Of small size, longish body. Covered by a very long white coat,
very elegant with a proud and distinguished head carriage.
Characteristics
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Temperament
For all his diminutive size, the Maltese seems to be without fear. His trust and affectionate
responsiveness are very appealing. He is among the gentlest mannered of all little dogs,
yet he is lively and playful as well as vigorous.
History
His name does not signify that he originates from the
island of Malta, because the adjective "Maltese" comes from the Semetic word "malat"
which means refuge or harbour; this Semetic root comes up again in a whole serie of
names of maritime places; i.e. in the name Adriatic island of Méléda, the Sicilian town of
Melita and also in that of the island Malta. The ancestors of this little dog lived in the
ports and maritime cities of central Mediterranean, where they hunted mice and rats which
were found in profusion in the harbour warehouses and in the hold of ships. In his list of
dogs existing at the time of Aristote (384 322 B.C.) mentions a breed of little dogs to
which he attributes the Latin name "canes melitenses". That dog was known in Ancient
Rome : favourite companion of the matrons, has been praised by Strabon, Latin poet of
the first century A.D. Representations of the Maltese by numerous Renaissance painters
show this little dog in the salons of the period at the side of beautiful ladies of the time.
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