Maldivian mythology or Maldivian folklore is the body of myths, tales and anecdotes belonging to the oral tradition of

Maldivians Maldivians (; ދިވެހިން, ''dhivehin'') are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group and nation native to the historic region of the Maldive Islands comprising what is now the Republic of Maldives and the island of Minicoy in Union Territory of Laks ...

. Even though some of the Maldivian myths were already mentioned briefly by British commissioner in Ceylon

HCP Bell Harry Charles Purvis Bell, CCS (21 September 1851 – 6 September 1937), more often known as HCP Bell, was a British civil servant and the first Commissioner of Archaeology in Ceylon. Early life Born in British India in 1851, he was sent to En ...

towards the end of the 19th century, their study and publication were carried out only quite recently by Spanish writer and artist

Xavier Romero-Frias Xavier or Xabier may refer to: Place * Xavier, Spain People * Xavier (surname) * Xavier (given name) * Francis Xavier (1506–1552), Catholic saint ** St. Francis Xavier (disambiguation) * St. Xavier (disambiguation) * Xavier (footballer, born ...

, at a time when that ancestral worldview was quickly disappearing.

, ''The Maldive Islanders, A Study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom'', Barcelona 1999, The

Maldives Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

lie in the warm equatorial area of the Indian Ocean surrounded by very deep waters. This nation is made up exclusively of coral atolls. There are about 1,200 small flat and sandy islands, but only about 200 of them are inhabited. The Maldives have been continuously populated for millennia; therefore the folklore of these islands is very ancient.

Myths of origin

The main myths of origin are reflecting the dependence of the Maldivians on the

coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...

tree and the

tuna A tuna is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae (mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max length: ...

fish. A legend says that the first inhabitants of the Maldives died in great numbers, but a great sorcerer or ''fanḍita'' man made

coconut tree The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

s grow out of the skulls of the buried corpses of the first settlers. Therefore, the coconut tree is said to have an anthropomorphic origin according to Maldive lore. The coconut tree occupies a central place in the present-day Maldive national emblem. The

tuna fish A tuna is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae (mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bullet tuna (max length ...

is said to have been brought to the Maldivian waters by a mythical seafarer (''maalimi'') called Bodu Niyami Kalēfanu who went close to the Dagas (the mythical tree at the end of the world) to bring this valuable fish.

Myths of extinction

These myths tell that the end of the Maldives will be a great catastrophe where the islands will be submerged by the surrounding ocean. Similar myths are found in the

Andaman Islands The Andaman Islands () are an archipelago in the northeastern Indian Ocean about southwest off the coasts of Myanmar's Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to their south, the Andamans serve as a maritime boundary between th ...

as well as in the

Nicobar Islands The Nicobar Islands are an archipelagic island chain in the eastern Indian Ocean. They are located in Southeast Asia, northwest of Aceh on Sumatra, and separated from Thailand to the east by the Andaman Sea. Located southeast of the Indian s ...

The origin of Malé

Early settlers in the Maldives were probably Gujaratis, who reached and settled Sri Lanka about 500 B.C. Evidence of cultural influence from North India can be deduced from the methods of boat building and silver punch-marked coins It is said that Giraavaru fishermen used to go regularly to a certain large sandbank (''finolhu'') at the southern end of their atoll to clean tuna fish after a good catch. Owing to the large amount of tuna fish offal and blood, the waters around that sandbank looked like a big pool of blood (''maa ley gande''h). "Maa" (from the Sanskrit "Maha"), meaning big, and "Lē" meaning blood. Traditionally the first inhabitants of the Maldives, which include the Giraavaru people, didn't have kings. They lived in a simple society and were ruled by local headmen. One day a prince from the Subcontinent called Koimala arrived to Malé Atoll sailing from the north on a big ship. The people of Giraavaru spotted his vessel from afar and welcomed him. They allowed Prince Koimala to settle on that large sandbank in the midst of the waters tainted with fishblood. Trees were planted on the sandbank and it is said that the first tree that grew on it was the papaya tree. As time went by the local islanders accepted the rule of this Northern Prince. A palace was built and the island was formally named Maa-le

Malé Malé (, ; dv, މާލެ) is the capital and most populous city of the Maldives. With a population of 252,768 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 ...

