{"schema":"https://ver.cy/schemas/card/1.0.0","id":"vr.tr.maltese","code":"thing-q9166","url":"https://ver.cy/models/thing/q9166/","name":"Maltese","alternateNames":["Cottonera Dialect","Gozitan","Imgarri dialect","Żurrieq dialect","Maltralian","Qormi dialect","Żejtun dialect"],"kind":"thing","status":"published","version":"0.2.0-wave.4","language":"en","classifiers":{"family":"Thing Registry","category":"Information and virtual systems","entryKind":"thing","plane":"INF","domain":["INF.MED"],"industry":[],"navPath":"","tags":[],"facets":{}},"whatItIs":"The national language of Malta and an official language of the European Union since 2004, a Semitic language descended from Siculo-Arabic spoken in medieval Sicily and Malta, written in the Latin alphabet with letters such as c, g, h and z with dots or bars, and with a large vocabulary from Sicilian, Italian and English; it has regional dialects the registry aliases name, including Gozitan on Gozo and village dialects of Zurrieq, Qormi, Mgarr and the Cottonera harbour towns, while Maltralian names the mixed Maltese-English speech of Maltese Australians. Standard Maltese is regulated by the National Council for the Maltese Language, and speaker numbers should be checked against current census data.","purpose":"Let an agent explain Maltese, relay classification, history, orthography, vocabulary, dialects and legal status from linguistic and Maltese government sources, describe the named varieties, and distinguish Maltese from Arabic dialects, Sicilian, Italian and Maltese English.","scope":{"in":[],"out":[],"boundaries":[]},"distinguishingFeatures":["Semitic in Latin script","Romance and English vocabulary","Only Semitic EU official language","Village dialects"],"structure":{"bundles":[{"id":"understand","name":"Understand","description":"What Maltese is.","layers":[{"id":"definition","name":"Definition","description":"Definition.","findings":[{"id":"definition-finding","name":"Definition","description":"Definition.","questions":[{"text":"What is Maltese, and how does it differ from Arabic dialects, Sicilian, Italian and Maltese English?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Is the question about learning, linguistics, law or diaspora communities?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"dialects","name":"Dialects","description":"Named varieties.","findings":[{"id":"dialects-finding","name":"Dialects","description":"Dialects.","questions":[{"text":"What are Gozitan and the Cottonera, Zurrieq, Qormi and Mgarr dialects, and what is Maltralian?","kind":"definition"},{"text":"Which entry fits the specific variety?","kind":"action"}]}]}]},{"id":"linguistics","name":"Linguistics","description":"Linguistics.","layers":[{"id":"origins","name":"Origins","description":"Siculo-Arabic origins.","findings":[{"id":"origins-finding","name":"Origins","description":"Origins.","questions":[{"text":"How did Maltese develop from Siculo-Arabic and absorb Romance and English words?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which references are standard?","kind":"provenance"}]}]},{"id":"orthography","name":"Orthography","description":"Writing system.","findings":[{"id":"orthography-finding","name":"Orthography","description":"Orthography.","questions":[{"text":"How was the Latin-based alphabet standardised?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which sources are cited?","kind":"provenance"}]}]}]},{"id":"status","name":"Status","description":"Legal status.","layers":[{"id":"national","name":"National","description":"National language.","findings":[{"id":"national-finding","name":"National","description":"National.","questions":[{"text":"How did Maltese replace Italian as an official language in 1934?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits Language Question (Malta)?","kind":"action"}]}]},{"id":"eu","name":"EU","description":"EU language.","findings":[{"id":"eu-finding","name":"EU","description":"EU.","questions":[{"text":"What does EU official status mean for Maltese translation and interpretation?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the information current?","kind":"boundary"}]}]}]},{"id":"context","name":"Context","description":"Society.","layers":[{"id":"english","name":"English","description":"Bilingualism.","findings":[{"id":"english-finding","name":"English","description":"English.","questions":[{"text":"How do Maltese and English coexist in education and daily life, with debates attributed?