The Maldives is the capital and most populous city in the Republic of Maldives. With an area of 8.30 sq. km, it is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. Located at the southern edge of North Malé Atoll or Kaafu Atoll. Male is actually a group of 5 other islands including an airport island, and four other islands namely Hulhulé, Hulhumalé, Vilimalé, Gulhifalhu, and Thilafush.
Velana International Airport located in the Island of Hulhulé is the only link to the outside world. Recently the Maldives has decided to connect all the islands via sea bridge with help of India. Originally the King’s Island, where the palace was located the city was earlier called Mahal, a walled city surrounded by fortifications and gates. The Royal Palace, forts, and bastions were destroyed when the city was remodeled under President Ibrahim Nasir’s rule in 1968 only the Malé Friday Mosque remains. In recent years, the island has been considerably expanded through land-filling operations.
The central Male island is heavily urbanized covering the entire landmass with one-third of the nation’s population living in the city. The first settlers were Dravidian people who arrived from Indian Subcontinent and Ceylon. Comparative studies point to a strong Dravidian influence on Maldivian society, centered in Malé. The Giraavaru people claim descent from the first Tamil settlers of the island.
The names of the main four divisions of Malé Island are said to have been given by the original Giraavaru fishermen namely Maafannu, Henveiru, Galolhu and, Macchangolhi with the island of Vilingili, and Hulhumalé, an artificial island settled since 2004 being the other 2 divisions. When Ibn Battuta visited Malé in 1343, he provided a rather extensive description of the city as well as the Islands of the Maldives overall including the palace with its compounds, and several mosques, built-in wood.
In 17th century Sultan Muhammad Imaduddin built walls on the north, east and west sides of the main island. An inner harbor was used by fishing vessels and small dhonis, while larger vessels had to anchor in the outer harbor, between the islands of Vilingili and Hulhule.
The old forts and decrepit walls were dismantled in 1925–1927 under the reign of Muhammad Shamsuddeen III, roads were widened, cemeteries were cleared out, to achieve more housing space. Being the capital city and modern town all facilities are available in the main islands of Male including schools, colleges, and hospitals. Malé has a tropical monsoon climate with a mix of both wet and dry seasons, with the wet season. Since there is no surrounding countryside, all infrastructure is located in the city itself.
Water is provided from desalinated groundwater. Sewage is pumped unprocessed into the sea. Solid waste is transported to nearby islands to fill in lagoons. Tourism is the largest industry in the country and Malé has many tourist attractions. Each of the 6 islands of Malé is served by a dense network of roads. Malé is the hub for inter-island travel with transport done by ferry, launch our boats, and seaplane.
There are numerous places worth visiting including Male Fish Market, Male Local Market, Grand Friday Mosque, Hukuru Miskiiy (Old Friday Mosque), National Museum, Artificial Beach, Sultan Park, Sinamale Bridge, Mulee Aage, Tsunami Monument, Victory Monument. There are a couple of shoppingmalls in the main city island. There are several restaurants, hotels,resorts in the islands of the city.. Restaurants besides serving Indian Chinese and international cuisine are known to serve delicious seafood.
Male is known for its stunning sunrise / sunset, magnificent beaches, clear blue sky, and pristine water. The city is the hub to travel to other islands resorts on other atolls. The city is also the hub for adventure seekers who are interested in scubadiving, swimming snorkling coral reef watching whale watching surfing parasailing, and much more. All this makes Male a must-visit city and holidaymakers as well as adventure seekers paradise.