, while the nearest island was named Hulhu-le ( Hulhulé).

Evil spirits

Most of the popular tales in Maldives are about evil spirits and their interaction with the islanders. These stories contain always a lesson in some form or the other. Certain actions became necessary in order to avoid trouble with the spirit world. These patterns of behaviour, like the importance of keeping a secret, as well as the avoidance of certain areas of the island and of inauspicious times, were an essential component of the ancient popular spirituality.Romero-Frias, Xavier (2012) ''Folk tales of the Maldives''
NIAS Press
, , The Maldivian spirits can take human form, even if it is not known whether they have a human origin or not. While in human shape, the malevolence of those spirits is often masked by beauty and youth. Certain Maldivian evil spirits (handi) have the appearance of charming, beautiful women. These stories about female spirits have their origin in the Ancient Dravidian Village Goddess worship and they point to the ethnic origin of the Maldive people. Other evil spirits which are the subject of many folk stories in the Maldives (''furēta'') are crude monsters coming from the ocean waters. The tales about sea monsters are part of the local cultural background, which is characterized by the oceanic environment in which, along the millennia, the Maldivian culture developed.

Local fauna

Folktales where fishes, crabs and seabirds are the heroes, like the tales about Mākana, Findana, Kalhubondage Diye, Fandiyaaru Kakuni, or Don Mohonaai Miyaru, introduce us to the world of the local fauna of the Maldive Atolls, where land animals are very few. Many of these are tales for children and some are still quite popular. Although most of the stories of this type are original, a few are foreign tales or fables which have been adapted to the island context through local storytellers or by Maldivian learned men, like the late Muhammad Jamil.

Mighty sorcerers

In the ancestral oral literature of Maldivians, the sorcerer, or learned man of the island who knew the magic arts. Magic or sorcery is known in Maldives as ''fanḍita''. The Maldivian sorcerer or ''fanḍita veriyaa'' is always portrayed in the folklore of Maldivians as a hero. Only he knew how to appease the spirits that terrified the average island folk on a daily (or better nightly) basis. Some recent stories tend to cast the sorcerer in the role of a villain, but these are totally disconnected from the ancestral Maldive lore.

The conversion to Islam

According to the well-known Moroccan traveler

Ibn Batuta Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Battutah (, ; 24 February 13041368/1369),; fully: ; Arabic: commonly known as Ibn Battuta, was a Berber Maghrebi scholar and explorer who travelled extensively in the lands of Afro-Eurasia, largely in the Muslim wor ...

, the person responsible for converting the Maldivians to Islam as a

Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...

Muslim visitor named Abu al Barakat ul Barbari. He subdued rannamaari, a demon coming from the sea and convinced the King to become a Muslim. However, the more reliable local historical chronicles, ''Raadavalhi'' and ''Taarikh'', mention that this saint was actually a Persian from the city of

Tabriz Tabriz ( fa, تبریز ; ) is a city in northwestern Iran, serving as the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. It is the List of largest cities of Iran, sixth-most-populous city in Iran. In the Quri Chay, Quru River valley in Iran's historic Aze ...

, called Yusuf Shamsud-din. He is also locally known as Tabrīzugefānu. The much venerated tomb of this saint now stands opposite the grounds of Hukuru Miski, in the centre of Malé, the capital.

Local characters

Stories about local characters, like Rōnu Eduru, Kuda Tuttu Didi, Kalhukuru or Naalaafushi Fagīru (the poor man of Naalaafushi) give us a glimpse on the way of life in the Maldives when the archipelago was a kingdom, and Malé, the capital, was a quaint, laid back place. In those stories we learn much about the life in the court in Malé and about the mutual interaction between the Radun (the king of Maldives) and his subjects.

