Facts at a Glance
Full country name: Republic of Malta
Area: 320 sq km (124 sq mi)
Population: 376,000
Capital city: Valletta (pop: 92000)
People: Arab, Sicilian, Norman, Spanish
Language: Maltese and English
Religion: Roman Catholic (98%)
Government: Constitutional parliamentary monarchy
President: Ugo Mifsud Bonnici
Prime Minister: Eddie Fenech Adami
The Maltese archipelago consists of three islands lying in the middle of the Mediterranean, 93km (57mi) south of Sicily and 350km (217mi) north of Libya. Malta, the largest, is shaped like a bottle of port, and is indented by many bays and harbours. Aside from a few low ridges and outcrops, Malta is pretty flat and composed mainly of limestone.
Gozo is greener and hillier than Malta, and its coast has high rugged cliffs. The islands' soil is generally thin and rocky, yielding very little flora. The main exception is Buskett Gardens, a lush valley of trees and orange groves protected by the imposing Dingli Cliffs on the southwestern coast of Malta.
Malta has an excellent climate, though it can get up to 30°C (86°F) in midsummer (July to August) and when the hot sirocco winds blow in from Africa. Rainfall is heaviest from November to February, though it's low year-round. The lowest average daily high temperature, about 15°C (59°F), occurs during January.
Malta's odd position - near major Mediterranean shipping routes yet out of the way - has resulted in long stretches of isolation punctuated with often violent episodes of foreign intrusion. The island's oldest legacy is the megalithic temples that date from as far back as 3800 BC. The Phoenicians colonised the islands around 800 BC and stayed for about 600 years. The Romans made Malta part of their empire in 208 BC.
Apart from Ulysses's stay on Gozo (known as Calypso's Isle), the most famous visitor to the island was the apostle Paul, who was shipwrecked on Malta in 60 AD. Tradition has it that he converted the islanders to Christianity, although Biblical and scientific scholars now suggest he may have been wrecked on Kefallinía in Greece. Several hundred years of peaceful isolation followed, until Arabs from North Africa arrived in 870. The Arabs exerted a powerful influence on the Maltese, introducing citrus fruits and cotton and warping the language. Norman invaders from Sicily displaced the Arabs in 1090, and for the next 400 years Malta remained under Sicilian sway.
In 1530 the Emperor of Spain gave the islands to the Knights of the Order of St John of Jerusalem, in exchange for a rent of two Maltese falcons a year. The Knights, formed during the Crusades, were a dumping ground for those younger members of the European aristocracy who didn't stand to inherit property. They fortified the islands - just in time for an invasion of 30,000 Turks in 1565. The Turks laid siege to Malta for three months, but 700 knights and 8000 Maltese managed to hold them off. The knights were hailed as the saviours of Europe. For their pains they were awarded a newly designed and fortified city, Valletta.
With fame and power came corruption, and the knights turned to piracy. By the time Napoleon arrived in 1798, they were too enfeebled to put up a fight. It was the British who aided the Maltese in their fight against the French and, by 1814, Malta was a British colony. Britain turned Malta into a major naval base, making it an inviting target for the Axis during WWII. After a long blockade and five months of non-stop bombing raids, Malta was devastated.
Soon after the war, Malta began moving away from Britain and toward independence, achieving complete autonomy in 1964. By 1979, however, the government was signing agreements with Libya, the Soviet Union and North Korea, much to the chagrin of Britain and its allies. This flirtation with Communism ended with the victory of the Nationalist Party in 1987, which began leading Malta toward membership in the European Union. Trade and light industry have always been mainstays of Malta's economy, but tourism has been gaining in importance in recent decades.
GDP: US$4.4 billion
GDP per head: US$12,000
Annual growth: 5%
Inflation: 5%
Major industries: Tourism, electronics, ship repair, construction
Major trading partners: Italy, Germany, UK
Many linguists trace the origin of Maltese to the Phoenician occupation of the islands. Maltese, a Semitic language, has survived the influence of Romance languages for hundreds of years, though it bears traces of Sicilian, Italian, Spanish, French and English. Among the country's best-known writers are Francis Ebejer and Joseph Attard. Ironically, Malta is probably best known to the world through a book that isn't about Malta, Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon, the title of which refers to a statuette of mysterious origin.
Malta is noted for its fine crafts - particularly its handmade lace, handwoven fabrics, blown glass and silver filigree. Folk traditions in music are very strong, and Malta holds a folksong competition every year.
Banks are the best place to change money; they almost always offer a significantly better rate than hotels or restaurants. Restaurants and taxis expect a 10% tip. All major credit cards are widely accepted. Bargaining for handicrafts at stalls or markets is essential, but most shops have fixed prices. There's a 15% value-added tax on all consumer items.
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