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Dhivehi is the
unique native language
spoken by the Maldivians (People of the Republic of Maldives) and it is the
official language.
English is widely spoken by most government officials,
business sectors and the main taught language at schools. As Maldivians are originated from Indo-Ariyan
origin, it is constrained to the small population of the country. Many
languages
(dialect of Sinhala, script derived from Arabic) have influenced the development of Dhivehi
from the beginning. Dhivehi is written using a unique script, called
Thaana, from right to left. The language must have originated from the first
settlers of the Maldives and evolved over time with the influence of different
visitors who frequented the Maldives.
With its deep-rooted Islamic traditions, Arabic is also a familiar language to
the majority while not many are fluent in it. Some Maldivians working in the
tourism sector converse in other languages such as French, Italian, German and
Japanese.
This is a small but useful guide to Dhivehi
Language, if you are visiting Maldives or just want to know a bit of Divehi,
you can benefit from this
free mini Dhivehi dictionary.
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