Located in the southwestern part of Sri Lanka and India, in the Indian Ocean, the Republic of Maldives uses divehi or Maldivian as its official language. There are several other dialects in the country, including mulaku, huvadhu, malik and addu, however, diva remains dominant. In ancient times, the divehi was in the form of an elu, but became Maldivian after the influence of English, German and Arabic. Due to the transformation, the language contains some English words. Another factor that cannot be emphasized is the growing use of English, which threatens to take the lead and challenge the use of Dhivehi.
History
The language of the Maldives, also known as Divehi, is the national language used in the Maldives. It comes from writing created using the Thaana style. The writing system was introduced at the time Mohamed Thakurufaan reigned in the 16th century shortly after the liberation of the country from Portuguese rule. Unlike other scripts, taana is written from right to left. It was designed to accommodate Arabic words, which are often used in divesses. There are 24 letters in the Taan alphabet.
Before the introduction of English, the Maldivian language was used as a means of instruction in schools, and it was spoken by more than 350,000 people in the country. In addition, it is native to approximately 10,000 people who live on the island of Minicoy. As the use of the Maldivian language is reduced in official places and schools, people often use it when they are busy with their daily activities.
Features
If you choose which language the Maldivian language is similar to, then Sinhala will be the first on the list. Divehi combines the basic syntax of the Sri Lankan language with words, phrases and grammar, borrowed from each nationality, which for centuries has used the island nation as an anchorage. In it you can find traces of the influence of Arabic, Persian, Urdu, Dravidian, French, Portuguese and English.
Spoken language has some interesting differences from the written language. For example, a sequence of words is critical to the written language, but not important to the spoken language. Given the wide spread of the islands, it is not surprising that vocabulary and pronunciation vary from atoll to atoll. The difference is more significant in the dialects spoken in the southernmost atolls.
The popularity of the English language
It is difficult to say which language is used most often in the Maldives. Earlier, only minorities spoke English here, but popularity increased when the country decided to use it in schools. Replacing the Maldivian language with English was an important step in spreading the latter in the Maldives. Currently, most people, especially in regions such as Male, speak English. Moreover, resorts and other places that attract people of different dialects use it as a means of communication. The change of language also forced teachers and stakeholders in the education system to translate curricula.
Currently, Maldivian schools use English in all classes, except for those who study the language of Divehi. One of the factors that stakeholders in the education sector plan to implement is the strategy known as immersion in education. It requires students to speak English and use Dhivehi only at certain times. Another strategy to improve the use of the English language includes the introduction of divecho-English dictionaries that will help effective teaching.
Key phrases on dives
When traveling, it is much more interesting to talk with people in their native language. Here are a few phrases that will come in handy when traveling to the Maldives. Let's start with some basic phrases that every traveler often uses.
- You are welcome. - Adhes kohfa.
- Thanks. - Shukuriyaa.
- Welcome. - Maruhabaa.
- I'm sorry, please excuse me. - Ma-aaf kurey.
- Hello. - Assalaa mu alaikum. This version of the standard Arabic greeting reflects the Islamic heritage of the Maldives.
Tourists can learn another useful question in the language of Divehi: Faahanaa kobaitha? - "I am looking for the restroom?". Unfortunately, they cannot always understand the answer, but at least they will show you the direction. Another question you need is: "Do you speak English?" - Ingireysin vaahaka dhakkan ingeytha?
Almost every Maldivian speaks English. Many of the words divehi have English roots. For example, the word waiter, a useful word in the economy based on tourism in the Maldives is veitar, and the word doctor is doctor. A few words of the divehi also turned into English. βAtollβ is the term we use for the coral reef ring. It is a version of the word from the Maldivian language atoαΈ·u.