Balzan

Balzan (Maltese: Ħal Balzan) is a municipality in the Central Region of Malta, one of the so-called three villages, together with Attard and Lija. The village originally consisted of a group of small dwellings and farms but eventually grew, becoming a parish in the 17th century. As of March 2014 the town has 3,958 inhabitants.[2]

For other uses, see Balzan (disambiguation).

Balzan

Ħal Balzan

Casal Balzano
Local council
Flag
Coat of arms
Motto(s): 
Hortibus undique septa
Coordinates: 35°53′53″N 14°27′12″E
Country Malta
RegionCentral Region
DistrictWestern District
Established1419–1420[1]
BordersAttard, Birkirkara, Iklin, Lija
Government
 • MayorDr. Ian Spiteri (PN)
Area
 • Total0.6 km2 (0.2 sq mi)
Elevation
56 m (184 ft)
Population
 (Jan. 2019)
 • Total4,689
 • Density7,800/km2 (20,000/sq mi)
DemonymsBalzani (m), Balzanija (f), Balzanin (pl)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code
BZN
Dialing code356
ISO 3166 codeMT-02
Patron saintAnnunciation
St. Valentine
Day of festa2nd Sunday of July
14 February
WebsiteOfficial website
Three Villages of Malta
Attard - Balzan - Lija

Etymology

In Malta, many village names are identical to certain family names, as in Attard and Lija. It is believed by some, therefore, that the village inherited its name from a family whose family name was Balzan.

Balsan (Balzan) literally means tax collector or contributions collector. The tax collector must have been from the same parish, at the time forming part of Birkirkara.[3]

Culture

The Parish Church, built in the mid-17th century, is dedicated to the Annunciation of Our Lady. and stands in the village core. It was erected in 1655 but later thought to be too small to serve the increasing population. The first stone of the new church was placed in 1669 and the building was blessed in 1695. The structure is in the form of a Latin cross, has one belfry and an elegant dome that can be seen from all around the village. The church is built on a Tuscan style from the outside and Doric on the inside. The church houses various works of art by famous Maltese painters such as Giuseppe Calleja, Chev. Emvin Cremona and Paul Camilleri Cauchi. [4] The statue used in the village feast celebrated on the 2nd week of July, is carved in wood by Salvatore Dimech (is-sartx) and shows our lady and Gabriel the Archangel.[5] The parish also celebrates the feast of St. Valentine.

As with Attard and Lija, Balzan is a sought after location and popular with the middle and upper middle classes. The population has increased due to large-scale development taking place, largely in the form of apartment blocks replacing villas and their gardens. However, this is mainly occurring on the outskirts of the village, and not the historic centre. The majority of Balzan is an Urban Conservation Area.

Architecture

Churches
  • Parish Church of the Annunciation
  • Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
  • Church of St Roque

Statues

A common occurrence in many streets around Malta is the statue of Saint Roque. The belief was that this would protect the inhabitants against the Plague and any other form of contagious disease prevalent at the time. In Balzan there is a Church, a Street as well as a Statue dedicated to Santu Rokku. The statue is strategically placed at the corner of the street bearing the same name in order to oversee and protect the people living in the village.[6]

Religious Organisations

Good Shepherd Convent also known as Tal-Bon Pastur is a convent of the Good Shepherd Sisters who arrived in Malta from Smyrna in 1858. The convent in Balzan was built with the help of many benefactors in 1868. The chapel inside the convent was dedicated to St Joseph. The work of the convent continues to be that of helping and offering women and their children shelter from domestic violence, helping single mothers and now also helping male refugess and their families who end up in Malta.[7]

The Franciscan Missionaries of Mary Convent was built in 1926. It housed a convent, a chapel and a shcool. Stella Maris School Malta adopted the Montessori system of teaching when it opened in 1944. A few years later, in 1950, the school was offering kindergarten classes along with the primary school for boys. Since 2008, Stella Maris School has been a feeder school for St Aloysius College where students move to gain their secondary education.[8]

Balzan Local Council

Notary Ian Spiteri ( Mayor)

Dr Angelo Micallef ( Deputy Mayor)

Stephen Gatt ( Councillor)

Mary Louise Briffa ( Councillor)

Dr Oliver Nicholas De Gaetano ( Councillor)

Ms Doriette Farrugia ( Executive Secretary)

Climate

Balzan has a Subtropical–Mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification Csa), with very mild winters and warm to hot summers.

