When Was Malta First Discovered? Phoenicians (8th Century BCE) / Earliest Habitation ~5900 BCE

The Maltese islands were first settled by Neolithic farmers around 5900 BCE (Għar Dalam phase), based on archaeological evidence.

The Phoenicians are credited with "discovering" and colonizing Malta in the 8th century BCE, establishing it as a Mediterranean trading stop. They named it Maleth ("safe haven").

Subsequent rulers: Carthaginians, Romans (218 BCE), Byzantines, Arabs (870 CE), Normans (1091), Knights of St. John (1530), French (1798), British (1800), independence 1964.