Images of social class through language in Malta

Abstract

The discussion on class in Malta has hitherto been dominated by politics. Since its birth in the first half of this century, the Malta Labour Party has used notions of class to develop the consciousness of "the workers", in contrast to the Nationalist Party, whose motto “religio et patria" encapsulates what, over the years were the major preoccupations of its leaders, namely the safeguarding of the community's strong religious traditions and the recognition of the political identity of this small nation in the face of centuries-old foreign political domination.