Gozo Island

Encyclopedia : G : GO : GOZ : Gozo Island

Gozo is an island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea, second in size to Malta. In Maltese, the island is called Għawdex (pronounced áw-desh), which means "joy" in archaic Arabic. Gozo is part of the country of Malta.

Contents

1 Geography
2 Demography
3 Connection to the Maltese 'Mainland'
4 History
5 External links

Geography

Gozo is 67 km² in size, which is approximately the same as Hong Kong Island. It lies approximately 6 km northwest from the nearest point of Malta, is of oval form, 14 km in length and 7.25 km in extreme breadth.

Demography

In 2003, the island had a population of 30,750, 6,635 of which live in its capital Rabat, also known as Victoria. The crude birth rate was of 7.93, considerably lower than that of 9.59 for Malta. The town with the highest birth rate is San Lawrenz (15.93) and the one with the lowest is Xewkija (4.89).

Connection to the Maltese 'Mainland'

The construction of a bridge between the two islands was the subject of controversy for years. At present the island is reachable by ferry boat or by helicopter. Regular ferries relay between the port of Ċirkewwa on Malta and Mġarr on Gozo, establishing services for goods, tourism and commuting. Permanent residents of Gozo are able to use the ferry at a subsidised rate, significantly lower than the standard fare. The heliport at Xewkija provides passenger services to the mainland's airport in Luqa.

Mġarr Ix-Xini

History

Gozo has been inhabitated since the 5^th millennium BC, as witnessed by the megalithic structures at Ġgantija. The first Neolithic settlers probably crossed over from Sicily. Another interesting neolithic structure is the Xagħra Stone Circle.

In July 1551 Ottomans and Barbary pirates conquered Gozo and enslaved all 5,000 or 6,000 inhabitants, bringing them to Tarhuna Wa Msalata in Libya. Their departure port in Gozo was Mġarr ix-Xini.

The history of Gozo is strongly coupled with the history of Malta, since Gozo has been governed by Malta within living memory, with the exception of a short period of autonomy between October 28, 1798 and September 5, 1800.

External links

[Maltese Ministry for Gozo]
[Gozo Business Chamber]
[Gozo Beaches]
[PhotoGlobe: Gozo] A collection of commented photos together with GPS-based coordinates
[Zoomable Map of Gozo]
[Gozo Channel] Ferry services to and from Gozo

[http://encycl.opentopia.com/ edit ]	Local Councils of Malta
Malta Island
Attard \| Balzan \| Birgu \| Birkirkara \| Birżebbuġa \| Bormla (Cospicua) \| Dingli \| Fgura \| Floriana \| Gudja \| Gżira \| Għargħur \| Għaxaq \| Ħamrun \| Iklin \| Isla (Senglea) \| Kalkara \| Kirkop \| Lija \| Luqa \| Marsa \| Marsaskala \| Marsaxlokk \| Mdina \| Mellieħa \| Mġarr \| Mosta \| Mqabba \| Msida \| Mtarfa \| Naxxar \| Paola \| Pembroke \| Pietà \| Qormi \| Qrendi \| Rabat \| Safi \| St. Julian's (San Ġiljan) \| Santa Luċija \| St. Paul's Bay (San Pawl il-Baħar) \| San Ġwann \| Santa Venera \|Siggiewi\| Sliema \| Swieqi \| Ta' Xbiex \| Tarxien \| Valletta \| Xgħajra \| Żabbar \| Żebbuġ \| Żejtun \| Żurrieq
Gozo Island
Fontana \| Għajnsielem \| Għarb \| Għasri \| Kerċem \| Munxar \| Nadur \| Qala \| Victoria (Rabat) \| Ramla Bay \| Saint Lawrence (San Lawrenz) \| Sannat \| Xagħra \| Xewkija \| Żebbuġ

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