Minicoy, locally known as Maliku, is the southern most island in the Indian Union Territory of Lakshadweep, formerly known as the Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindivi Islands. Minicoy is further most from the territorial capital of Kavaratti island, which is 200 km away to the north of Minicoy.

The closest land to Minicoy is Thuraakunu Island in the Republic of the Maldives about 100 km to the south across the Vangaaru Channel.

Minicoy has a culture very different from any other island in the Union Territory- dress, language and food are similar to the non-Indian islands to the South.

The main language spoken in Lakshadweep is Malayalam, a Dravidian language spoken in the southern parts of mainland India. The language spoken on Minicoy is very different. It is an Indo-European language called Divehi-bas, sometimes called Mahl, which is written in a script called Thaana-akuru. This language is spoken by the Maldive islanders to the south. It is the national and official language of the Maldives