Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/635436
maltatoday, Wednesday, 3 February 2016 17 Events FIMBank plc has partnered with Public Broadcasting Serv- ices Ltd (PBS) in an initiative that has seen the broadcast of a series of 30-second video-spots, focusing on Malta's linguistic heritage. The series of 100 videos, the production of which was also sponsored by the Bank, traces the meaning of specific words in the Maltese language. The words selected for this series, which is entitled 'kelma kuljum' ('a Word Everyday'), include both those used every day, as well as others whose use has become less frequent. Commenting on this initiative, FIMBank Chairman John C. Grech stated "as a Malta-based institution we feel we owe it to the people of Malta to help raise awareness of the Islands' rich cultural heritage. This consider- ation has always been a mainstay of our Corporate Social Respon- sibility programme. "The Maltese language is rec- ognised as being an essential part of the Maltese Dna. Its uniqueness, derived from its eclectic mix of Semitic and Ro- mance inf luences, is appreciated by linguists worldwide. It is also a ref lection of Malta's long and chequered history, and the Is- lands' strategic location at the centre of the Mediterranean. We are proud to be in a position to highlight the beauty of this lan- guage." Maltese is descended from Sic- ulo-arabic, the arabic dialect that developed in Sicily and later in Malta, between the end of the ninth century and the end of the twelfth century. Maltese itself is therefore linguistically classi- fied as a unique branch of arabic that has evolved independently of its source into a standardized language over the past 800 years in a gradual process of Latinisa- tion. about half of the vocabulary is derived from standard Italian and Sicilian; English words make up between 6% and 20% of the Maltese vocabulary, according to different estimates. The original Semitic base (Sic- ulo- arabic) comprises around one-third of the Maltese vo- cabulary, and typically includes words that denote basic ideas and the function words. Maltese has always been writ- ten in the Latin script, the ear- liest surviving example dating from the late Middle ages. It re- mains the only Semitic language written in the Latin script in its standard form. Jason Zammit, FIMBank 's Head of Marketing & adminis- tration, said that the video spots, which are being broadcast five times daily on national TV sta- tion TVM, have proven to be very popular with Maltese view- ers. He also said, "Very posi- tive and encouraging feedback was received after the spots were posted on Facebook and Youtube, where they have been shared extensively by users". Zammit thanked all those who have collaborated in the project, including PBS as the main part- ners, as well as Michael Spagnol who acted as the linguistic con- sultant for the series. Public Broadcasting Services CEO anton attard expressed his satisfaction with this collabora- tion between the national broad- caster and FIMBank, "These short and straight-to-the-point features are an innovative way of promoting a greater appreciation of Malta's linguistic heritage. By choosing TVM as the principal platform for this project, FIM- Bank has ensured that this edu- cational campaign gets the high- est exposure possible." For more information about FIMBank please visit www.fim- bank.com. FIMBank CSR focuses on the beauty of the Maltese language LaGuna Walk at SmartCity Malta will be hosting one of the most prestigious international Cat Shows, The MFGC 56th & 57th International Cat Show on Saturday 6 February from 3.00 pm to 7.00 pm, and Sunday 7 Febru- ary from 10.30 am to 6.30 pm. Two international judges Carl- Heinz knelangen, WCF all Breed Judge from Germany and Tomas Balchiunas, WCF all Breed Judge from Lithuania will be travelling to Malta to judge this competi- tion. The two-day show will consist of several fun activities for all of the exhibitors and the public visiting the show. The organisers will be hosting three WCF rings, one for adult cats, one for kittens and one for neutered cats, along with five specialty fun classes. Fun classes are minor competitions, where cats are not judged for be- ing best in show, but are judged for being the best in one particu- lar area, such as best solid colour, best f luffy tail, or best blue eyes. Since the show is being held dur- ing the carnival weekend in Mal- ta, the organisers will be hosting a best carnival cat competition, where participating cats will have themed costumes. For this show, the club will also be asking the public opinion vote. Visitors at the show on any of the two days will be asked to vote for their favourite cat in show. at the end of the show on Sunday, the votes will be counted, and the cat with the highest votes will be awarded this title. The opinion of the public is very precious, so the public is being urged to visit the show, and vote for their favour- ite cat! Entrance is free! The best Facebook cat competition win- ner will be announced on Sunday. all one has to do is to log into the Facebook page Malta Cat Shows, find the best Facebook cat compe- tition album, and hit like on one's favourite cat. Several breeds are expected to participate in the show, including Persians, exotics, Maine-coon, Bengal, sphinx, Devon Rex, Brit- ish short hair and many others. Both local and foreign exhibitors will be participating. The main sponsors for this event include Pet nutrition Ltd with Princess prod- ucts and Madagascar (Id-dinja ta' l-annimali), the number one pet education programme aired on F Living Channel. Information about cat breed- ing will be provided through fun classes organised throughout the exhibition, where International all Breed Judges will explain about the specific breeds being presented. More information is available on the Club's website www.maltacat- shows.com Laguna Walk at SmartCity Malta hosts International Cat Show Emirates resumes flights to Cyprus twice weekly EMIRaTES will resume flights to Larnaca twice weekly and onward to Dubai from 1 March 2016, allowing travellers to book tickets between Malta and Cyprus. under the new schedule, Emir- ates' twice weekly flights Ek109 to Malta will leave Dubai every Monday and Wednesday at 07:50hrs, arriving in Larnaca at 10:20hrs. It will then proceed to Malta arriving here at 13:25hrs. The return flight Ek110 will leave Malta at 14:55hrs, arrive in Larnaca at 18:15hrs, then leaves Larnaca at 19:30hrs and lands in Dubai at 01:25hrs the following day. also, from 1 March 2016, five times a week – every Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday – Emirates will oper- ate the Dubai - Malta route on a circular routing via Tunis in Tunisia. The return flight will fly direct from Malta to Dubai. Flight Ek 749 will depart Du- bai at 0825hrs arriving in Tunis at 12:45hrs. It will then depart Tunis at 14:15hrs and arrive in Malta at 15:25hrs. The return flight Ek 749 will leave Malta at 16:45hrs and will land in Dubai at 00:50hr the next day. The flights will be operated by an airbus 340-300 in a three- class configuration, offering 12 luxurious seats in First Class, 42 deep reclining seats in Business Class and 213 spacious seats in Economy Class. Emirates customers can enjoy the airline's world famous serv- ice from its multi-national cabin crew, gourmet cuisine and its award-winning entertainment system ice, which offers hun- dreds of channels of audio and visual entertainment, includ- ing the latest movies, music, as well as audio books and games. Emirates also offers its custom- ers generous baggage allowance, with 50kg for First Class, 40kg for Business Class and 30kg for Economy Class. Further information and flight schedules are available from: www.emirates.com/mt Resting on a biking holiday