1.
Marble
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Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Geologists use the marble to refer to metamorphosed limestone, however. Marble is commonly used for sculpture and as a building material and this stem is also the basis for the English word marmoreal, meaning marble-like. In Hungarian it is called márvány, Marble is a rock resulting from metamorphism of sedimentary carbonate rocks, most commonly limestone or dolomite rock. Metamorphism causes variable recrystallization of the carbonate mineral grains. The resulting marble rock is composed of an interlocking mosaic of carbonate crystals. Primary sedimentary textures and structures of the carbonate rock have typically been modified or destroyed. Pure white marble is the result of metamorphism of a very pure limestone or dolomite protolith, green coloration is often due to serpentine resulting from originally magnesium-rich limestone or dolostone with silica impurities. These various impurities have been mobilized and recrystallized by the intense pressure, examples of historically notable marble varieties and locations, White marble has been prized for its use in sculptures since classical times. This preference has to do with its softness, which made it easier to carve, relative isotropy and homogeneity, construction marble is a stone which is composed of calcite, dolomite or serpentine which is capable of taking a polish. More generally in construction, specifically the dimension stone trade, the marble is used for any crystalline calcitic rock useful as building stone. For example, Tennessee marble is really a dense granular fossiliferous gray to pink to maroon Ordovician limestone that geologists call the Holston Formation. Ashgabat, the city of Turkmenistan, was recorded in the 2013 Guinness Book of Records as having the worlds highest concentration of white marble buildings. According to the United States Geological Survey, U. S. domestic marble production in 2006 was 46,400 tons valued at about $18.1 million, compared to 72,300 tons valued at $18.9 million in 2005. Crushed marble production in 2006 was 11.8 million tons valued at $116 million, of which 6.5 million tons was finely ground calcium carbonate and the rest was construction aggregate. For comparison,2005 crushed marble production was 7.76 million tons valued at $58.7 million, of which 4.8 million tons was finely ground calcium carbonate, U. S. dimension marble demand is about 1.3 million tons. The DSAN World Demand for Marble Index has shown a growth of 12% annually for the 2000–2006 period, the largest dimension marble application is tile. In 1998, marble production was dominated by 4 countries that accounted for almost half of production of marble
2.
Kufic
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Kufic is the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts and consists of a modified form of the old Nabataean script. Kufic developed around the end of the 7th century in Kufa, Iraq, from which it takes its name, Kufic was prevalent in manuscripts from the 7th to 10th centuries. Until about the 11th century it was the script used to copy the Quran. Professional copyists employed a form of kufic for reproducing the earliest surviving copies of the Quran. Kufic is commonly seen on Seljuk coins and monuments and on early Ottoman coins and its decorative character led to its use as a decorative element in several public and domestic buildings constructed prior to the Republican period in Turkey. The current flag of Iraq includes a rendition of the takbir. Similarly, the flag of Iran has the takbir written in white square kufic script a total of 22 times on the fringe of both the green and red bands, Square or geometric Kufic is a very simplified rectangular style of Kufic widely used for tiling. In Iran sometimes entire buildings are covered with tiles spelling sacred names like those of God, Muhammad and Ali in square Kufic, christoph Brunner, Basel 2014, ISBN 978-3-906206-10-3. Square Kufic lectures, alphabet, examples, square designs Kufic manuscript alphabet On The Origins Of The Kufic Script Kufic Script Square Kufic Script Square Kufic Square Kufic explained
3.
Arabic
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Arabic is a Central Semitic language that was first spoken in Iron Age northwestern Arabia and is now the lingua franca of the Arab world. Arabic is also the language of 1.7 billion Muslims. It is one of six languages of the United Nations. The modern written language is derived from the language of the Quran and it is widely taught in schools and universities, and is used to varying degrees in workplaces, government, and the media. The two formal varieties are grouped together as Literary Arabic, which is the language of 26 states. Modern Standard Arabic largely follows the standards of Quranic Arabic. Much of the new vocabulary is used to denote concepts that have arisen in the post-Quranic era, Arabic has influenced many languages around the globe throughout its history. During the Middle Ages, Literary Arabic was a vehicle of culture in Europe, especially in science, mathematics. As a result, many European languages have borrowed many words from it. Many words of Arabic origin are found in ancient languages like Latin. Balkan languages, including Greek, have acquired a significant number of Arabic words through contact with Ottoman Turkish. Arabic has also borrowed words from languages including Greek and Persian in medieval times. Arabic is a Central Semitic language, closely related to the Northwest Semitic languages, the Ancient South Arabian languages, the Semitic languages changed a great deal between Proto-Semitic and the establishment of the Central Semitic languages, particularly in grammar. Innovations of the Central Semitic languages—all maintained in Arabic—include, The conversion of the suffix-conjugated stative formation into a past tense, the conversion of the prefix-conjugated preterite-tense formation into a present tense. The elimination of other prefix-conjugated mood/aspect forms in favor of new moods formed by endings attached to the prefix-conjugation forms, the development of an internal passive. These features are evidence of descent from a hypothetical ancestor. In the southwest, various Central Semitic languages both belonging to and outside of the Ancient South Arabian family were spoken and it is also believed that the ancestors of the Modern South Arabian languages were also spoken in southern Arabia at this time. To the north, in the oases of northern Hijaz, Dadanitic and Taymanitic held some prestige as inscriptional languages, in Najd and parts of western Arabia, a language known to scholars as Thamudic C is attested
4.
