ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއް
“ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއް” (baajjaveri haveereh) — good evening in Maldivian. Phrase, level A0, topic — greetings and goodbyes. haveeru is the evening before sunset, the one you know from haveerugai. After sunset and before sleep people wish baajjaveri reygandeh. In a live sentence: “ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއް، މި މޭޒު ހުހަށްތަ؟” — Good evening, is this table free? You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters ބ, ާ, އ, ް, ޖ, ަ, ވ, ެ, ރ, ި, ހ, ަ.
In short
| Written in Maldivian | ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއް |
| Read in Latin letters | baajjaveri haveereh |
| Translation | good evening |
| Part of speech | phrase |
| Level | A0 |
- ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއްbaajjaveri haveerehgood evening
Why it looks that way
haveeru is the evening before sunset, the one you know from haveerugai. After sunset and before sleep people wish baajjaveri reygandeh
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
- ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއް، މި މޭޒު ހުހަށްތަ؟baajjaveri haveereh, mi meyzu huhashtha?Good evening, is this table free?
Nearby words: greetings and goodbyes
Every conversation starts here, and so does every first impression: say hello in the local language and you stop being a stranger in about a second.
- ސަލާމްsalaamhelloAn all-purpose greeting for any time of day
- ކިހިނެއް؟kihineh?how are you?The ؟ sign is mirrored, because Thaana runs right to left. Literally just 'how?'; the standard answer is rangalhu
- ކިހިނެއްތޯ؟kihinehthoa?how are you (polite)?The polite upgrade: the particle -thoa raises the register. Among peers people simply say kihineh
- ފަހުންfahunsee you laterLiterally 'later'. When parting, Maldivians more often say dhanee ('I'm off') or fahun ('later') than any long farewell
- ހެނދުނުގެ ސަލާމްhendhunuge salaamgood morningThe island greets with salaam at any hour and needs no morning greeting; 'morning's salaam' is what sounds on the radio, on stage and in letters
- ދެން ދަނީdhen dhaneegoodbyePeople leave with an act, not a phrase: 'well, I'm off', and the answer comes back. On the radio and on paper the Arabic assalaamu alaykum closes the conversation
- ބާއްޖަވެރި މެންދުރެއްbaajjaveri mendhurehgood afternoonbaajjaveri is 'propitious', mendhuru is 'noon', and the tail -eh means 'a …': you wish a good noon. The morning gets the same treatment
- ބާއްޖަވެރި ރޭގަނޑެއްbaajjaveri reygandehgood nightreygandu is the night, known from reygandugai. It's said when parting for the night; settling in, people add a wish for 'joyful sleep'
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “greetings and goodbyes”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “good evening” in Maldivian?
haveeru is the evening before sunset, the one you know from haveerugai. After sunset and before sleep people wish baajjaveri reygandeh
- How do you say “good afternoon” in Maldivian?
baajjaveri is 'propitious', mendhuru is 'noon', and the tail -eh means 'a …': you wish a good noon. The morning gets the same treatment
- How do you say “good morning” in Maldivian?
The island greets with salaam at any hour and needs no morning greeting; 'morning's salaam' is what sounds on the radio, on stage and in letters
- How do you say “how are you (polite)?” in Maldivian?
The polite upgrade: the particle -thoa raises the register. Among peers people simply say kihineh
- How do you say “hello” in Maldivian?
An Arabic loanword meaning 'peace' — the same word you hear in as-salamu alaykum. One word covers both hi and hello, neutral in politeness
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “good evening” in Maldivian?
«ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއް», read “baajjaveri haveereh”. In a live sentence: “ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއް، މި މޭޒު ހުހަށްތަ؟” — Good evening, is this table free? You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Phrase, level A0, from the set “greetings and goodbyes”; written with the characters ބ, ާ, އ, ް, ޖ, ަ, ވ, ެ, ރ, ި, ހ, ަ.
How is “ބާއްޖަވެރި ހަވީރެއް” written in Latin letters?
baajjaveri haveereh. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
haveeru is the evening before sunset, the one you know from haveerugai. After sunset and before sleep people wish baajjaveri reygandeh. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how it sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.