What is the name of the island nation situated south of India?

The Maldives is located 300 miles southwest of India's coast. The island nation consists of more than 1,100 coral islands, 200 of which are inhabited, and there are 80 islands without tourist accommodations. The island of Sri Lanka is also located south of India to the east.

The islands that make up the Maldives are grouped into 26 atolls oriented from north to south, and they are considered a part of Southern Asia. The Maldives are surrounded by the Indian Ocean to the south, the Arabian Sea to west and the Laccadive Sea to the north and east. Its total area is approximately 185 square miles, roughly 1.7 times the size of Washington, D.C.