Arabic script
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The Arabic script is a writing system used for writing several languages of Asia and Africa, such as Arabic, dialects of Mandinka, Central Kurdish, Luri, Persian, Urdu, Pashto, and others. Until the 16th century, it was used to write some texts in Spanish. It is the second-most widely used writing system in the world by the number of countries using it, the Arabic script is written from right to left in a cursive style. In most cases the letters transcribe consonants, or consonants and a few vowels, the script was first used to write texts in Arabic, most notably the Qurʼān, the holy book of Islam. It is also the basis for the tradition of Arabic calligraphy, the Arabic script has been adopted for use in a wide variety of languages besides Arabic, including Persian, Malay and Urdu which are not Semitic. Such adaptations may feature altered or new characters to represent phonemes that do not appear in Arabic phonology, the modified version of the Arabic script originally devised for use with Persian is known as the Perso-Arabic script by scholars. In the cases of Bosnian, Kurdish, Kashmiri, and Uyghur writing systems, the Arabic script can therefore be used in both abugida and abjad, although it is often strongly, erroneously connected to the latter. Use of the Arabic script in West African languages, especially in the Sahel, to a certain degree the style and usage tends to follow those of the Maghreb. Additional diacritics have come into use to facilitate writing of sounds not represented in the Arabic language, the term ʻAjamī, which comes from the Arabic root for foreign, has been applied to Arabic-based orthographies of African languages. There is evidence that writing Arabic in this set of letters influenced the style of modern Arabic script. After this initial period, Garshuni writing has continued to the present day among some Syriac Christian communities in the Arabic-speaking regions of the Levant, Kazakh in China Kurdish in Northern Iraq and Northwest Iran. It is mainly used in Sri Lanka and the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu for religious purposes, arwi language is the language of Tamil Nadu Muslims. Malayalam language represented by Arabic script variant is known as Arabi Malayalam, the script has particular letters to represent the peculiar sounds of Malayalam. This script is used in madrasas of the South Indian state of Kerala. It is similar to Chittagonian language in neighboring Bangladesh and sometimes using the Roman script. Malay in the Arabic script known as Jawi, in some cases it can be seen in the signboards of shops or market stalls. In addition, some television programming uses Jawi, such as announcements, advertisements, news, social programs, Berber languages have often been written in an adaptation of the Arabic alphabet. The use of the Arabic alphabet, as well as the competing Latin, West Africa Zarma language of the Songhay family
5.
Xewkija
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Xewkija is a village on Gozo Island, Malta. The population of Xewkija is 3,300 as of March 2014, Xewkija, which is situated between Għajnsielem and the capital city, Victoria, is the oldest village in Gozo. It became the first parish outside Victoria on 27 November 1678 and it was separated from the Matrix by Bishop Glormu Molina and Dun Grezz Farrugia from Valletta, became its first parish priest. It became the first district contrada to be known as casale or village, the name is derived from the Maltese word Xewk, meaning thistles or thorns. Xewkija is famous for its church, The Rotunda of Xewkija and it is the Seat of the Knights of the Order of St. John, and was built from Maltese stone by local masons and craftsmen. It is the largest in Gozo and its dome dominates the village, the titular statue of Saint John the Baptist was sculpted in wood by Pietro Paolo Azzopardi in 1845. On the site where the present church is, it was said there was a stone known as Maqgħad ix-Xiħ. Near it there is an ancient chapel known as Madonna tal-Ħniena which was dedicated to San Bartilimew. The Santa Cecilia Tower had been in the limits of Xewkija, there is another tower with the oldest sundial in Xewkija. Remains of Tinghi Tower disappeared in the 20th century and these towers date back to 1613. The Gourgion Tower, which was built in 1690, was demolished during the Second World War to make way for a temporary airstrip, the Majmuna Stone with an Arabic inscription dating back to 1174 was possibly found in Xewkija. It commemorates the death of an Arab girl named Maymūnah, the inscription is carved in a thick marble slab, on the underside of which there is a Roman symbol. Brother Gabrijel DAlappo translated it into Italian and it was translated into Maltese. It was sent to the Public Library in Malta in 1845, the Banda Prekursur is the oldest organization in Xewkija. It was set up on 13 May 1929, Lorenzo Zammit Haber, Marcell Mercieca, Giuseppe Buttigieg, Giovanni Haber and Tomaso Attard were among its founders. Mr. Lorenzo Zammit Haber was first President and Secretary, the coat of arms of Xewkija is a shield on a gold background with a red horizontal strip between two thorns, one above and one below. The motto of Xewkija is Nemo me impune lacessit, that is, a helicopter service once ran between Malta International Airport and the Xewkija Heliport. On the suburbs of the village there are the University of Malta, there are also the Gozo Stadium, the Government Farm, St. Marys Cemetery and Xewkija Cemetery
6.
