Maldivian (, or , ) is an
Indo-Aryan language predominantly spoken by about 350,000 people in the
Maldives, where it is the national language. It is also the
first language of nearly 10,000 people on the island of
Minicoy in the
Union territory of Lakshadweep, India, where the Mahl dialect of the Maldivian language is spoken. The ethnic
autonym for the language,
Divehi, is occasionally found in English as
Dhivehi (spelled according to the locally used
Malé Latin for romanization of the Maldivian language), which is the official spelling as well as the common usage in the
Maldives. Maldivian is written in the
Thaana script.