5100-446: The loss of communication with the nation's over 1,000 islands, as well as the lack of sufficient disaster planning . Following the first bomb explosion in Malé on 29 September 2007, which targeted foreign tourists , the government, under the presidency of Gayoom, expressed serious concern over the rising threat of Islamic extremism . In response, the government initiated measures to address religious fundamentalism and militancy;
5185-510: The matter, placing him under house arrest on 12 March 1973. After a trial, Gayoom was sentenced to four years of banishment on 14 May 1973 and transferred to Makunudhoo Island in Haa Dhaalu Atoll on 21 May. He was released on 13 October 1973 under an amnesty following Nasir's re-election, having served five months. On 28 July 1974, Gayoom was arrested again for continuing to criticise government policies and held in solitary confinement in
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#17328591202375270-469: The operation. On 11 April 1987, a devastating tidal wave, often referred to as the "Great Wave", struck Malé , leaving 16 islands across 13 atolls severely affected and causing damages estimated at MVR 90 million. The disaster is considered one of the most catastrophic natural disasters in Maldivian history . In an interview during the early 2000s, Gayoom said: I was driving around Malé, looking around various sites where damage had been done, and all of
5355-540: The police and judiciary. He was placed under house arrest in September 2018 due to health concerns and was released on bail later that month. He was acquitted of all charges in October 2018. Maumoon Abdul Gayoom was born Abdulla Maumoon Khairi on 29 December 1937, at his father's home in Machangoalhi , Malé . He was the first child of Abdul Gayoom Ibrahim and Khadheeja Moosa and the tenth child of Abdul Gayoom. His father
5440-471: The political situation during Gayoom's rule. Gayoom reached out to neighbouring and other countries for assistance, contacting India, United Kingdom , United States and Singapore for military aid. Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi responded promptly, and within hours, India launched Operation Cactus. Indian paratroopers were airlifted to the Maldives and landed in Malé on the same day, securing key locations and restoring order. The Indian intervention
5525-468: The situation. The Japanese government later supported the reconstruction of the damaged seawalls, helping the country recover from the disaster. The event drew international attention to the vulnerabilities of small island nations. Gayoom addressed this issue at the 1987 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting , proposing the formation of a group of experts to study the impacts of climate change on small island states and low-lying nations. His proposal
5610-501: The two varieties of language. Malé dialect and Maliku dialect are the only dialects commonly used in writing. Spoken Maldivian, for instance, has twenty-seven consonants. In contrast, written or literary Maldivian includes some Arabic sounds as well. Though these sounds are also used in speaking, their phonetics are not strictly observed. This results in pronunciation as close as possible to spoken Maldivian. Regarding syntax, it may be said that every sentence in written Maldivian ends with
5695-480: The unit numeral stem before the decade, for example, eh-thirees '31' ( lit. "one and thirty") while the other combines the stem of the decade with the unit numeral, for example, thirees-ekeh '31' ("thirty + one"). The latter system also has numerals multiplied by ten for decades 70, 80 and 90. The decade fas dholhas '60' ("five twelves"), comes from a much older duodecimal , or dozen-based, system which has nearly disappeared. The Maldivian verbal system
5780-440: The votes and was elected for a fourth term on 1 October 1993. Gayoom was elected for a fifth term of office on 16 October 1998, receiving 86,504 votes, or 90.90%. Gayoom was selected as the candidate for the presidential referendum with the votes of all 50 members of the People's Majlis . He secured a sixth term with 90.28% of the vote, amounting to 102,909 ballots in the election. Even with high protests against Gayoom, his victory
5865-571: The word "Divehi" is from older divu-vesi , meaning "island dwelling". Divu (from Sanskrit द्वीप dvīpa , 'island') later became ދޫ dū , which is currently present in many names of Maldivian islands, such as Hanimādū , Mīdū , and Dāndū . Vesi came from the Sanskrit suffix -वासिन् -vāsin and later became ވެހި vehi . ބަސް bas (from Sanskrit भाषा bhāṣā ) means "language", so ދިވެހިބަސް dhivehi bas means "islanders' language". Wilhelm Geiger ,
5950-435: The world's alphabets: The first nine letters (h–v) are derived from the Arabic numerals, whereas the next nine (m–d) were the local Indic numerals. (See Hindu–Arabic numerals .) The remaining letters for loanwords (t–z) and Arabic transliteration are derived from phonetically similar native consonants by means of diacritics, with the exception of y ( ޔ ), which is derived from combining an alifu ( އ ) and
6035-453: Was a lawyer and the 7th Attorney General of the Maldives from 1950 to 1951. Gayoom is a descendant of the Hilaalee and Dhiyamigili dynasties, with Arab and African ancestry. Gayoom spent his early years under the care of his parents at Kaamineege, their family residence. His birth name was Abdulla Maumoon Khairi, and he was familiarly known as Lhaseedi (Seedi Jr.) at home, while in school, he
6120-618: Was abolished. Gayoom then spent time in Colombo before returning to the Maldives, where he was appointed deputy ambassador to Sri Lanka . In 1975, he became undersecretary at the Department of External Affairs . In 1976, Gayoom was appointed deputy minister of transport and, in September, became the Permanent Representative of the Maldives to the United Nations . He returned to the Maldives in March 1977 and served as minister of transport until November 1978. Soon after returning from