Gozo
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Gozo is an island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of Malta, after the island of Malta itself, it is the second-largest island in the archipelago. Compared to its neighbour, Gozo is more rural and known for its scenic hills. The island of Gozo has long associated with Ogygia, the island home of the nymph Calypso in Homers Odyssey. In that story, Calypso, possessed of supernatural powers. As of March 2015, the island has a population of around 37,342 and it is rich in historic locations such as the Ġgantija temples, which, along with the other Megalithic Temples of Malta, are among the worlds oldest free-standing structures. The island is rural in character and, compared to the main island Malta and it was known for the Azure Window, a natural limestone arch that was a remarkable geological feature, until its collapse in 2017. The island has other notable features, including the Inland Sea. There are many beaches on the island, as well as seaside resorts that are popular with locals and tourists, the most popular being Marsalforn and Xlendi. Gozo is considered one of the top diving destinations in the Mediterranean, Gozo has been inhabited since 5000 BC, when farmers from nearby Sicily crossed the sea to the island. They are thought to have first lived in caves on the outskirts of what is now known as San Lawrenz, the temples name is Maltese for belonging to the giants, because legend in Maltese and Gozitan folklore says the temples were built by giants. Another important Maltese archaeological site in Gozo, which dates back to the period, is the Xagħra Stone Circle. Also, native tradition and certain ancient Greek historians maintain that Gozo is the island Homer described as Ogygia, the island of Gozo was repopulated between 1565 and 1580 by people from mainland Malta, undertaken by the Knights of Malta. The law authorised the Council to raise taxes, although it never made use of this power. In 1971 the Malta Labour Party was voted into office, in the Gozo Civic Council referendum,1973, the overwhelming majority of voters voted for the abolition of the Gozo Civic Council. In the mid-1980s attempts were made to set up a Gozo committee, chaired by the Prime Minister, however, it was only in 1987 that the Ministry of Gozo was set up. Local government in the Gozitan localities was restored with the introduction of Local councils in 1993 with Gozo having 14 councils, the island has its own Latin bishopric, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Gozo, the only suffragan of the Metropolitan Archbishop of Malta. Gozo contains a number of Catholic churches
7.
Malta
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Malta, officially known as the Republic of Malta, is a Southern European island country consisting of an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. It lies 80 km south of Italy,284 km east of Tunisia, the country covers just over 316 km2, with a population of just under 450,000, making it one of the worlds smallest and most densely populated countries. The capital of Malta is Valletta, which at 0.8 km2, is the smallest national capital in the European Union, Malta has one national language, which is Maltese, and English as an official language. John, French and British, have ruled the islands, King George VI of the United Kingdom awarded the George Cross to Malta in 1942 for the countrys bravery in the Second World War. The George Cross continues to appear on Maltas national flag, the country became a republic in 1974, and although no longer a Commonwealth realm, remains a member state of the Commonwealth of Nations. Malta was admitted to the United Nations in 1964 and to the European Union in 2004, in 2008, Catholicism is the official religion in Malta. The origin of the term Malta is uncertain, and the modern-day variation derives from the Maltese language, the most common etymology is that the word Malta derives from the Greek word μέλι, meli, honey. The ancient Greeks called the island Μελίτη meaning honey-sweet, possibly due to Maltas unique production of honey, an endemic species of bee lives on the island. The Romans went on to call the island Melita, which can be considered either as a latinisation of the Greek Μελίτη or the adaptation of the Doric Greek pronunciation of the same word Μελίτα. Another conjecture suggests that the word Malta comes from the Phoenician word Maleth a haven or port in reference to Maltas many bays, few other etymological mentions appear in classical literature, with the term Malta appearing in its present form in the Antonine Itinerary. The extinction of the hippos and dwarf elephants has been linked to the earliest arrival of humans on Malta. Prehistoric farming settlements dating to the Early Neolithic period were discovered in areas and also in caves. The Sicani were the tribe known to have inhabited the island at this time and are generally regarded as being closely related to the Iberians. Pottery from the Għar Dalam phase is similar to found in Agrigento. A culture of megalithis temple builders then either supplanted or arose from this early period, the temples have distinctive architecture, typically a complex trefoil design, and were used from 4000 to 2500 BCE. Animal bones and a knife found behind an altar stone suggest that temple rituals included animal sacrifice. Tentative information suggests that the sacrifices were made to the goddess of fertility, the culture apparently disappeared from the Maltese Islands around 2500 BC. Archaeologists speculate that the builders fell victim to famine or disease
8.
