Malta

Coordinates: 35°53′N 14°30′E / 35.883°N 14.500°E / 35.883; 14.500

Malta (ⁱ/ˈmɒltə/; Maltese: [ˈmɐltɐ]), officially the Republic of Malta (Maltese: Repubblika ta' Malta), is a Southern European island country comprising an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. It lies 80 km (50 mi) south of Italy, 284 km (176 mi) east of Tunisia, and 333 km (207 mi) north of Libya. The country covers just over 316 km² (122 sq mi), with a population of just under 450,000 (despite an extensive emigration programme since the Second World War), making it one of the world's 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 two official languages: Maltese and English.

Malta's location has historically given it great strategic importance as a naval base, and a succession of powers, including the Phoenicians, Romans, Moors, Normans, Sicilians, Spanish, Knights of St. John, French and British, have ruled the islands.

Malta (river)

The Malta is a river of Latvia, 105 kilometres long.

See also

Coordinates: 56°12′36″N 27°22′51″E / 56.21000°N 27.38083°E / 56.21000; 27.38083

Maltese wine

Wine production in Malta dates back over two thousand years to the time of the Phoenicians. In the beginning of the 20th century Marsovin and Emmanuel Delicata wineries were established. In the 1970s wine production became more serious and international grape varieties began to be planted. After joining the European Union in 2004 protective levies were lifted, pushing the producers to focus on higher quality wine production, with Marsovin especially focusing on fine DOK wines.

Currently there is a growing demand for Maltese wines and some of the wineries resort to using imported grapes because agricultural areas are severely limited on the islands by the growth of settlements and tourism. There is no official wine route but a wine festival is held in Valletta. In 2005 630 tonnes of wine were produced on the islands.

Wine styles

Today grape varieties grown on the Maltese islands include the two indigenous varieties named Gellewza (red) and Ghirgentina (white), as well as several international varieties. Marsovin's Cassar de Malte is the traditional sparkling wine of Malta, which is made using the same method as champagne "methode traditionelle".

Idaho

Idaho (ⁱ/ˈaɪdəhoʊ/) is a state in the northwestern region of the United States. Idaho is the 14th largest, the 39th most populous, and the 7th least densely populated of the 50 United States. The state's largest city and capital is Boise. Residents are called "Idahoans". Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890, as the 43rd state.

Idaho is a mountainous state with an area larger than that of all of New England. It borders the US states of Montana to the northeast, Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington and Oregon to the west. To the north, it shares a 45 mi (72 km) international border with the Canadian province of British Columbia, the shortest such land border of any state. The network of dams and locks on the Columbia River and Snake River make the city of Lewiston the farthest inland seaport on the Pacific coast of the contiguous United States.

Idaho's nickname is the "Gem State", because nearly every known type of gemstone has been found there. In addition, Idaho is one of only two places in the world where star garnets can be found in any significant quantities, the other being India. Idaho is sometimes called the "Potato State" owing to its popular and widely distributed crop. The state motto is Esto Perpetua (Latin for "Let it be forever" or "Let it endure forever").

Idaho (disambiguation)

Idaho is a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States of America.

Idaho may also refer to:

Places

Music

Other

Idaho (Jesse Stone song)

Idaho is a jazz song written by Jesse Stone.

Stone's early writings show a deep blues influence. An early success was "Idaho", recorded by several artists, with the Benny Goodman version peaking at #4 (pop) in 1942. The recording by Guy Lombardo sold three million copies.

References