Michael Zammit (born 1954) is a Maltese

philosopher Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

, specialised in

Ancient Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history through late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the development of Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient h ...

and

Eastern philosophy Eastern philosophy (also called Asian philosophy or Oriental philosophy) includes the various philosophies that originated in East and South Asia, including Chinese philosophy, Japanese philosophy, Korean philosophy, and Vietnamese philoso ...

Life

Zammit was born at

Valletta Valletta ( ; , ) is the capital city of Malta and one of its 68 Local councils of Malta, council areas. Located between the Grand Harbour to the east and Marsamxett Harbour to the west, its population as of 2021 was 5,157. As Malta’s capital ...

in 1954. He studied

Philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

at the

University of Malta The University of Malta (, UM, formerly UOM) is a higher education institution in Malta. It offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, postgraduate master's degrees and postgraduate doctorates. It is a member of the European University Association, ...

, acquiring a

Bachelor of Philosophy Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; or or ) is the title of an academic degree in philosophy that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's degrees, the ...

in 1976, and a

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in 1993. After teaching at various academic centres in and around

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

, in 1983 he began teaching

High School A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

level. He joined the academic staff at the

in 1988 as part of a team preparing for the introduction of a general knowledge introductory course for

High Schools A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

called "Systems of Knowledge", and also for the introduction of an

advanced level The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...

matriculation Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term ''matriculation'' is seldom used no ...

exam An examination (exam or evaluation) or test is an educational assessment intended to measure a test-taker's knowledge, skill, aptitude, physical fitness, or classification in many other topics (e.g., beliefs). A test may be administered verba ...

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

. At the time, he was also active at the School of Practical Philosophy in

. Zammit began teaching

Logic Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the study of deductively valid inferences or logical truths. It examines how conclusions follow from premises based on the structure o ...

, and

Aesthetics Aesthetics (also spelled esthetics) is the branch of philosophy concerned with the nature of beauty and taste (sociology), taste, which in a broad sense incorporates the philosophy of art.Slater, B. H.Aesthetics ''Internet Encyclopedia of Ph ...

(including

Calligraphy Calligraphy () is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instruments. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "the art of giving form to signs in an e ...

at the

in 1992. That same year he was appointed Academic Coordinator of the Centre for Basic Studies at the same university. Between 1989 and 1995, he coordinated, administered and lectured "Systems of Knowledge" courses in both

and

Gozo Gozo ( ), known in classical antiquity, antiquity as Gaulos, is an island in the Malta#The Maltese archipelago, Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After the Malta Island, island of Malta ...

. In 1989, he founded the "Philosophy Society" within the Department of Philosophy at the

. At this university, Zammit lectured on

Ancient Philosophy This page lists some links to ancient philosophy, namely philosophical thought extending as far as early post-classical history (). Overview Genuine philosophical thought, depending upon original individual insights, arose in many cultures ro ...

(1992), and

Eastern Eastern or Easterns may refer to: Transportation Airlines *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...

and

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

Comparative Philosophy (1994). In 1995, he began teaching Introduction to Philosophy, and other subjects related to

. On the radio station of the

(Campus FM), Zammit produced and presented at least three series of programmes related to

: ''Platun'' (

Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...

; 1996), ''Philosophy Help-line'' (1997), and ''Oht il-Gherf?'' (Sister of Knowledge?; 1998). After some years detached from work directly associated with the

, lecturing at

's Junior College, in 2008 he became a Senior Lecturer in the Philosophy Department of the Faculties of Arts and that of Theology of the

. He teaches

Plotinus Plotinus (; , ''Plōtînos''; – 270 CE) was a Greek Platonist philosopher, born and raised in Roman Egypt. Plotinus is regarded by modern scholarship as the founder of Neoplatonism. His teacher was the self-taught philosopher Ammonius ...

Marsilio Ficino Marsilio Ficino (; Latin name: ; 19 October 1433 – 1 October 1499) was an Italian scholar and Catholic priest who was one of the most influential humanist philosophers of the early Italian Renaissance. He was an astrologer, a reviver of Neo ...

, Far Eastern Philosophy and

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

Advaita Vedanta Philosophy. His interests vary from the use of poetic expression in the exploration of philosophical themes to the grammatological analysis of the Paninean

notions in the light of contemporary continental philosophical concerns.

Works

Zammit's works include the following:M. Montebello, ''20th Century Philosophy in Malta'', Agius & Agius, Malta, 2006, p. 144.

Books

* 1974 – ''Imma Hajt Azzari Ghalina'', Malta. * 1978 – ''Fil-Waqt li l-Qalb(h)a Thares'' (While Her Heart Watches/When She Watches Over Her Heart), Malta (translated into English by E. Eichmann, with a phonetic transcription by A. Borg and M. Alexander). * 1990 – ''Man and Symbols'', Guttenberg Press, Malta. * 1995 – ''Systems of Knowledge'' (co-authored), Vol. I and II,. * 1995 – ''L-Apologija'' (The Apology), translation, Malta University Press, Malta (2nd ed. 1997). * 2004 – ''Mireddien fi Skiethom'' (Recitals In Stillness/Right Minded Recitals), AWL Publication, Malta (translated into Italian and published in Rome as ''Ombreggiature Silenziose'', Editoria & Spettacolo, in 2007). * 2006 – ''Ghana ’l Hena'' (Odes to Bliss), AWL Publication, Malta (2006). * 2007 – ''Il Re Mantra: Ombreggiature Silenziose'' (The Mantra King: Silent Shadows), Editoria & Spettacolo, Rome. * 2008 – ''Vyasa's Sanskrit Bhagavad Gita'', translation.

Articles

* 1985 – 'On Inspiration', ''Hyphen'', Vol. IV. * 1990 – 'Notes for an Introduction to an Introduction to Logic', ''Man and Symbols'', Guttenberg Press, Malta. * 1989 – 'Paul Sant Cassia's "L-Ghana – Bejn il-Folklor u l-habi"' (Paul Sant Cassia's 'Folk Music – Between Folklore and Concealment), ''L-Identità Kulturali ta' Malta'' (Malta's Cultural Identity), Malta, translation, Department of Information, Malta. * 1996 – 'He is You are What I am: from the Unique to the Universal', ''Asian Philosophy'', Vol. VI, n. 2. * 2006 – '

Manwel Dimech Emmanuel Giovanni Salvatore Pietro Dimech, also known as Manwel Dimech (25 December 1860 – 17 April 1921) was a Maltese socialist, philosopher, journalist, writer, poet and social revolutionary. Born in Valletta and brought up in extreme pover ...

– Bniedem ta’ Spiritwalità' ( Manuel Dimech: A man of spirituality), ''Knisja tat-Triq'', ed. by Michael Grech, AWL Publication, Malta.

References

Sources