Modern variants

Since there are a great number of islands in the Maldives, many folkstories have different versions according to the particular island and the storyteller in question. In recent times some stories have been abridged by contemporary Maldivian writers, like Abdulla Sadiq or Ahumadu Sharīfu (Maradū) because of their extreme length. Other stories (Karukuru, Telabagudi and the Māmeli tales) have been sanitized, because there was much casual reference to defecation and bodily fluids, particularly in ancient folk-stories from the outer atolls, where local values found this acceptable.

The Koimala myth

Koimala Siri Mahaabarana Mahaa Radun (

Dhivehi Dhivehi, also spelled Divehi, may refer to: *Dhivehi people, an ethnic group native to the historic region of the Maldive Islands. *Dhivehi language, an Indo-Aryan language predominantly spoken by about 350,000 people in the Republic of Maldives ...

: ކޮއިމަލާ ސިރީ މަހާބަރަނަ މަހާ ރަދުން) or Koimala (

: ކޮއިމަލާ literally "flower lad") or Koimala Kalo (

: ކޮއިމަލާ ކަލޯ, literally "Lord Koimala") is a myth about the first

king King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

of all the

Maldive Islands Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

. Some versions of the Koimala myth claim that it refers to the first ruler of the Maldives after the

conversion to Islam Conversion to Islam is accepting Islam as a religion or faith and rejecting any other religion or irreligion. Requirements Converting to Islam requires one to declare the '' shahādah'', the Muslim profession of faith ("there is no god but Allah; ...

, also known as ''Dharumavantha rasgefaanu'', who ruled from 1117 to 1141. It is believed that he was also the first king from the

House of Theemuge Theemuge dynasty ( Maldivian: ތީމު ދަރިކޮޅު) or Homa Dharikolhu ( Maldivian: ހޯމަ ދަރިކޮޅު) was one of the early dynasties of the Maldives that reigned from c.1117 (or earlier) until c.1388. History According to the r ...

and the Lunar Dynasty. By other accounts he was the fourth king of the Lunar Dynastry founded by King Balaadeettiya as the Soma Vansa Kingdom; although until Koimala the house only ruled over part of the Maldives. However, ascribing the legend to the first Islamic ruler does not explain who built the large

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

monuments that are present in many inhabited islands and that were built in the first millennium AD. It also leaves without explaining the existence of an ancient kingly dynasty in the Maldives already before the conversion, as the 12th century correspondence from the king to the Sangumanun, or community of Buddhist monks, in Sathudhuvumati ( Haddummati Atoll) via copper plates proves.H.A. Maniku & G.D. Wijayawardhana, ''Isdhoo Loamaafaanu'' According to Maldivian Folklore, Koimala was a prince from the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

who arrived in

Malé Atoll Kaafu Atoll is an administrative atoll in the Republic of Maldives. It consists of two separate atolls: North Malé Atoll and South Malé Atoll. Together with smaller geographic atolls of Kaashidhoo Island and Gaafaru, the group forms the admini ...

. The people of

Giraavaru Giraavaru may refer to: * The Giraavaru people * Giraavaru (Kaafu Atoll) :''See also Giraavaru people'' Giraavaru is an island of Malé Atoll (the administrative Kaafu Atoll) nowadays hosting a tourist resort. It is located on the southwestern ...

spotted his vessel from afar and welcomed him. They allowed Prince Koimala to settle on that large sandbank in the midst of the waters tainted with fishblood. Trees were planted on the sandbank and it is said that the first tree that grew on it was the

papaya The papaya (, ), papaw, () or pawpaw () is the plant species ''Carica papaya'', one of the 21 accepted species in the genus ''Carica'' of the family Caricaceae. It was first domesticated in Mesoamerica, within modern-day southern Mexico and ...

tree. As time went by the local islanders accepted the rule of this northern prince. A palace was built and the island was formally named Maa-le (

), while the nearest island was named Hulhu-le ( Hulhulé). Since then Malé has been the seat of the Maldivian crown and now the head of state. A different account claims Koimala to be a