Climate data for Balzan
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 16.1
(61.0)		 16.0
(60.8)		 17.8
(64.0)		 20.0
(68.0)		 24.2
(75.6)		 28.5
(83.3)		 31.5
(88.7)		 31.8
(89.2)		 28.4
(83.1)		 25.2
(77.4)		 21.0
(69.8)		 17.5
(63.5)		 23.16
(73.69)
Daily mean °C (°F) 13.2
(55.8)		 13.0
(55.4)		 14.6
(58.3)		 16.7
(62.1)		 20.4
(68.7)		 24.4
(75.9)		 27.2
(81.0)		 27.7
(81.9)		 25.0
(77.0)		 21.9
(71.4)		 18.0
(64.4)		 14.7
(58.5)		 19.73
(67.51)
Average low °C (°F) 10.3
(50.5)		 10.0
(50.0)		 11.3
(52.3)		 13.3
(55.9)		 16.6
(61.9)		 20.3
(68.5)		 22.8
(73.0)		 23.6
(74.5)		 21.6
(70.9)		 18.6
(65.5)		 15.0
(59.0)		 11.9
(53.4)		 16.26
(61.27)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 94.7
(3.73)		 63.4
(2.50)		 37.0
(1.46)		 26.3
(1.04)		 9.2
(0.36)		 5.4
(0.21)		 0.2
(0.01)		 6.0
(0.24)		 67.4
(2.65)		 77.2
(3.04)		 108.6
(4.28)		 107.7
(4.24)		 603.1
(23.74)
Average precipitation days 15 12 9 6 3 1 0 1 5 9 13 16 90
Mean monthly sunshine hours 169.3 178.1 227.2 253.8 309.7 336.9 376.7 352.2 270.0 223.8 195.0 161.2 3,053.9
Source: maltaweather.com (Meteo Malta & MaltaMedia)[9]

Balzan Community Service
  • Ħal Balzan Parish Church Office, Triq Idmejda (Idmejda Road)
  • Ħal Balzan Local Council, Triq il-Kbira (Main Street) www.balzan.lc.gov.mt
  • Ħal Balzan Police Station, Pjazza Bertu Fenech (Robert Fenech Square)
  • Ħal Balzan Health Centre, Triq il-Kbira (Main Street)
  • Ħal Balzan Branch Post Office, Triq il-Kbira (Main Street)
  • Ħal Balzan Malta Labour Party Club, Triq it-Tliet Knejjes (Three Churches Street)
  • Ħal Balzan Nationalist Party Club, Triq il-Kbira (Main Street)

Band Clubs
  • St. Gabriel Band Club (Każin Tal-Banda San Gabriel)
  • Mary the Annunciation Philharmonic Society (Is-Soċjetà Filarmonika Marija Annunzjata)

Places
  • Church of the Annunciation (Pjazza Bertu Fenech / Triq il-Kbira)
  • Good Shepherd Convent (Triq l-Idmejda)
  • Stella Maris College (Triq il-Kbira)
  • St. Francis Convent (Triq San Frangisk)
  • Wignacourt Aqueduct (Triq l-Imdina)
  • The Three Churches (Triq it-Tliet Knejjes)[10]
  • Malta Hospice Movement (Vjal il-Buon Pastur)
  • Fra Giuseppe Zammit Summer Residence (Behind Church)
  • Parish church of Balzan during the festa
  • Old Announciation Church
  • Church and convent of the Good Shepherd
  • Church of St.Mary
  • Church of St.Roque
  • Niche of St Roque
  • Pjazza Bertu Fenech
  • Solerville
  • Dar El-Hana (Libyan Embassy)
  • Villa Macedonia (Spanish Embassy)[11]
  • Palazzo Bosio, Triq it-Tlett Knejjes
  • Aqueduct and cross

Further reading

References
  1. "History of Balzan". Balzan Local Council. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  2. "Estimated Population by Locality 31st March, 2014". Government of Malta. 16 May 2014. Archived from the original on 21 June 2015.
  3. Abela, Giovanni Francesco (1647). Della Descrizione di Malta Isola nel Mare Siciliano con le sue Antichità, ed Altre Notizie (in Italian). Paolo Bonacota. p. 89.
  4. "Churches". localgovernment.gov.mt (in Maltese). Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  5. "The Mosta Archives". The Mosta Archives (in Maltese). Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  6. "This chapel is dedicated to a saint who is considered protector of plague sufferers". www.guidememalta.com. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  7. "Good Shepherd Sisters – Dar Merhba Bik Foundation – MaltaCVS". Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  8. "Malta". Franciscan Missionaries of Mary. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  9. "Malta's Climate". Archived from the original on 6 August 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  10. https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/bitstream/123456789/44494/1/4.pdf
  11. https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/bitstream/123456789/44496/1/4.pdf
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