The caste system in the Maldives is the social stratification system found among the ethnic groups of the islands.
The history of the stratification of the Maldivian social structure is not fully documented. However, the French explorer François Pyrard de Laval, who spent five years in the Maldives following a shipwreck in 1602, wrote an account of the islands in the early 17th century and made reference of the existence of caste-like groupings (status-groups) in Maldivian culture. A basic summary of the early castes or caste-like groupings is seen from the writings of Carl Wilhelm Rosset (1887), the materials of J. Gardiner's trip, and a number of works by H.C.P. Bell. In his book The Reha, Ibn Batuta says that both the high and low castes of the Maldives all go barefoot as evidence of caste existence. Among the South Asian countries, caste system is mentioned to be in existence in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Bhutan.
In the past, the Maldives had a caste system, with the , or palm-sap tappers, belonging to the lowest caste. However, caste differences were never as common in the Maldives as they were in the other nations. The distinction between the nobility () and the common people in society was given more emphasis in the Maldives than it was in the Vedic caste system. There are no longer any customary differences, and there are also no marital restrictions in the Maldive sociocultural pattern.
Maldivian society serves as an example of a social structure that has lately shed a lot of stratification related characteristics while still perhaps holding onto certain remnants of the former caste society. Intriguingly, the social groupings that make up the highest social class in modern society — the aristocracy, as well as low caste groups like the Raaveri—are where the most pronounced vestiges are found.
Perhaps the most impressive proof of the social hierarchy's importance can be found in the Maldivian language. It maintains a quite complex system of honorific degrees that unifies common speech with this intricate social stratification. Various forms have a variety of versions, which are chosen based on the social position of the dialogue's participants.
Account of caste system in 1885 In 1885, during his visit to Malé, C.W. Rosset observed that the beds in the region were made of different materials based on caste. The higher castes used brass chains, the middle castes used iron chains, while the lower castes used coiled ropes to suspend the beds.
The beddings of different castes in Malé vary in materials and quality. The higher castes used red silk for their mattresses and pillows, the middle castes use cotton sheets, while the lower castes sleep on straw. Additionally, the mat used to cover the straw mattress was designed with patterns and quality that are determined by the caste of the owner.
C.W. Rosset mentions that several times when he visited the lower caste homes, the women of the home would participate in the conversation while always remaining invisible in their home.
C.W. Rosset mentions in his journal during his visit in 1885 that the lower caste formed 60 percent of the Maldives population.
Caste divisions were strictly upheld in Malé even during 1885.
Abolishment of caste system in 1968 This caste system was eliminated after the founding of the republic in 1968; as of now, just a few of its remnants remain.
Segregation of caste Occupational segregation in Maldives where the island of a given craft was isolated to others, is distinctive proof of the persistence of caste.
The craftsmen like the weavers, goldsmiths, locksmiths, blacksmiths, mat-weavers, potters, turners, and the carpenters and others, are all situated in different islands. In other words, their craftsmen do not mix; each craft has its own island. And people have also adhered to this rule.
Men of the jeweler caste and trade live in the islands of Rinbudhoo, Hulhudheli and Nilande Atoll. (toddy-drawers) live in Thakandhoo, Uligan, Berimadu, and Tiffardu, three of the Thiladhunmathi province's islands.
Surname and name structure
Three parts make up the traditional Maldivian name, as examples Maakana Kudatuttu Didi or Dhoondeyri Ali Manikfan.
The surname was the first element, and the given name—or a word of affection like Tuttu, Kuda, or Don—or a combination of a term and a given name, as Kuda Hussain or Don Mariyambu—was the second element.
The third component, which was optional, signified status and/or cognomen via affiliation or birth.
Traditional birth ranks and cognomen included Manippulu, Goma, Kalaa, Kambaa, Rahaa, Manikfan, Didi, Seedi, Sitti, Maniku, Manike, Thakurufan, Thakuru, Kalo, Soru, Manje, and others.
The family surname was primarily patrilinearly transmitted. However, matrilinear transfer of surnames was not unusual. Which parent had a better social and economical situation determined this. The historically materialistic Maldivians would have given the children their mother's last name if the mother had more material possessions and better connections than the father.
Name inheritance In the service of kings and nobles, slaves were frequently promoted to important positions. Sometimes, the given names of their slave ancestors were adopted as surnames by their descendants. For instance, a family by the name of Yaagoot descended from a slave by the same name who worked as a slave for a Diyamigili sultan in the eighteenth century. An African Negro slave by the name of Heyna who belonged to Sultan Mohamed Imaduddine IV in the nineteenth century was the ancestor of a family by that name.
Offices and titles Offices were more practical than titles and were not given to holders for life. The held the highest positions.
The majority of the titles and positions shared names, with the only distinction being the removal of the suffix ().
Faarhanaa, Rannabandeyri, Dorhimeyna, Faamuladeyri, Maafaiy, and Handeygiri or Handeygirin were among the offices. One of the was usually the prime minister (Bodu Vizier).
However, there have been several instances of prime ministers who were either or had no other positions.
