Maldivians
Maldivians are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group and nation native to the Maldive Islands, constituting the Republic of Maldives and the island of Minicoy. They share a common [|ancestry], history, culture and language.
Subgroups
For ethnographic and linguistic purposes as well as geopolitical reasons, anthropologists divide the Maldivian people into three subgroups.Main group
The main group numbers more than 250,000. The group inhabits the numerous atolls stretching from Ihavandhippolhu to Haddhunmathi in the Maldives. They constitute over 70% of the total. On a larger scale, the third group also comes under this group. The standard dialect of the Maldivian language which is spoken in the Maldive's capital, Malé, comes from the group, along with the central atolls. Variants are spoken in the rest of the islands, from the far north to Laamu Atoll.Southern group
The southern group is found in the three southernmost atolls of the equatorial zone. This group numbers approximately 60,000 and constitutes about 20% of the total. The earliest known settlements were in this region. This group of Maldivians has the closest proximity to the original Maldivian people in terms of language and ethnicity. Each of the 3 atolls has its own distinctive form of the Maldivian language, which are significantly different from other dialects and have greater affinity to the original.Minicoy
The people of Minicoy – Mahls, number about 10,000. Minicoy island lies at the northern end of the Maldivian atoll chain and is the northernmost group. They make up 3% of the total. Ethnically and linguistically they are identical to the main group. They are distinguished instead by their politics and their latter day affiliation with India. The Minicoians are steadily undergoing a process of acculturation. The group has its own dialect which retains some features of an older Maldivian, and shows Malayalam influences. The dialect is mutually intelligible with main group Maldivian.Myths and legends
No historical evidence explains the origin of Maldivians; no evidence describes any negrito or other aboriginal population, such as the Andamanese. No archaeology has investigated the islands' prehistory. However, a Tamil–Malayalam substratum remains, in addition to later cultural influences in the islands. Bengali, Odia, and Sinhalese people have had trading connections with Dhivehi people in the past.Scholars conjecture that the ancestors of Maldivian people arrived in the Maldives from North West and West India, from Kalibangan between 2500 and 1700 BC and that they formed a distinct ethnic group around the 6th century BC.
Origin
describes the dependence of the Maldivians on the coconut tree and the tuna fish. One legend says that the first inhabitants died in great numbers, but a great sorcerer or fandita made coconut trees grow out of the skulls of the buried corpses of the first settlers. Therefore, the coconut tree is said to have an anthropomorphic origin. The word naashi is the word for skull in the Dhivehi language. The coconut tree occupies a central place in the present-day Maldive national emblem.The tuna fish is said to have been brought to Maldivian waters by a mythical seafarer called Bodu Niyami Kalēfanu who went close to the Dagas to bring this fish.
First settlers
One of the earliest people to settle were from the Malabar Coast of India and northwestern shores of Sri Lanka, and are of Tamil and Malayali ancestry, evidenced by the Tamil–Malayalam substratum in language and culture. The Giraavaru people are considered one of the earliest settlers. They were technologically advanced, building sail boats .The people used words such as varam for their islands. Examples given in the old manuscript are: Noḷivaram, Kuruhinnavaram, and Girāvaram. Many of the old terms used by Maldivian fishermen come from Dravidian languages, leading to the assumption that these terms were brought from southern coastal India. Historical records show that in the southern and central atolls, occupations such as farming and weaving became important early on.
After the Indo-Aryans' arrival and the introduction of the Hindu religion, a prince of India is said to have visited the Maldives. The period can be estimated from oral tradition, and the story corresponds to that from Sri Lanka's Mahavamsa chronicle, about the king's son exiled from his country who arrived in Lanka, while one of his ships lost its way and arrived in the Maldives. In legend, the prince who arrived in the Maldives was the son of Brahmaditiya, king of Kalinga, a kingdom in the south-east of India. King Brahmaditiya was displeased with his son and sent him to Dheeva Maari. The prince was Sri Soorudasaruna''. Sri Soorudasaruna established a kingdom of the Adeetha Vansha Dynasty there, shortly before the reign of Emperor Ashoka in India. That places the establishment of the first kingdom in the Maldives circa the 4th century BC. Tradition says that Emperor Ashoka established his kingdom in Pataliputra and that his people preached the religion and teachings of Buddha to Bairat, west of Pataliputra. People came from Bairat to teach Buddhism. These people are said to have arrived during Ashoka's reign, probably when he sent Buddhist missionaries to all neighbouring countries, in the 3rd century BC. When the Buddhist missionaries arrived in the Maldives, the place was called Dheeva Mahl. Around the 2nd century AD, Arab traders stopped by the Maldives en route to the Far East–their first record of the Maldives islands, which they called Mahal Dibiyat, is from these traders. The Maldives provided enormous quantities of cowrie shells, an international currency at the time. The cowrie became the symbol of the Maldives Monetary Authority. Abu al-Barakat Yusuf al-Barbari, a North African Arab, is credited with converting the Maldivians to Islam in 1153.
