Addu Atoll

Coordinates: 0°39′S 73°10′E / 0.65°S 73.16°E / -0.65; 73.16
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the geographic atoll "Addu Atoll" and its components. For the administrative Addu Atoll, see Addu City.

Addu
Native name:
އައްޑޫ
Addu Atoll seen from space. Note the continuous reef fringing Addu from the west and southwest.
Addu is located in Maldives
Addu
Addu
Location in Maldives
Geography
LocationIndian Ocean
Coordinates0°39′S 73°10′E / 0.65°S 73.16°E / -0.65; 73.16
Total islands29
Area130 km2 (50 sq mi)(lagoon)
15 km2 (5.8 sq mi) (land area)
Administration
Demographics
Population33,694 (2013)

Addu Atoll, also known as Seenu Atoll, is the southernmost

Gan, where Gan International Airport
is located.

Geography

Unlike other atolls of the Maldives, Addu Atoll has a lagoon that is a natural anchorage, accessible through four natural channels. This results in a natural harbour that is very calm and safe for sea vessels at all times and is not affected by seasonal changes. The four channels are arranged around the atoll as follows: the Kuda channel and the nearby Maa channel are on the north, the Gan channel is on the south, and the broad Villingili channel is on the southeast.

The islands are protected from the storms and high waves of the Indian Ocean by barrier reefs. Coconut palms, the national tree, are able to grow almost everywhere on the islands of Addu Atoll. There are small lakes, wetlands, and marshy taro fields that are unique to Addu Atoll.

History

During the

Second World War, Addu Atoll was the site of a secret Royal Navy base called HMS Haitan, to take advantage of the deep anchorage and sheltered natural harbour there.[1] Oil tanks and storage facilities were built on Gan island, together with an airstrip and a flying boat base. The base remained unknown to the Axis throughout the early years of the war.[2]
In 1957 the base was transferred to the Royal Air Force as RAF Gan, before being closed down in 1975. The island is now the site of Gan International Airport.

Biology

The cosmopolitan

El Niño
). The bright and healthy corals start at the top of giris and thilas (about 1 meter [3 ft] under the surface) and slope down with the reef to a depth of 30 meters (98 ft) or more.

Inhabited islands

Uninhabited islands

Linguistics

The spoken dialect is Addu dialect, and though it has similarities to the "Mulaku dialect" of

Dhivehi language. Traditionally, Addu dialect was widely spoken amongst the educated masses of three different atolls in the south, who adopted it as their lingua franca. It has also been credited with being the most famous and widespread single dialect in the Republic of Maldives. However, when Addu declared independence and recognized itself as the United Suvadive Republic
, the Malé dialect rather than Addu dialect was used in official correspondence. Nevertheless, despite the difference in dialects, the written version is common throughout the Maldives.

Culture

Long ago Addu City was ruled by families appointed by the sultans in Malé, and may have had a matrilineal system of inheritance; it is very much a man's world today. There was a recent period in Addu history when the status quo changed for a while, when a more matriarchal society developed and women became the breadwinners.

Addu Atoll has some of the earliest known settlements recorded in the country—specifically, on the island of

Meedhoo
in the far north of the atoll.

References

  1. HMSO
    (ISBN none) p25
  2. ^ Britain's Secret Base; Mike Beninghof, Sept 2018, at avalanchepress.com: Retrieved 12 November 2019
  3. ^ Staff, M. D. (3 February 2018). "Maldives' Wetlands Help Fight Climate Change". Modern Diplomacy. Retrieved 23 February 2019.

Bibliography

  • Frampton, Victor; Grobmeier, A. H.; Johnson, Harold & Pitt, G. L. B. (2003). "British Naval Base at Addu Atoll". Warship International. XL (2): 126–128.
    ISSN 0043-0374
    .

External links

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Addu.
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