Sinhalese Sinhala may refer to: * Something of or related to the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka * Sinhalese people * Sinhala language, one of the three official languages used in Sri Lanka * Sinhala script, a writing system for the Sinhala language ** Sinha ...

prince of royal birth from

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. The prince is said to have married the Ceylon king's daughter and made a voyage with her in two vessels from Ceylon. Reaching the Maldives they were becalmed, and rested a while at ''Rasgetheemu'' island (meaning the King's Island) in

Northern Maalhosmadulhu Atoll Northern Maalhosmadulu Atoll (code name Raa) is an atoll from the Maldives. It includes Northern Maalhosmadulu Atoll proper and the island of Alifushi. 1. Alifushi and Etthingili (Powell Islands in the Admiralty Chart) stand on a detached reef of ...

. The Maldive Islanders who were then

Buddhists Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, learning that the two chief visitors were of royal descent from the Buddhist kingdom of Ceylon, invited them to remain and ultimately proclaimed Koimala their king at Rasgetheemu. The new king and his spouse migrated to Malé and settled there with the consent of the aborigines of Giraavaru (See

Giraavaru people The Giraavaru people are indigenous people of the Giravaaru islands that is part of Maldives. They are considered to be of Dravidian origin, and the earliest island community of the Maldives, predating Buddhism and the arrival of a Northern ki ...

) - then the most important community of Malé Atoll. Until then the Maldives is thought to have been ruled by different

matriarchies Matriarchy is a social system in which women hold the primary power positions in roles of authority. In a broader sense it can also extend to moral authority, social privilege and control of property. While those definitions apply in general En ...

in different atolls. After the settlement in Male', two vessels were dispatched to bring more people of his race to populate Male'. It wasn't tradition for the Giraavaru and perhaps other aboriginal people of the Maldives to marry outside their community. It is not clear, how much of this legend is true. Although he might have been the first king of the whole of Maldives, the story of a prince might actually be a corruption of the stories of King Soorudasaruna-Adeettiya and King Balaadeettiya- both exiled princes from the

Kalinga Kalinga may refer to: Geography, linguistics and/or ethnology * Kalinga (historical region), a historical region of India ** Kalinga (Mahabharata), an apocryphal kingdom mentioned in classical Indian literature ** Kalinga script, an ancient writ ...

Kingdom of India who founded the Solar and Lunar Dynastries of the Maldives. According to this source (''Kitab fi Athaari Meedoo el-Qadimiyyeh'' by Allama Ahmed Shihabuddine relating from The ''Maapanansa'' copper plates), Koimala or Siri Mahaabarana, the son of King Siri Bovana Aananda was the fourth king of the Lunar Dynastry and uncle to King Dhovemi (Siri Bavana-adiththa) the first Sultan (Muslim king) of the Maldives. Koimala is said to have become the King of the 14

atolls An atoll () is a ring-shaped island, including a coral rim that encircles a lagoon partially or completely. There may be coral islands or cays on the rim. Atolls are located in warm tropical or subtropical oceans and seas where corals can grow ...

and two thousand islands of the ''Dheeva Mahal''. His kingdom was referred to as being ''Malikaddu dhemedhu''- or 'all that lies between the Maliku and Addu. He fought against the Raja Dada's (or the forces of the Tamil emperor

Raja Raja Chola I Rajaraja I (947 CE – 1014 CE), born Arunmozhi Varman or Arulmozhi Varman and often described as Raja Raja the Great or Raja Raja Chozhan was a Chola emperor who reigned from 985 CE to 1014 CE. He was the most powerful Tamil king in South ...

of the

Chola empire The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BCE d ...

) Indians to claim the two northernmost atolls for the newly formed Maldivian kingdom. Koimala was succeeded by his nephew Dhovemi Kalaminja in 1141.

References

External links

Village Folk Tales Of Ceylon eBook
(Ceylon = Sri Lanka); 75 Tales; HTML formatted {{Asia in topic, Folklore of Myths of the Maldives

Maldivian culture