The Faarhanaa, the Rannabandeyri, or the Handeygirin would have been the most likely candidates for prime minister among the .
Usually, the Dorhimeyna served as the military's commander-in-chief.
Vazirs The , or ministers, were ranked below the in the sultans' and sultanas' courts. The line separating the ministers from the sometimes blurred in subsequent years.
The terms and ministers were frequently used interchangeably, with replacing the term in ordinary speech.
The chief admiral and foreign minister was the Velaanaa (or Velaanaa-Shahbandar), the minister of public works was the Hakuraa, the chief treasurer was the Bodubandeyri, the chief of palace staff was the Maabandeyri, who was in charge of maintaining the royal seal known as the Kattiri Mudi, and the commander of the land forces was the Daharaa (or Daharada).
Division heads Below the ministers, there were a number of smaller positions, such as the Meerubahuru, who oversaw immigration and the port of Malé.
There was also the Faiylia, who was in charge of keeping records of public business.
Chief justice The Uttama Fandiyaaru, or chief justice, had authority over the . The chief justice was in charge of ecclesiastical and civil justice, as well as the maintenance of mosques, cemeteries, charity trusts, religious rites, and the approval of marriage and divorce.
He was also in charge of keeping the Tarikh, the official history book. The Bandaara Naibu, or the Attorney General, and the Chief Justice, shared responsibilities for criminal justice.
Governors The , or regional governors, acted as the sultan or sultana in the distant provinces ("atolls"). In the Maldive language, from which the word atoll () has been borrowed, atoll () refers to a province rather than a coral reef enclosing a lagoon.
Atoll's English counterpart in the Maldives is .
The , who was (and is now) the principal temporal and spiritual authority, served as the sultan or sultana's representative on each particular populated island or settlement. For the benefit of the or chief treasurer, the and the administered criminal justice and gathered the (poll tax) and (land tax).
In Malé, the of Henveyru, Maafannu, Macchangoli, and Galollu had the temporal responsibilities of the regional as well as the 's tasks. In Malé, the were in charge of maintaining public lands, maintaining law and order, and administering criminal justice. Malé's were solely religious officials.
Gazi Every island had a (now known as Qadi or Gazi), who served as the chief justice's representative. The was in charge of administering criminal justice as well as civil and religious justice.
He also approved marriage and divorce as well as the management of charity trusts known as . Each island had a who served as the chief justice's representative and was in charge of maintaining mosques and graveyards.
Kilege The was the highest honor bestowed by the Maldives' sultans and sultanas. The following titles have been bestowed throughout the previous four to five centuries of the monarchy: Ras Kilege, to both men and women.
All of the following are solely available to men: Faarhanaa Kilege, Rannabandeyri Kilege, Dorhimeyna Kilege, Faamuladeyri Kilege, Maafaiy Kilege, Kaulannaa Kilege, Oliginaa Kilege, Daharada Kilege, Kuda Rannabandeyri Kilege, and Kuda Dorhimeyna Kilege.
Only Rani Kilege, Maavaa Kilege, Kambaadi Kilege, and Maanayaa Kilege were given to women.
Over the past several hundred years, the term has acquired the optional and honorific suffix "".
The king-sultan or the queen-sultana were the ex-officio Ras Kilege. The other , who were also referred to as amirs or commanders of the realm, should not be confused with (or ), which is either a term of low status or an honorary method of addressing or referring to holy individuals.
A person and his or her immediate family are promoted to the aristocracy when they are given the title of , which were no inherited titles, though.
Kangathi The term "" was a lesser title. These were frequently given to well-known regional figures or occasionally to Malé's middle class.
In contrast to the nobles, the awardees were not recognized as aristocrats.
Maafahaiy, Meyna, Ranahamaanthi, Gadahamaanthi, Hirihamaanthi, Fenna, Wathabandeyri, Kaannaa, Daannaa, and Fandiaiy were some of the titles.
No instance of a woman receiving a title has been documented.
Ranks The names of the title-holders and officials, from the down to the and , were prefixed to their given names. In normal use, this would have been prefixed with a cognomen designating status by birth; this practice was presumably carried over from the pre-Islamic civilizations' caste systems.
These cognomen might have included everything from: The names of their offices would have been prefixed with Manikfan for Seedis, children and grandchildren of , members of previous royal dynasties, and Thakurufan or Takkhan for middle-class individuals, and Kaleyfan or Kaleyge for lower-class individuals.
For instance, if a chief judge named Ibrahim had been born into the upper class, he would have gone by the names Ibrahim Uttama Fandiyaaru Manikfan and Ibrahim Uttama Fandiyaaru Kaleygefan. Regardless of his place of origin, he would have been addressed as Ibrahim Uttama Fandiyaaru, or the Subject Chief Justice Ibrahim, in all royal warrants, writs, and ceremonies.
The were the exceptions to this rule; their names were solely prefixed with their , regardless of status at birth. The recipient and his or her family were raised to the ranks of the aristocracy by the title, which transcended any status attained by birth.
Royals