Heritage, tourism, and cultural diplomacy : Malta’s strategic projection in the Mediterranean

Abstract

At the southern threshold of Europe, Malta presents a remarkable case of historical continuity and strategic cultural projection. As has been observed, ‘Malta is at the heart of the Mediterranean… part of our heritage to be a safe haven for so many seafarers on the Mare Nostrum,’ highlighting the island’s enduring role as a crossroads of faith, culture, and human mobility.” Its small territorial footprint belies a disproportionate significance in Mediterranean history; successive waves of religious, political, and commercial exchange have left an indelible imprint on its social and material landscape. Recent archaeological research indicates that hunter-gatherer communities navigated Malta and other central Mediterranean islands well before the advent of agriculture, highlighting the island’s role as a long-standing node of maritime mobility and intercultural contact.