I thank Lucy Calleja for her encouraging letter on the above subject (TMID, 27 June). In fact yes, as she hoped, the MA in Maltese Studies will include a unit on emigration and migrant settlement, which I am coordinating and which I shall be lecturing in together with others expert on the subject. The question of retention and loss, be it language, religion or cuisine, naturally will be tackled, as will be that of Maltese migrant perseverance and achievement generally.

Ms Calleja mentioned Maltese ancestors who were born in North Africa. We plan to cover migration both in the Mediterranean, in the English-speaking world and elsewhere, including North Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, Southern Europe, the near East, the Americas and elsewhere. This is an area to which I firmly believe more attention and resources should be devoted, and the sooner the better.

Should Ms Calleja be in Malta while the migration sessions are on I hope she will do us the honour of joining the class and contributing her experiences in Australia, and those of her ancestors in North Africa, to it.

Simply as matter of information, I am asking our secretariat to send her information about the various study units we have compiled for our new MA; these will be further elaborated upon and fine-tuned as we go along, now that we know that the course is a viable one thanks to the interest being taken in it by members of the public far and wide.

Prof. Henry Frendo

Director, Institute

of Maltese Studies

University of Malta