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GOZITAN dialects are changing, with some tradi- tional features disappearing among younger speakers, but important elements remain firmly alive, according to lin- guistic researcher Maria Lip- nicka. A researcher at Heidelberg University, Lipnicka has spent years studying Gozitan dia- lects, with particular attention to a linguistic phe- nomenon known as "pausal forms". Speaking to GozoToday, Lipnicka said her interest in Gozitan speech began during her university studies, when she encountered research on Maltese pausal forms by her teacher and supervisor Alex- ander Borg, a professor of se- mitic languages at the Ben Gu- rion University in Israel. She was impressed by the linguistic variety found within such a small geographical area. "When I later started doing fieldwork in Gozo myself, I realised that these forms were not just something I knew from descriptions of ancient languages such as Biblical He- brew, they were still very much alive in everyday speech," she said. SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL FRIDAY 18 SEPTEMBER 2026 • ISSUE 111 • PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY gozotoday €1.00 Personal Loans NEW BOAT? All loans are subject to normal bank lending criteria and final approval from the Bank. The term of the loan must not go beyond re rement age. Issued by Bank of Valle a p.l.c. 58, Triq San Żakkarija, Il-Belt Valle a VLT 1130. Bank of Valle a p.l.c. is regulated by the MFSA and licensed to carry out the business of banking in terms of the Banking Act (Cap. 371 of the Laws of Malta). Compe ve Interest Rates CONTINUES PAGE 5 LAURA CALLEJA lcalleja@mediatoday.com.mt Gozitan dialects are changing, but still alive, researcher says Features such as pausal forms are still being used naturally by children and young people in Gozo, according to Heidelberg University researcher Dr Maria Lipnicka 'Victoria's Europeaness is there despite our double insularity' VICTORIA'S bid to become Eu- ropean Capital of Culture 2031 is built around three pillars, slow- ness, care and courage, according to Fondazzjoni Victoria 2031 chair Samuel Azzopardi. Speaking to GozoToday ahead of the decision on 23 September, Az- zopardi said the bid was ultimately about strengthening relationships within the community while re- maining open to different opin- ions, new ideas and change. "The three pillars of this bid are slowness, care and courage," Azz- opardi said. He said "slowness" was about sustaining relationships and creat- ing the space for people to listen to one another, while "care" involved being open about the areas where society still needed to improve. CONTINUES PAGE 7 Inset: Heidelberg University researcher Dr Maria Lipnicka