Bibliographic tools for Maltese historical research in the electronic age : some considerations

Abstract

Since the middle of the 1970s, the output of published and unpublished scholarly research on an increasing variety of areas pertaining to Maltese history, has been considerable. This has been the case particularly when assessed in the light of local constraints, namely of limited professional opportunities for Ph.D history graduates, coupled with an equally limited reading audience. Running parallel – indeed a contributing factor to this – was a gradual process of opening up of overseas archival holdings to researchers, or else making those already accessible better known. My intention here is to briefly discuss the present situation where accessibility to archival, manuscript and published sources for Maltese history is concerned with a view of presenting a model as to how this can be improved, making possible research in new areas or in those which have been more or less ignored due to lack of sources. Greater knowledge and use of sources should also result in more complete historical studies where factual historical knowledge and its interpretation are concerned.