Thalassic imaginaries: witnesses to (an) unwritten history

Untitled

“…After mentioning and analysing briefly the toponyms found in Malta and Gozo, the focus turns to that of Malta's ancient harbour, Bormla, where shipbuilding and repair activities can be traced back to medieval, classical and ancient times (Vella 2022). An analysis of each occurrence is presented and briefly discussed.…”

“…came into contact with Ulysses and other Greeks navigating Maltese waters were well aware of each other's presence. Once the sea rose and flooded the valleys now forming the Malta Grand Harbour, such maritime communities moved altogether or in their majority to transform newly formed sheltered creeks into well-equipped harbours with resources and services necessary for daily port activities (Vella 2022, p. 21, Micallef et al 2013. Such destination harbours became known to different peoples and cultures, who called them with different names, tried to interpret them in their own language or assimilated them phonetically to names accommodating their understandings.…”

“…51 and61, Vella 2022, p. 21). An example of changes after the flooding, which Vella (2021) calls the second phase of the Phoenician era (post c.1000-900 BC) in Malta (Vella 2022, p. 21), is the Bormla harbour which transformed into Malta's main commercial harbour equipped with craftsmanship, services, shipbuilding and repair facilities, which developed according to the necessities of rulers and commerce in the Mediterranean (Vella 2022). Malta became a port of call (Bonanno 2005, pp.…”

“…Marsa however is no new village as some may think. Its name can be attributed to the Arabs, who identifying it as the eastern part of Qormi Arabised the toponym Qormi to Marsa, also meaning anchorage, berthing and mooring place (Vella 2022, p. 6, Busuttil 1900, see 'marsa'). Although both toponyms refer to the same place, it must be acknowledged that the accessible shallow waters experienced during the classical period were no longer practicable in the medieval period when Malta went under Arab rule (870 AD).…”

“…Another site name which also occurs at Bormla is Mandra (μάνδρα), which literally means a pen normally for keeping livestock, an enclosed space, or a place closed by a partition (Bailly 1935(Bailly , p. 1224Busuttil 1900 'mandra'). In nautical terminology mandra indicates an enclosure or sheltered safe place where sea vessels were kept, also called μανδρακι (mandraki) (Vella 2022, pp. 9-10, de Graauw 2022.…”