Gozo Museum of Archaeology
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The Gozo Museum of Archaeology is a museum in the Cittadella of Victoria in Gozo, Malta. The museum of was opened in 1960 as the first public museum in Gozo and was known as the Gozo Museum, the museum was redesigned and reopened in 1986 as the Archaeology Museum of Gozo. Today it is known as the Gozo Museum of Archaeology or the National Museum of Archaeology, the museum features archaeological artifacts and relics and displays covering the cultural history of the Island of Gozo from the prehistoric era to the early modern period. Its exhibits include the Majmuna Stone, the museum is housed in a 17th-century house which was originally known as Casa Bondi. It is a building with a symmetrical austere façade, with a carved stone balcony above the front door. The building is listed on the National Inventory of the Cultural Property of the Maltese Islands, Official website museum on Official Malta Tourism website
9.
Maltese language
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Maltese is descended from Siculo-Arabic, the variety of Arabic that developed in Sicily and was later introduced to Malta, between the end of the ninth century and the end of the twelfth century. Maltese is a branch of Arabic because it has evolved independently of Literary Arabic into a standardized language over the past 800 years in a gradual process of Latinisation. About half of the vocabulary is derived from standard Italian and Sicilian, the original Semitic base comprises around one-third of the Maltese vocabulary, and typically includes words that denote basic ideas and the function words. Maltese has always written in the Latin script, the earliest surviving example dating from the late Middle Ages. The Norman conquest in 1090, followed by the expulsion of the Muslims permanently isolated the vernacular from its Arabic source, in contrast to Sicily, the vernacular in Malta continued to develop alongside Italian, eventually replacing it as official language in 1934. The first written reference to the Maltese language is in a will of 1436, the oldest known document in Maltese is Il Cantilena by Pietru Caxaro. It dates from the 15th century, the earliest known Maltese dictionary was a sixteenth-century manuscript entitled Maltese-Italiano, it was included in the Biblioteca Maltese of Mifsud in 1764, but is now lost. The first systematic lexicon is that of Giovanni Pietro Francesco Agius de Soldanis, Maltese became an official language of Malta in 1934, alongside English, when Italian was dropped from official use. In 1975, there were an estimated 371,000 Maltese speakers, today, the core vocabulary is Semitic, with large numbers of loanwords. Because of the Sicilian influence on Siculo Arabic, Maltese has many language contact features and is most commonly described as a language with a number of loanwords. Voiceless stops are only lightly aspirated and voiced stops are fully voiced, voicing is carried over from the last segment in obstruent clusters, thus, two- and three-obstruent clusters are either voiceless or voiced throughout, e. g. /niktbu/ is realised we write. Maltese has final-obstruent devoicing of voiced obstruents and voiceless stops have no audible release, gemination is distinctive word-medially and word-finally in Maltese. The distinction is most rigid intervocalically after a stressed vowel, some speakers have lost length distinction in clusters. The two nasals /m/ and /n/ assimilate for place of articulation in clusters, /t/ and /d/ are usually dental, whereas /t͡s d͡z s z n r l/ are all alveolar. /t͡s d͡z/ are found mostly in words of Italian origin, retaining length, /d͡z/ and /ʒ/ are only found in loanwords, e. g. /ɡad͡zd͡zɛtta/ newspaper and /tɛlɛˈviʒin/ television. The pharyngeal fricative /ħ/ is velar or glottal for some speakers, stress is generally on the penultimate syllable, unless some other syllable is heavy, or unless a stress-shifting suffix is added. When two syllables are heavy, the penultimate takes the stress, but otherwise the heavier syllable does. Many Classical Arabic consonants underwent mergers and modifications in Maltese, The modern system of Maltese orthography was introduced in 1924, the first edition of this book was printed in 1924 by the Maltese governments printing press
