Malta and Italy have a long-standing relationship as neighbouring countries. There are many historical ties between the two countries, but also touristic and economic. The short distance between Malta and Italy helped in forging ties throughout the years and people from Sicily and southern Italy settled in Malta. This left an impact on the language spoken in Malta. In 1530, The Knights of the Order of St. John came to Malta and the Italian language became widely used in the Maltese islands, since it was used for official communication. For many centuries after, Italian was an official language in Malta until 1934. Through the years, words from Italian regional dialects sifted in the Maltese language and are still used in daily conversations.

Around the world, Italian is spoken by more than 80 million persons. Italian, as a foreign language, offers opportunities in various fields, including but not limited to architecture, art and restoration, design, engineering, fashion, law, music, translation, tourism and sports. There are many words and expressions in Italian which are similar to the Maltese language and there are other Italian words which are used widely in many languages, especially vocabulary which is related to food, music and art.