6205-562: Was adopted at the meeting. He also brought the issue to the United Nations General Assembly , becoming the first world leader to speak about climate change on a global stage. On 3 November 1988, an attempted coup d'état was launched against Gayoom by a group of Maldivians, along with armed mercenaries from the Sri Lankan Tamil militant organisation, the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE). The coup
6290-483: Was arranged by Abdullah Luthufi, a Maldivian businessman, who sought to overthrow Gayoom's government. Gayoom's presidency faced weighty opposition, with key figures like Luthufi determined to remove him from power due to dissatisfaction with the political landscape and the perceived lack of opportunities for dissent. Luthufi believed that an outside force was necessary to facilitate this change, as local electoral processes were deemed ineffective. His close association with
6375-708: Was born in Malé on 31 March 1971, followed by their second son, Mohamed Ghassan , who was born on 12 June 1980 during Gayoom's presidential administration. After marrying Nasreena Ibrahim in 1969, Gayoom joined Ahmadu Bello University in Zaria, Nigeria , where he served as a lecturer in Islamic Studies. After serving at the Ahmadu Bello University , Gayoom returned to the Maldives in early 1971. From 1971 to 1972, he taught English, arithmetic , and Islam at Aminiya School in Malé, where he gained popularity among parents. In 1972, he
6460-492: Was called Abdulla Maumoon. His name was changed to Maumoon Abdul Gayoom due to a clerical mistake during the issuance of his passport for overseas education in 1947. When completing the passport form, an assistant mistakenly combined his commonly used name, "Maumoon", with his father's name, resulting in the name Maumoon Abdul Gayoom. At the age of ten, Gayoom was given a government scholarship to study in Cairo, Egypt in 1947. Due to
6545-545: Was centered on strengthening ties with key regional players, particularly India, China , and Japan . Dhivehi language Dhivehi or Divehi ( / d ɪ ˈ v eɪ h i / di- VAY -hee ; Dhivehi: ދިވެހި , IPA: [d̪iʋehi] ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the South Asian island country of Maldives and on Minicoy Island , Lakshadweep , a union territory of India . The Maldivian language has four notable dialects. The standard dialect
6630-423: Was chosen as the sole candidate and was re-elected president on 30 September 1983, receiving 57,913 votes, or 95.62%. In the 1988 Maldivian presidential election , Gayoom received 69,373 votes and 96.47%. There were 2,537 votes against him. In the 1993 election , Gayoom and his brother-in-law Ilyas Ibrahim ran for presidency; Gayoom was chosen by the People's Majlis as the sole candidate. He received 92.8% of
6715-540: Was decisive, with the coup leaders unable to mount resistance once foreign troops arrived. Many of the PLOTE mercenaries were captured, while others fled the country. The coup attempt was effectively quashed within hours of the Indian military 's arrival. The quick resolution of the coup attempt strengthened Gayoom's position, and he publicly expressed gratitude towards the Indian government for its timely intervention. Following
6800-542: Was inaugurated as the 3rd president of the Republic of Maldives on 11 November 1978 at 12:00 AM. His oath was administered by judge Moosa Fathhy. One of the first things Gayoom did at the beginning of his administration was upgrading the education and healthcare system in the Maldives. In February 1980, Former president Ibrahim Nasir , along with his brother-in-law Ahmed Naseem , Health Minister Mohamed Musthafa Hussain, and businessman Mohamed Yusuf, hired nine former members of
6885-441: Was placed under house arrest in 1973 for criticising the policies of the then-president Nasir . He was later banished to Makunudhoo for four years but was released five months later as part of an amnesty following President Nasir's re-election for a second term. In 1974, he was arrested again for his continued criticism of Nasir's policies, but after 50 days in jail, he was freed and, in 1975, appointed as Special Undersecretary in
6970-423: Was seen by many as the effective demise of the Thaana script. Clarence Maloney, an American anthropologist who was in the Maldives at the time of the change, lamented the inconsistencies of the "Dhivehi Latin" which ignored all previous linguistic research on the Maldivian language done by H.C.P. Bell and Wilhelm Geiger. He wondered why the modern Standard Indic transliteration had not been considered. Standard Indic
7055-409: Was transferred to the government shipping department , where he served as manager. In 1974, Gayoom was appointed undersecretary and later became director of the government telecommunications department. Later that year, he was appointed special undersecretary in the office of prime minister Ahmed Zaki . The position ended in March 1975 when Zaki was removed from office, and the prime minister's role
7140-420: Was widely expected, with the government presenting the outcome as evidence of strong public backing. However, concerns were raised regarding the fairness of the process, as only a single candidate was allowed to seek a popular mandate, and political parties had been banned. Following the election, it was anticipated by the media, that Gayoom's sixth term would be difficult, as there was growing public pressure for
7225-508: Was widespread relief in certain places, especially rural areas, where the introduction of Latin had been regarded with suspicion. However, the Latin transcription of 1976 continues to be widely used. The 412-page hard-back English–Maldivian dictionary, A Maldivian Dictionary , written by Christopher Hanby Baillie Reynolds , was published on 22 July 2003 by Routledge and contains about 5000 individual entries. Different islands due to distance have
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