Adopted by the Doughty Family.
The urban fabric of central Birkirkara must go back at least to medieval times. Not much that is immediately visible remains from that epoch, since the village was devastated twice in the sixteenth century, but the irregular labyrinthine layout of narrow streets and lanes as probably the same.
Another important element that attests to its antiquity is that of the names by which some of the same streets and lanes go by. These are mostly of Arabic origin and some of them allude to the crafts which probably used to be practised in the area: 'zebbiegha' - dyers; 'Qrejzu' - tanner; 'Buzawra' - makers or sellers of jars and pitchers; 'Maghda' - chewing tobacco; and Bazzaru, Matluwa, Imnajjar and the rest.
Some of the existing houses still go back to the late sixteenth century, but the more imposing ones generally belong to the eighteenth, though some late nineteenth century houses have their own charm as well.
There are also various small chapels, approximately 140 niches built into the walls of various old houses, 2 watchtowers, a windmill (non-operational) and part of an aqeuduct that ran through Birkirkara on the way from Rabat to Valletta.
The tradition of holding an open market in Birkirkara seems to be quite old. It used to be held in the Main street, and the hawkers were transeferred to the current location in the 1970's when new roads were opened. The Birkirkara open market is one of the largest on the island, with market days on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Besides the twice weekly open market, Birkirkara is also a good shopping centre, many (permanent) retail outlets lining the main roads, offering a wide variety of products.
The feast of St. Helen is the major patronal festivity in the locality and is held on the 18th of August. A week-long of activities includes: the blessing of pet animals, brass band marches and programmes by bands from Birkirkara or other towns, fireworks displays, lavish street decorations in the old village core and general illumination.
[Direct quote] "Church functions include the solemn translation of the holy relic on the eve. The procession with the statue of St. Helen is the climax of all celebrations. It is the only one that is held in the morning, starting at 8.00a.m. sharp. This will be followed by the solemn high mass with panegyric. The evening service consists of the reposition of the relic, usually attended by H.E. the Archbishop." [Unquote]
Birkirkara Weblinks
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Adopted by Ards Evangelical Church in Northern Ireland on 29th October 2002
The village is perhaps best known for the important archaeological sites on its outskirts. Ghar Dalam caves provides evidence of the earliest human activity in Malta, dating back to the Neolithic Period around 5000 BC. The caves also revealed fossilised bones of numerous animals such as dwarf elephants. This suggests that the Islands were once a land bridge to continental Europe.
Birzebbuga Weblinks
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The name Bormla is an Arabic word dating back a long time to when Malta was ruled by Arabs. When the Knights of St. John came to Malta, they re-named the three cities with Italian/European names, so now Bormla is technically called Cospicua. However old habits die hard (!) so many people, especially the locals in that area, refer to it as Bormla. We use the two names interchangeably, but you will find this town listed as Bormla in the Village Project lists because that is the name used by the Government of Malta in its official documents. The other two cities are Isla (Senglea) and Birgu (Vittoriosa).
In 1565 Malta came under siege by the Turks, in what came to be known as the Great Siege. Bormla, small as it was at the time, had its own part to play, and this is when it was renamed to Cospicua. After the Siege, the area was developed, fortifications erected by Grand Master Cottoner (this is why the area is known as Cottonera) and the locality became heavily populated, only to suffer again in the World Was II due to its close proximity to the Malta Drydocks (a major target for bombing runs because its ship-building work etc. was vital to the war effort).
The centre of the old community was the market place, "Is-Suq," that developed near the dockyard, but today a large street market operates on the edge of the town towards Zabbar.
The majestic "Parish Church of the Immaculate Conception" (see next paragraph) was built in 1637 to the design of Giuseppe Bonnici; ceiling decoration by Giuseppe Cali. A statue of Mary dating from 1670 was traditionally carved from the trunk of a tree that grew on the site and the carving of religious statues is a strong local tradition.
The 'Immaculate Conception' is a Catholic doctrine stated by the Pope Pius IX in the "Constitution Ineffabilis Deus" of 8 December, 1854, where he defined that Mary (mother of Jesus) "in the first instance of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace granted by God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the human race, was preserved exempt from all stain of original sin." i.e. Mary was born without sin, and never did sin.
Back to Cospicua, it is planned that the ugly wall hiding the dock area developed in 1885 that isolates today's Cospicua from its creek will soon be removed to restore a seafront, but meanwhile the place remains a quiet residential area.
Bormla Weblinks
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Birkirkara (also written B'kara for brevity) is the largest village in Malta. It is situated in the inner part of the island with a population of approximately 20,000 people, and lays claim to 4000 years of history and culture.
Birzebbugia (also spelt Birzebbuga and B'Bugia) is a quiet fishing port and small resort on the western side of Marsaxlokk Bay. The only sandy beach in the southern part of the island is found here, and is called Pretty Bay. B'bugia's population has swelled with the influx of workers employed at the nearby Malta Freeport and container terminal.
Bormla is a fortified town across the harbour from the capital city Valletta. The two neighbouring towns are similarly fortified against enemy attacks and so they are known as the Three Cities, in an area called Cottonera. In fact, Bormla's motto is the Latin phrase "ingensamplectitus agger" which means "embraced by bastions" (bastions being very thick stone walls).