country fiyoaree
The ___MASK55___ (, or ), officially the Republic of ___MASK55___ (""), is a South Asian island country , located in the Indian Ocean . It lies southwest of India and Sri Lanka . The chain of twenty - six atolls stretches from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the north to the Addu City in the south . Comprising a territory spanning roughly , the ___MASK55___ is one of the world ' s most geographically dispersed countries , as well as the smallest Asian country by both land area and population , with a little over 393 , 500 inhabitants . Malé is the capital and most populated city , traditionally called the " King ' s Island " for its central location . Thaana , Taana or Tna ( in Tna script ) is the modern writing system of the Maldivian language spoken in the ___MASK55___ . Thaana has characteristics of both an abugida ( diacritic , vowel - killer strokes ) and a true alphabet ( all vowels are written ), with consonants derived from indigenous and Arabic numerals , and vowels derived from the vowel diacritics of the Arabic abjad . Its orthography is largely phonemic . Gaafu Dhaalu ( also known as Southern Huvadhu Atoll or Huvadhu Atholhu Dhekunuburi ) is an administrative district of the ___MASK55___ formed by the southwestern section of Huvadhu Atoll . It was created on February 8 , 1962 when Huvadhu Atoll was divided into two districts . Gaafu Dhaalu corresponds to the Southwestern section of this large natural atoll , south of the line extending between the channels of Footukandu and Vaarulu Kandu . The capital of this region is Thinadhoo ( formerly known as Havaru Thinadhu ). There are 153 islands in this district , 10 of which are inhabited . This district is located about 340 kilometres south of the capital Malé . NOTE : " Haa Alifu , Haa Dhaalu , Shaviyani , Noonu , Raa , Baa , Kaafu , etc . ( including Gaafu Dhaalu ) are code letters assigned to the present administrative divisions of the ___MASK55___ . They are not the proper names of the natural atolls that make up these divisions . Some atolls are divided into two administrative divisions while other divisions are made up of two or more natural atolls . The order followed by the code letters is from North to South , beginning with the first letters of the Thaana alphabet used in Dhivehi . These code letters are not accurate from the geographical and cultural point of view . However , they have become popular among tourists and foreigners in the ___MASK55___ who find them easier to pronounce than the true atoll names in Dhivehi , ( save a few exceptions , like Ari Atoll )." Huvadhu is sometimes referred to as the largest atoll of the ___MASK55___ . The fact is , however , that it is the second largest natural atoll , taking into account that Thiladhunmathi Atoll and Miladhunmadulu Atoll together stand for the largest . Even so , with an area of 3152 km² , land area 38 . 5 km² , Huvadhu is 10th largest atoll in the world , larger than Ontong Java Atoll and Lihou Reef in the SW Pacific area . On its reef rim are many inhabited islands . Malé is the capital and most populous city in the Republic of ___MASK55___ . With a population of 133 , 412 and an area of , it is also one of the most densely populated cities in the world . The city is geographically located at the southern edge of North Malé Atoll ( Kaafu Atoll ). Administratively , the city consists of a central island , an airport island , and two other islands governed by the Malé City Council . Fiyoaree or Fiori ( Dhivehi :       ) is one of the inhabited islands of Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll . Women of this island used to weave mats of lesser quality than those of Gaddu , but in larger quantities .