Students awarded Research Prizes

Students Bradley Cachia and Karl Sciberras were awarded prizes in recognition of the research they conducted for their 2025 Bachelor’s degree dissertations. Bradley Cachia wrote on The Theatricality of Prose According to Its Adaptation for the Stage: The Case of Fil-Parlament ma Jikbrux Fjuri and was awarded the Oliver Friggieri Prize, while Karl Sciberras authored A Sociolinguistic Analysis of Five Groups of Phonetic–Orthographic Variants and received the Ġużè Aquilina Prize. The students’ research was supervised by Prof. Immanuel Mifsud and Prof. George Farrugia.

These prizes have been awarded since 2022, with the trophies designed by the renowned artist Austin Camilleri. In this fifth year, Prof. Immanuel Mifsud, Seminar Coordinator, presented the new trophy design by the same artist. The Oliver Friggieri Prize trophy bears the quotation “iss’inti l-istaġun il-ġdid” (“now you are the new season”) from the writings of the author, while the Ġużè Aquilina Prize trophy carries the phrase “l-imfietaħ tal-fantasija huma f’idejk” (“the keys of imagination are in your hands”), taken from Aquilina’s writings.

The trophies were awarded on 13 February 2026 during the annual Dissertation Seminar organised by the Department of Maltese, which was attended by all lecturers and students of the Department. At the Seminar, two other graduates who achieved excellent results in their dissertations, Thea Pace and Kurt Theuma, also presented their research in the fields of oral culture and Maltese linguistics. Their dissertations were supervised by Ms Yanika Schembri Fava, Prof. Bernard Micallef, and Mr Dwayne Ellul.

During his presentation, Bradley Cachia provided an overview of his study in which he explored the theatricality of Oliver Friggieri’s Fil-Parlament ma Jikbrux Fjuri, comparing it with the stage adaptation presented shortly after the novel’s publication. Thea Pace discussed her research on popular religious prayers, their cultural value, and their role within Maltese religious traditions. Karl Sciberras presented the findings of his sociolinguistic study on phonetic and orthographic variants, such as “mostru” and “monstru”, considered in relation to the age and locality of the speakers he interviewed. Kurt Theuma spoke about his research on vocabulary related to the organisation of village feasts, particularly that used by enthusiasts and skilled workers in Kerċem.

The Seminar concluded with a short address by Prof. Adrian Grima, Head of Department, who praised the innovative research of all students who completed the course in 2025. He also spoke about the research community formed by lecturers and students within the Department, and its responsibility, as part of a public university, to advance knowledge and share it with the national community. This responsibility is especially significant for the department that focuses on Maltese, the national language.

During the Seminar, all students were presented with copies of the latest issue of the academic journal Riċerkaturi, featuring studies by Bachelor’s students, as well as the first issue of Qabelxejn, a journal containing studies by postgraduate students.

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Studenti jingħataw Premju għar-Riċerka

Bradley Cachia u Karl Sciberras ingħataw premju għar-riċerka li għamlu fit-teżini tal-Baċellerat tal-2025. Bradley Cachia kiteb fuq It-Teatralità fil-Proża Skont l-Addattament Tagħha għat-Teatru: Il-Każ ta’ “Fil-Parlament ma Jikbrux Fjuri” u ngħata l-Premju Oliver Friggieri, waqt li Karl Sciberras kiteb Analiżi Soċjolingwistika ta’ Ħames Gruppi ta’ Varjanti Fonetiċi-Ortografiċi u ngħata l-Premju Ġużè Aquilina. Ir-riċerka ta’ dawn l-istudenti tmexxiet mill-Prof. Immanuel Mifsud u l-Prof. George Farrugia.

Dawn il-premjijiet bdew jingħataw fl-2022 u t-trofej ġew iddisinjati mill-artist magħruf Austin Camilleri. F’din il-ħames sena, il-Prof. Immanuel Mifsud, kordinatur tas-Seminar, ippreżenta d-disinn il-ġdid tat-trofej mill-istess artist. Fuq it-trofew tal-Premju Oliver Friggieri hemm is-silta “iss’inti l-istaġun il-ġdid” mill-kitba tal-awtur, u fuq it-trofew tal-Premju Ġużè Aquilina hemm il-frażi “l-imfietaħ tal-fantasija huma f’idejk” meħuda mill-kitba ta’ Aquilina.

Il-premjazzjoni saret fit-13 ta’ Frar 2026 waqt is-Seminar annwali tat-Teżini tad-Dipartiment tal-Malti għal-letturi u l-istudenti kollha tad-Dipartiment tal-Malti. Fis-Seminar, żewġ gradwati oħrajn li marru tajjeb ħafna fit-teżina tagħhom, Thea Pace u Kurt Theuma, ippreżentaw ir-riċerka li għamlu fil-qasam tal-kultura orali u l-lingwistika Maltija. Il-proġetti ta’ riċerka tagħhom tmexxew mis-Sa Yanika Schembri Fava, il-Prof. Bernard Micallef, u s-Sur Dwayne Ellul.

Waqt il-preżentazzjoni tiegħu fis-Seminar, Bradley Cachia ta tagħrif dwar l-istudju li fih esplora t-teatralità ta’ Fil-Parlament ma Jikbrux Fjuri ta’ Oliver Friggieri li pparagunah mal-verżjoni teatrali li kienet ġiet ippreżentata ftit wara li ħareġ ir-rumanz. Thea Pace ddiskutiet ir-riċerka tagħha dwar talbiet reliġjużi popolari u l-valur kulturali u s-sehem li għandhom fit-tradizzjonijiet reliġjużi Maltin. Karl Sciberras ippreżenta r-riżultati li ħarġu mill-istudju soċjolingwistiku tiegħu dwar varjanti fonetiċi u ortografiċi, bħal “mostru” u “monstru,” fid-dawl tal-età u l-lokalità li fiha jgħixu l-kelliema li intervista. Kurt Theuma tħaddet fuq ir-riċerka tiegħu dwar il-vokabolarju marbut mal-armar tal-festi, speċjalment dak tad-dilettanti u l-ħaddiema tas-sengħa ta’ Kerċem.

Is-seminar intemm b’diskors tal-Professur Adrian Grima, il-Kap tad-Dipartiment, li faħħar ir-riċerka aġġornata u innovattiva tal-istudenti kollha li temmew il-kors fl-2025. Tkellem ukoll fuq il-komunità ta’ riċerka magħmula mil-letturi u l-istudenti fi ħdan id-Dipartiment u r-responsabbiltà ta’ din il-komunità bħala parti minn Università pubblika li għandha d-dmir li tkabbar l-għarfien u taqsmu mal-komunità nazzjonali. Dan jgħodd b’mod speċjali għad-Dipartiment tal-Malti, l-ilsien nazzjonali.

Waqt is-Seminar id-Dipartiment tal-Malti ppreżenta lill-istudenti kollha kopji tal-aħħar għadd tar-rivista akkademika Riċerkaturi, bi studji tal-istudenti tal-Baċellerat, u l-ewwel għadd ta’ Qabelxejn, rivista bi studji miktubin mill-istudenti postgradwatorji.

Ir-ritratti ttieħdu minn James Moffett mill-Uffiċċju tal-Marketing, il-Komunikazzjoni u l-Alumni.