First ruling dynasty
The ruling dynasty was established by prince Koimala. In the Lōmāfānu and Rādavaḷi chronicles pre-Muslim royalty are represented by a king, whose successor was converted to Islam. The name Koimala Kalo is suggestive: koi or koyi in Maldivian language means son, lad or prince. The malā component may be derived from māla as in Māla-dīv, but, if so, the name would mean 'prince of the Maldives'. The term kalō is a common word for man, used as a term of endearment. The title of former Maldivian kings was kattiri bovana mahaa radun, 'Kattiri' meaning Kshatriya in Maldivian.One oral tradition says that the Giraavaru people are the indigenous people of the Maldives and were present before Koimala arrived. They are of Tamil origin; their presence predates Buddhism and the arrival of Indo-Aryans. This may be the reason that the Dhivehi kinship system is part of the Dravidian origin, and bears evidence of some matriliny, like the Nayar and other matrilineal groups of Kerala. Some kinship terms are derived from Malayalam.
Origin Myths
Five versions of the myth survive:Ceylonese Prince Koimala
At a time when the Maldives were still sparsely inhabited, Prince Koimala, who had married the daughter of the king of Ceylon, made a voyage with her in two vessels from Srendib. Reaching the Maldives they were becalmed and rested at Rasgetheemu island in North Maalhosmadulu Atoll.The islanders, learning that the two chief visitors were Ceylon royals, invited them to remain; they ultimately proclaimed Koimala their king at Rasgetheemu, the original 'King's Island'. Koimala and his spouse migrated to Malé and settled there with the consent of the inhabitants, then the most important community of Malé Atoll.
The two ships were dispatched to Lanka, and brought over other people of 'the Lion Race'. Koimala and his queen spawned a male child called Kalaminja. He reigned as a Buddhist for twelve years and then converted to Islam, ruling for thirteen years more before migrating to Mecca.
This ruler's daughter married the chief minister and reigned as a nominal Sultana. She gave birth to a son called Kalaminja, who, in turn, married a lady of the country. The legend was recorded by Bell in 1922.
Indian prince
The Indian king was angry with his son, and sent him with and his wife in two boats with 700 soldiers. They came to Rasgetheemu in Raa Atoll. When he became king there, people called that island Rasgetheemu "King's Landing". The king and queen then came to Malé, and Koimala was born to them. Maloney reported this from Malé.Malakamana
"When Koimala and his wife came, there were already people here. Because she was a princess of royal lineage, people asked her husband to rule. Koimala sent ships to Sri Lanka and brought back more people. It is said that a beautiful woman named Malakamana from the Maldives was one of the early people who settled Sri Lanka." Maloney reported that from Noonu Atoll.Manadhoo
A hunter king of Sri Lanka was hunting and caught a man beast in his net. The man-beast couldn't walk, so the king taught him. The man-beast married the king's daughter, but he made political trouble in Sri Lanka, so was forced into exile. He and the princess arrived in Rasgetheemu and lived there for some time, where the locals there asked them to rule them. Maloney reported this from Manadhoo, Noonu Atoll.Hulhumeedhoo
A hunter king of India was hunting with a net. He saw a creature that looked human but walked on all fours, and that disturbed the people. This creature would steal the hunters' nets and prey, upsetting the king. The king made large weights for his net, to heavy for ordinary humans to lift, preventing the creature from stealing it. One day, the king, with the help of many men, put the net over the creature, trapping it. The king took the creature to the palace, looked after him, and taught him language. The creature helped the king by showing him treasures in the forest, and the king came to respect him.The king had a daughter who fell in love with this creature. The king became angry and sent them into exile. Their ship came to Laam Atoll, where the pair saw a crow that cried. They thought the crow was a poor omen, and it was, therefore, undesirable to land there, so they continued to Malé. They settled in what is now Sultan Park and started a kingdom.
After fifteen years, a jinn began to come from the ocean once a month and disturbed the people.... Maloney reported this from Hulhumeedhoo, Addu Atoll.