Getting to know us

Abstract

The Maltese archipelago consists of a group of five islands situated approximately sixty miles from Sicily and one hundred and twenty miles from the North African shore. Malta, the largest island, has an area of about ninety-five square miles and its sister island, Gozo, an area of about twenty-six square miles. The remaining three islands are barren and uninhabited. Over the past decade, the population has remained stable at about 325,000 with over 90% living in Malta and the other 10% residing in Gozo. Malta has been conquered by a succession of peoples including the Romans and the Arabs. This has resulted in a culture which portrays vividly the different racial influences. However, when Malta became a British colony in 1814, a process of anglocization was initiated which has had lasting effects on Maltese social and political life despite the achievement of independence in 1964. Malta became a Republic a decade later. The majority of Maltese can trace their cultural roots to other countries, the main ones being Italy and Britain and at the beginning of the century loyalties were often divided between Malta and one or the other of these countries. With the formal creation of a Maltese language, Maltese nationalism began to develop, blurring the old loyalties and creating allegiance to the notion of a Maltese State. Religion is a further unifying force as 95% of the population are of Roman Catholic faith.