Historically, some considered the Maltese language to be derived from Punic. While this is false, it is very notable that Malta is an Arabic-speaking country that is part of the European world with a language derived from the otherwise extinct Sicilian Arabic language.
So the challenge is to make the old interpretation correct and have Malta still speaking Punic. This might not be too hard, since even in Late Antiquity Malta still had a vital Punic speaking community. It likely also had a community which spoke a language transitional between Sardinian and the Carthaginian dialect of African Romance.
Basically, the challenge is to have a Punic-speaking Malta into the age of nationalism at the very least--essentially, a language derived from that of Ancient Carthage. For additional difficulty, Islam must exist and Muslim armies must have made credible (if not successful) attempts to conquer North Africa. So are there any plausible PODs or scenarios for this?
So the challenge is to make the old interpretation correct and have Malta still speaking Punic. This might not be too hard, since even in Late Antiquity Malta still had a vital Punic speaking community. It likely also had a community which spoke a language transitional between Sardinian and the Carthaginian dialect of African Romance.
Basically, the challenge is to have a Punic-speaking Malta into the age of nationalism at the very least--essentially, a language derived from that of Ancient Carthage. For additional difficulty, Islam must exist and Muslim armies must have made credible (if not successful) attempts to conquer North Africa. So are there any plausible PODs or scenarios for this?