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With a population of about 519,000 [8] over an area of 316 km 2 (122 sq mi), [7] Malta is the tenth-smallest country by area [18] [19] and the fifth most densely populated sovereign state. Its capital is Valletta, the smallest capital city in the European Union by area and population.
- 2022 estimate
- MT
- Overview
- Land
- Relief
- Drainage
- Soils
Malta comprises five islands—Malta (the largest), Gozo, Comino, and the uninhabited islets of Kemmunett (Comminotto) and Filfla.
What kind of climate does Malta have?
Malta typically has a Mediterranean climate with hot dry summers, warm and sporadically wet autumns, and short cool winters with adequate rainfall. The annual mean temperature is in the mid-60s Fahrenheit (about 19 degrees Celsius), and monthly averages range from the mid-50s to the mid-80s Fahrenheit (about 12 to 29 degrees Celsius).
What languages are spoken in Malta?
Maltese and English are the official languages of Malta. Maltese resulted from the fusion of North African Arabic and a Sicilian dialect of Italian and is the only Semitic language officially written in Latin script. English is a medium of instruction in schools. Italian is understood by a sizable portion of the population.
Does Malta have an official religion?
The country comprises five islands—Malta (the largest), Gozo, Comino, and the uninhabited islets of Kemmunett (Comminotto) and Filfla—lying some 58 miles (93 km) south of Sicily, 180 miles (290 km) north of Libya, and about 180 miles (290 km) east of Tunisia, at the eastern end of the constricted portion of the Mediterranean Sea separating Italy from the African coast.
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The islands of Malta are dominated by limestone formations, and much of their coastlines consist of steep or vertical limestone cliffs indented by bays, inlets, and coves. They lie on the submerged Malta-Hyblean Platform, a wide undersea shelf bridge that connects the Ragusa Platform of southern Sicily with the Tripolitana Platform of southern Libya.
The main physical characteristic of the island of Malta is a well-defined escarpment that bisects it along the Victoria Lines Fault running along the whole breadth of the island from Point ir-Raħeb near Fomm ir-Riħ Bay to the coast northeast of Għargħur at Madliena Fort. The highest areas are coralline limestone uplands that constitute a triangular plateau; Ta’ Żuta, which rises to 830 feet (253 metres) in the southwest, is the highest point. The uplands are separated from the surrounding areas by blue clay slopes, while an undercliff area is found where the coralline plateau has fallen and forms a subordinate surface between the sea and the original shore. The total shoreline of Malta is about 136 miles (219 km).
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In northern Malta the escarpment is occasionally abrupt and broken by deep embayments. To the south, however, the plateau gradually descends from about 600 to 830 feet (180 to 250 metres) into undulating areas of globigerina (derived from marine protozoa) limestone less than 300 feet (90 metres) in elevation. The western area is characterized by deeply incised valleys and undercliff areas, while to the east there are several valley systems that descend to the central plains.
The west coast of Malta presents a high, bold, and generally harbourless face. On the east, however, a tongue of high ground known as Mount Sceberras, on which the capital city, Valletta, is built, separates Marsamxett Harbour and Grand Harbour. Because of tectonic activity, Malta has been tilted in a northerly direction, producing cliffs of up to about 800 feet (250 metres) high on the south and southwestern coasts, while slopes descend to low cliffs and rocky shores on the northern and eastern coasts.
The island of Malta possesses favourable conditions for the percolation and underground storage of water. The impermeable blue clays provide two distinct water tables between the limestone formations—the perched and the mean sea-level aquifer. The principal source for the public supply of water has for several centuries been the main sea-level wate...
Mainly young or immature and thin, Maltese soils generally lack humus, and a high carbonate content gives them alkaline properties. Human settlement and construction developments have altered the distribution and composition of soils. The Fertile Soil (Preservation) Act of 1973 requires that, when soils are removed from construction sites, they be ...
During the last 2,000-odd years, Malta has known 11 foreign rulers that left behind various traces that can be found and admired around the Maltese islands. Nowadays, though, Malta is an independent republic, having gained independence from the British Empire in 1964. The country is still part of the British Commonwealth. 33.
Malta as a new Independent State. Dominic Mintoff led the Malta Labour Party in 1971 and also won the general elections which pushed Malta to become a republic on 13 December 1974. Dominic Mintoff also weakened the ties with the United Kingdom so that the last British military men left Malta in 1979. In 1980 Malta adopted a policy of neutrality.
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Malta in brief. Destination Malta, a Nations Online country profile about the small archipelago steeped in history in the Mediterranean and one of the smallest countries in Europe. The island group is situated east of Tunisia and about 100 km (60 mi) south of the island of Sicily ( Italy ). Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, consists of ...
Apr 24, 2024 · Background. With a civilization that dates back thousands of years, Malta boasts some of the oldest megalithic sites in the world. Situated in the center of the Mediterranean, Malta’s islands have long served as a strategic military asset, with the islands at various times having come under control of the Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Moors, Normans, Sicilians ...
Dec 20, 2021 · Malta's economy is dependent on foreign trade, manufacturing, and tourism. Malta joined the EU in 2004 and adopted the euro on 1 January 2008. Malta has weathered the euro-zone crisis better than most EU member states due to a low debt-to-GDP ratio and financially sound banking sector.
