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Meedhoo
 Meedhoo
is located on the North Eastern side of the Atoll
adjoining the island of Hulhudhoo to the South and
is among the largest islands in Maldives. The is
land has a rich history and regarded as one of the
first places in the Maldives to be inhabited and in
fact the oldest populated island in Addu Atoll.
The people of Meedhoo
are famous for been intelligent, intellectual and
educational. It was a place of the finest scholars
in Maldives in early ages. Meedhoo is located about
528.90 kilometers South of the capital island of
Maldives. It has a population of 2456.
Meedhoo landscape is also mainly of palms trees and
tropical shrubs as in other islands in Addu Atoll,
the island consists of small roads, close lanes,
large number of closely built houses, only a few has
a second floor, green vegetation surrounds most of
the housing compounds, specially coconut palm and
banana trees, and are regarded as part domestic
agriculture.
Hulhudhoo and Meedhoo islands are naturally one
island as in Maradhoo and Maradhoo- Feydhoo on the
western side of the atoll. At one point the island
was called Hulhumeedhoo, and had a one
administrative office and was regarded as one
island. Early days the two communities were
separated with a large mangrove tree standing in a
muddy land area.
This area has later become as a border between two
communities of Hulhumeedhoo. Some difference of
opinion , historical and cultural backgrounds of the
two communities enforced them to be independent of
each other and hence declared separation. Today the
two communities live side by side with peace and
harmony under two different administrative divisions
and are regarded as two different islands eve though
the island is naturally one island.
MEEDHOO, A PLACE OF HISTORY MAKERS
Meedhoo, one of
the largest and important islands in the Maldives,
is an island of uniqueness by itself, a harmonious
blending of knowledge and craftsmanship, the piety
and sincerity of its people who live in a thickly
vegetated atmosphere of traditional and modern
outlooks, mingle to create unique ambience. Is-Meedhoo,
as we knew it
for so long, though Meedhoo as is officially
declared now – is an age-old name, intertwined in
the history of Maldives for its role and
contribution towards the religious scholarship.
Meedhoo is justly
famed for the line of
erudite scholars
it has produced for generations past. Since the
sixteenth century not less than eight natives of
Meedhoo have filled the high office of
Fandiyaaru, or Qazi, at Male’. To this
day, Meedhoo ‘Ulamma’ and other noted
ecclesiastics, hold their own, or more, with those
of the Capital.
Despite its far distant situation and comparatively
small size in population, Meedhoo has ever
maintained an importance in Maldivian affairs out of
all proportions to its territorial insignificance.
It has long established its fame in the group for
the sturdy independence and reliability of its
inhabitants, their robust physique, peaceful
character, and general intellectual equipment
(especially marked in religious lore, and Arabic
scholarship) which has earned merited admiration from the islanders of
other atolls. |
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