https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/22404 Sat, 20 Jun 2026 04:01:32 GMT 2026-06-20T04:01:32Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/34871 Title: Word initial consonant clusters in Libyan Arabic Abstract: Investigating the phonological differences in syllable structure between Classical or Modern Standard Arabic and different dialects of Arabic is an interesting and expanding field in work on the phonetics and phonology of Arabic. Whilst empty onsets are not permitted in Classical or Modern Standard Arabic, complex onsets are likewise not permitted. This dissertation aims specifically to investigate onsets in Libyan Arabic, one of the dialects of Arabic which, although it has received some attention, still deserves further study. As is often the case with dialects of Arabic, particularly those which have been in direct contact with other languages such as Berber, Italian, and English, the possibility of the existence of complex onsets could be higher as a result of contact. Description: M.A.LINGUISTICS Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/34871 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/34793 Title: Politeness in Maltese English : a small-scale study of how Maltese English is influenced linguistically by British English and Maltese when showing politeness Abstract: The aim of this study is to investigate how Maltese English is influenced by British English and Maltese when it comes to the expression of politeness. The bilingual context of Malta is quite particular, as the majority of Maltese native speakers have high proficiency in both languages, making it an interesting question to see which one of the two language varieties affect or maybe even dominate the way in which Maltese English expresses politeness. In this study, I will take an experimental approach in which I will observe audio data collected from the three varieties: British English, Maltese and Maltese English and compare them in terms of lexis (hedges and mitigators) and phonology - intonation. I will then look for similarities across the three varieties to determine towards which variety Maltese English leans more when expressing politeness linguistically. Description: B.A.(HONS)LINGUISTICS Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/34793 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/25434 Title: An investigation into spatial relations in Maltese for image captioning Abstract: The main goal of this dissertation is to create a dataset which will then serve for future development in relation to image-captioning systems. This will therefore be an empirical study which will basically focus on the Maltese language and pay particular attention to the spatial relations involved in images. Maltese language was chosen for the sake of this study since it is considered to be an understudied language and hence develop some more Maltese data, since not much it is to be found. Thanks to the results gathered by means of the online questionnaires, machine learning are conducted in order to predict the prepositions (spatial relations). It will in the future help Artificial Intelligence in developing for example later on an image caption system in Maltese. Description: B.SC.(HONS)HUMAN LANG.TECH. Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/25434 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/25428 Title: Automatic Maltese WordNet construction Abstract: This project’s main aim is to find a method with which a Maltese WordNet can be constructed automatically. The method proposed involves the translation of the Common Base Concepts which are provided by the Global WordNet Association. The translation of these concepts is to be done using a Maltese-English dictionary and a multilingual semantic network. The main challenges that are encountered in this study is the coverage of Common Base Concepts that can be found in the lexical resources as well as the accuracy of the translations provided. If need be, a combination of both resources will also be considered. The methods will be assessed through surveys, the results obtained will shed light on the performance of the method. Description: B.SC.(HONS)HUMAN LANG.TECH. Sun, 01 Jan 2017 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/25428 2017-01-01T00:00:00Z