Etymology
The ancient name of Maliku (Minicoy) was Mahiladū, mahila (women) + dū (island) meaning women's island. However, now Minicoy is called Maliku in the local language. The name Maliku is thought to have been derived from the Arab trader's term for the island, Jazirat al-Maliku ('the island of the king'). Since it was the ancient capital of Lakshadweepa.
Minicoy islanders have long settled in the Nicobar Islands across the Bay of Bengal. These settlers regularly travelled back to Minicoy. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands had a reputation in the Maldives and Minicoy of being inhabited by cannibals, and so collectively the Andaman and Nicobar groups were called "Minikaa-raajje" by Maldive and Minicoy islanders. This meant "cannibal kingdom".
A British official once asked a Minicoy islander what the name of his island was. The islander told the official that he was from Maliku but usually lived in "Minikaa-raajje" (Nicobar). The good official thought Maliku and Minikaa were the same place and recorded the name of this islander's home as "Minikaa". This later became Anglicised as Minicoy.
Little did this islander know that as a result of this cross-cultural exchange, his home would forever be called by a name that sounded like "cannibal" in his own language.
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