/library/oar/handle/123456789/8332 2026-08-11T15:32:37Z 2026-08-11T15:32:37Z /library/oar/handle/123456789/148375 2026-07-31T09:32:34Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: The motto “Ordo condidit” and the earliest coat of arms of Paola Abstract: The motto of Paola is “Ordo Condidit.” This Latin motto was created in the nineteenth century. Today, it is translated into Maltese as “L-Ordni Bnieni”, meaning “the Order Built Me.” In the past, it was also translated in Maltese as “Is-Slaten Bnewni”, meaning “The Rulers Built Me.” However, before speaking about the motto itself and how it came into being, let us first examine exactly why and how it was formed. A motto is a slogan or a short phrase in which an entire history is encapsulated, in such a way that whoever reads it can immediately understand what that place represents. Indeed, the motto used to be placed beneath the coat of arms that had been created as the emblem symbolising that place. Thus, the motto and the coat of arms were created together.

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z /library/oar/handle/123456789/148372 2026-07-31T09:01:59Z 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Remembering De Paule’s Paola : Raffael Bonnici Calì’s visual reconstruction of a lost landscape Abstract: The Musical Society De Paule, the band club of Paola, has recently acquired a canvas painting depicting Grand Master Antoine de Paule. Raffael Bonnici Calì, a distant relative of the renowned Maltese artist Giuseppe Calì, signs the work.; Carmelo Falzon of Paola, who for some time also served as president of Hibernians Football Club, originally commissioned the painting as a decorative feature for his residence at the corner of Tarxien Road and Luqa Road. There, it was prominently displayed on the central landing of the staircase. The painting subsequently passed to his daughter, Mary, who married into the Agius family. Thanks to the efforts of Mr Gordon Dalli, on behalf of Partitarji De Paule, the painting was acquired from Mary’s son, Anton Agius, and was later donated to the De Paule Band Club. Measuring 218 x 146 cm, the painting is a work of considerable quality. It was executed in 1969 and bears the Latin inscription “Raff. Bonnici Calì pinxit 1969”, meaning “Raff. Bonnici Calì painted it in 1969.”

2026-01-01T00:00:00Z Bazana, Mohamed Mustafa Cassar, Frans X. Mercieca, Simon /library/oar/handle/123456789/147844 2026-07-07T08:12:59Z 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: The history of Malta during the islamic era Authors: Bazana, Mohamed Mustafa; Cassar, Frans X.; Mercieca, Simon Abstract: In 1970, during the final years of Malta’s Nationalist administration and while NATO still held strategic sway over the island, a lesser-known Arab-Libyan intellectual arrived in Malta. His name was Mohamed Mustafa Bazama. His purpose? To explore the deep-rooted historical ties between Malta and Tripoli, particularly when both were under the rule of the Order of St John. But Bazama’s findings would go far beyond mere local history. He uncovered a narrative with broader significance for the entire Arab world. Bazama’s book, written in Arabic, is divided into two parts, following a traditional Arab methodological structure. The introduction deals with the Malta of his time; the other with Malta’s past. His contemporary reflections focus on Malta’s potential importance to the Arab world, not only due to its geographical position but because, in his view, it still retained an Arab cultural and linguistic influence. This, he argued, was evident in the Maltese landscape, architecture, and especially in the language. More strikingly, Bazama advocated for Malta’s neutrality in global affairs, anticipating a position that would later become a cornerstone of Dom Mintoff’s foreign policy. Bazama appears to have arrived at this vision independently before Mintoff developed it politically. At the time of his visit, Malta remained a NATO-linked territory. Still, Bazama’s analysis likely resonated with the views of Muammar Gaddafi, who was by then the leader of Libya, explaining, in part, the latter’s eagerness to support a neutral Malta. Despite this ideological alignment, Bazama was no admirer of Gaddafi. When the Libyan leader came to power, Bazama distanced himself, relocating to Cyprus, then Sardinia, and eventually becoming active in the Italian Socialist Party of Bettino Craxi. Bazama’s contribution, however, extended well beyond politics. He also pioneered Arab historiographical sources to bear on Maltese history, especially those ignored mainly by Western scholarship. He was the first modern writer to highlight the overlooked observations of the 10th-century Arab geographer Ibn Ḥawqal. Bazama challenged the simplistic citation of Ibn Ḥawqal’s claim that Malta was inhabited only by donkeys and sheep. He pointed out that scholars typically stop there, but Ibn Ḥawqal continued to write about Malta, offering valuable commentary on why the Arabs lost control of the island. According to Ibn Ḥawqal, both Malta and Crete fell out of Arab hands due to corruption and sexual misconduct, particularly prostitution, an accusation that may also carry implications of homosexual activity, though Bazama leaves this interpretation open. Here, Bazama makes a critical historical misreading. He assumes that Ibn Ḥawqal referred to the Norman conquest of Malta in 1091. But this could not be the case: Ibn Ḥawqal died in 988 CE, long before the Normans arrived. In his own time, Malta was already lost to the Arabs, though not yet taken by the Normans. This is why later Arab sources like al-Qazwini say that Muslims only returned to the island in 1048.

2025-01-01T00:00:00Z Mercieca, Simon /library/oar/handle/123456789/147843 2026-07-07T08:06:33Z 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z

Title: Mohamed Mustafa Bazama’s contribution to Malta’s Arab Muslim intangible heritage : a demographic perspective Authors: Mercieca, Simon Abstract: Mohamed Mustafa Bazama’s The History of Malta During the Islamic Era marks a significant milestone in the study of Malta’s medieval history. While many of the historiographical elements presented in this work are widely accepted today, this was not the case when Bazama first published his book in 1971. Unfortunately, his writings remained largely unknown to the Maltese public, primarily because they were written in Arabic. However, thanks to Frans X. Cassar’s translation, Bazama’s research is now accessible to Maltese readers and scholars interested in Malta’s Arab and medieval past. [excerpt]

2025-01-01T00:00:00Z