What Continent is The Maldives In?
The Maldives is a set of islands in the Indian Ocean. It is situated southwest of India and Sri Lanka. It is the tiniest country in Asia, and according to a 2016 estimate, has a population of 427,756 inhabitants. The capital city of the Republic of Maldives is Malé. The country gained its independence from Britain on July 26th, 1965.
Geography of the Maldives
The Maldives islands is composed of corals that are a result of a volcanic mountain range which submerged at ancient times. All the Islands that form the Maldives less than 180 centimeters above the sea level. These islands experience a lot of monsoons winds however the barrier reefs protect them from these winds. The southwest monsoon winds which blow between May and August cause the islands to experience a rainy season during that period. In between December to March, these winds cause dry season. The average temperature that these islands experience is between 24°C and 30°C. The annual rainfall is an average of 2,130 mm each year. The Maldives consists of beautiful tropical bushes, lagoons, coconut palms and sandy beaches. Fishing is a significant economic activity in the seas, lagoons, and reefs. They fish the sea turtle mainly for food and oil. The oil is traditional medicine.
The Maldivian People
The Maldivian ethnic group is the major occupants of the Maldives Islands. These ethnic groups have successfully made different people settle on these islands too as seen in the country’s history. Tamil and Sinhalese people are believed to be the first settlers in the Maldives. These settlers came from Sri Lanka and southern India. The official language is Dhivehi which is also known as Maldivian and is an Indo-European language. Other languages that are spoken there are English, Hindi, and Arabic. The major religion practiced across these islands is Islam.
Economy of the Maldives
The major economic activities practiced in the Maldives are boat repairing, fishing, boatbuilding, and tourism. However, they have one of the lowest gross national product per capita in the world. Other substitute economic activities are done in agriculture. These activities include the gathering of coconut, roots and tubers, tropical fruits, and growing of melons and vegetables. They, however, do not have enough land for agriculture and they are therefore forced to import much of their staple food. At least 25% of the population in the Maldives are employed in the fishing industry. They also export some of the fish. The fishermen use the pole-and-line method to fish a type of fish known as tuna.
Continent of Asia
Asia is the biggest continent on Earth. A lot of humanity’s earliest civilizations were located in Asia, for example, the civilization in Mesopotamia, in the Indus Valley, and along the Yellow River. Asia is also the birthplace of Judaism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, and many of the world’s major religions. The largest economies in Asia are those of China, Japan, and India. One of the trade routes in human history, the Silk Road, cut a swathe through Asia.