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Is the presentation neutral and attributed?","kind":"boundary"}]}]},{"id":"diaspora","name":"Diaspora","description":"Diaspora speech.","findings":[{"id":"diaspora-finding","name":"Diaspora","description":"Diaspora.","questions":[{"text":"How has Maltese changed in Australian and other diaspora communities?","kind":"provenance"},{"text":"Which entry fits Maltese Australians?","kind":"action"}]}]}]}]},"agentConduct":{"may":["Describe Maltese, its origins and its status as an official language of Malta and the European Union.","Translate to or from Maltese, noting regional varieties such as Gozitan where relevant."],"mustNot":["Call Maltese a dialect of Arabic without explaining its history and status.","Present out-of-date speaker numbers as current.","Mock speakers or their mixing of Maltese and English.","Treat the speech of emigrant communities as the same as the language in Malta without saying so."],"requiresHuman":["Publishing official or legal translations into Maltese."]},"ethics":{"considerations":["Maltese is central to national identity; describing it carelessly can offend speakers.","Small languages need careful handling to stay alive in the digital world."],"affectedParties":["Maltese speakers","Learners and translators"]},"owners":{"steward":"The community of its speakers; a national council for the language sets its standard.","roles":[],"masterSystems":[]},"relations":[{"target":"Q85189368","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Q85380120","type":"parent","note":"registry parent class"},{"target":"Siculo-Arabic","type":"related","note":"in registry terms, descendant"},{"target":"National Council for the Maltese Language","type":"related"},{"target":"Gozitan","type":"related","note":"dialect group"},{"target":"Sicilian language","type":"related"}],"interaction":{"identity":{"applicability":"required","items":["Vercy registry: vr.tr.maltese","Wikidata: Q9166 (https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q9166)"]},"properties":{"applicability":"not-applicable","items":["EU official language: 2004 year","standard orthography: 1924 year - Ghaqda tal-Kittieba tal-Malti","alphabet letters: 30 count"]},"recognition":{"applicability":"optional","items":["Semitic language of Malta","Cottonera dialect, Gozitan, Mgarr dialect, Zurrieq dialect, Maltralian, Qormi dialect","Arabic dialects use Arabic script and differ in vocabulary; Sicilian is Romance; Italian was a former official language; Maltese English is an English variety","Not a physical object; written in Latin script with dotted and barred letters."]},"capabilities":{"applicability":"required","items":["explain classification and history","relay orthography and vocabulary","describe named dialects","relay legal status"]},"hazards":{"applicability":"required","items":["Calling Maltese an Arabic dialect without context","Stale speaker numbers","Treating diaspora mixing as a dialect of Malta"]},"interfaces":{"applicability":"required","items":["Constitution of Malta","Maltese Language Act of 2004","ISO 639 code mt"]},"context":{"applicability":"required","items":["Communication and national identity in Malta.","Standard Maltese","Gozitan dialects","Maltese village dialects","diaspora varieties such as Maltralian"]}},"sources":[{"title":"Wikidata item Q9166: Maltese","url":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q9166","note":"identity and sense of the item"},{"title":"Wikipedia: Maltese language","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maltese_language","note":"general description of the item"}],"openQuestions":["Should Maltralian be moved to diaspora language entries?","Should village dialects be separate entries?","How should census data be linked?"],"resources":{"spec":"/models/things/publications/thing-q9166/spec.json"},"provenance":{"origin":"thing registry research (pass 2)","builtFrom":["models/things/publications/thing-q9166/spec.json"],"providers":["Claude"],"researchStatus":"unreviewed","generatedAt":"2026-09-13T23:38:30Z","builder":"tools/build_cards.py@1.0.0"},"completeness":{"sections":{"classifiers":"filled","whatItIs":"filled","purpose":"filled","distinguishingFeatures":"filled","structure":"filled","agentConduct":"filled","ethics":"filled","owners":"filled","relations":"filled","interaction.identity":"filled","interaction.properties":"not-applicable","interaction.recognition":"filled","interaction.capabilities":"filled","interaction.hazards":"filled","interaction.interfaces":"filled","interaction.context":"filled","sources":"filled"},"notes":{"_gate":"Published through the thing publication gate 1.0 on 2026-10-06T19:52:03+00:00: completeness 1.00; sense: Wikidata description; 2 live sources; review by codex: pass","interaction.properties":"Plane INF: no invented physical properties."},"score":1.0}}