This rock situated off the shores of Tunisia was home to elephants up to as late as 5200 BC. There are no elephants in Malta today, however there are 400,000 people who speak a strange mixture of Arabic and Italian that sounds more like Swedish with a mouth full of peanut butter.

After three failures in the 1970s Malta left the Eurovision and joined permanently in 1991. They tend to exchange suspicious points with countries at the bottom of the table and peaked at 2nd place twice.

Facts
Capital: Valletta
Industries: Tourism, money laundering
Islands: Malta, Gonzo, Kermit, Fozzie and Swedish Chef
Population density: 3,802 people per square metre
Number of different surnames: 5

Did we really just say elephants are extinct in Malta?
After three poor results, Malta is sending the only artist who did well for them twice. Chiara Siracusa, known for her long brown hair and affection for ballads, will sing "What if we" in Moscow.

� This is Kurt's night! - Sun 5 Feb

� Chiara Goes For a 3rd Helping [Video] - Sun 8 Feb

� Maltazzz Dream (vid) - Sun 21 Feb

� 8 gone, but 16 left in Malta - Sat 4 Feb

� Put your money where your mouth is - Sun 28 Aug

� Malta: 161 down to 62! - Mon 14 Nov

� This weekend: Malta decides (updated with finalists) - Fri 1 Feb

� Gianluca takes Jeremy from IT to Malmö - Sun 3 Feb

� "Coming Home" to represent Icela... Malta! - Sun 9 Feb

� The 90s are back... Unfortunately for Lithuania? - Fri 16 May

� Maltese Final on the 22 November - Fri 11 Jul

� This time it's real - Amber for Malta - Sun 23 Nov

� Malta: Ira Losco wins with Chameleon. But might go to Eurovision with something else. - Wed 27 Jan