Feridhoo (

Dhivehi Dhivehi, also spelled Divehi, is the main language, used in the Maldive Islands. This may refer to: *Dhivehi people, an ethnic group native to the historic region of the Maldive Islands *Dhivehi language, an Indo-Aryan language predominantly spoke ...

: ފެރިދޫ) is one of the inhabited islands of Ari Atoll, located on its eastern fringe. It belongs to the

Alif Alif Atoll Alif Alif Atoll (also known as Northern Ari Atoll or Ari Atholhu Uthuruburi) is an administrative division of the Maldives. It was created on March 1, 1984, combining northern section of Ari Atoll, the small Rasdhukuramathi Atoll, and the isolat ...

administrative division.

History

In centuries past, two male African

slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

who had been bought by the kings on their Hajj trips to Mecca were formally released from slavery and were settled in this island. One of them was called Sangoru. He had been working for years at the palace in Malé before the ailing king released him in order to gain merit in the afterlife. The freeing of slaves before the death of the owner was traditionally a common practice among the very high nobility in the Maldives. Now there are many families on Feridhoo and in neighboring Maalhos who can trace their descendency to those two African ancestors. one of the most famous families amongst this family is Abdhul Razzaq's family famous for boduberu

Geography

The island is west of the country's capital,

Malé Malé is the capital and most populous city of the Maldives. With a population of 211,908 in 2022 within its administrative area and coterminous geographical area of , Malé is one of the most densely populated cities in the world. The city i ...

Demography

References

Xavier Romero-Frias Xavier or Xabier may refer to: Place * Xavier, Spain People * Xavier (surname) * Xavier (given name) * Francis Xavier (1506–1552), Catholic saint ** St. Francis Xavier (disambiguation) * St. Xavier (disambiguation) * Xavier (footballer, born ...

, ''The Maldive Islanders, A Study of the Popular Culture of an Ancient Ocean Kingdom.'' 1999, Islands of the Maldives {{Maldives-geo-stub