Mtarfa

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title: "Mtarfa" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["mtarfa", "towns-in-malta", "local-councils-of-malta", "phoenician-colonies-in-malta", "states-and-territories-established-in-2000"] topic_path: "general/mtarfa" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mtarfa" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

Field	Value
name	Mtarfa
native_name	L-Imtarfa
native_name_lang	mt
settlement_type	Local council
image_skyline	[[File:Sudika Mtarfa air.jpg
image_caption	Aerial view of Mtarfa
image_flag	Flag of Mtarfa.svg
image_shield	Mtarfa_coa.svg
image_map	Mtarfa in Malta.svg
coordinates
subdivision_type	Country
subdivision_name	Malta
subdivision_type1	Region
subdivision_name1	Northern Region
subdivision_type2	District
subdivision_name2	Western District
parts_type	Borders
parts_style	para
p1	Attard, Mdina, Rabat
leader_title	Mayor
leader_name	Dale Hayman
leader_party	PL
unit_pref	Metric
area_total_km2	0.7
population_total	2615
population_as_of	Jan. 2019
population_density_km2	auto
population_demonym	Mtarfi (m), Mtarfija (f), Mtarfin (pl)
timezone1	CET
utc_offset1	+1
timezone1_DST	CEST
utc_offset1_DST	+2
postal_code_type	Postal code
postal_code	MTF
area_code_type	Dialing code
area_code	356
iso_code	MT-35
blank_name_sec1	Patron saint
blank_info_sec1	Saint Lucy
blank1_name_sec1	Day of festa
blank1_info_sec1	13 December
website	Official website
::

Mtarfa () is a small town in the Northern Region of Malta, with a population of 2,572 as of March 2014. It was considered to be a suburb of Rabat until 2000, when it became a separate local council.

History

A number of historic silos were discovered in Mtarfa in October 1973.

In the Roman period, Mtarfa was a suburb of Melite, and it contained a Temple of Proserpina. The ruins of the temple were destroyed in the 17th and 18th centuries for reusing the stones in other buildings. Substantial remains of the suburb itself, including the arrangement of the streets and many tombs, survived until the late 19th century. In 1890, British military barracks began to be built in Mtarfa, destroying most of the Roman remains in the process.

A chapel dedicated to St. Lucy was first recorded in 1460, and is still standing to date. It is not currently in regular use.

A clock tower, now a prominent landmark of Mtarfa, was built in 1895. A naval hospital, RNH Mtarfa, was built during World War I, and it has now been converted to a state secondary school, named after Sir Temi Zammit.

The British left a prominent impact on the most visible architecture in town by building the St. David's Barracks. After the British left Malta, the barracks were reused for multiple purposes, primarily social housing, and the town expanded further more into other modern residential areas. In 1988, architects Keith Cole and Joseph M. Spiteri were commissioned to modify the barracks and convert them into homes for roughly 2,000 people.

Politics and administration

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e1/Dar_Kenn_Għal_Saħħtek.jpg" caption="s2cid=76122843 }}"] ::

Mtarfa was formerly part of Rabat local council, when local councils were first set up in Malta in 1993. In 2000 Mtarfa elected its first local council, after an amendment was made to the Local Councils Act.

In April 2008, due to failure on the part of the council to meet at least once a month as required by the Local Council Act, the Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi recommended to the President of the Republic to dissolve the local council and to set up a temporary committee to administer the affairs of the locality. The Mtarfa local council had failed to meet since November 2007 allegedly over disagreements on the appointment of the council's Executive Secretary. A special election was held in 2008 after the dissolution of the council. The town has gone on to vote in further local council elections.

Mtarfa was declared an Autonomous Pastoral zone in 2000, and became an independent parish in the denomination of the Roman Catholic Church on 8 December 2004. The parish church is also dedicated to Saint Lucy.

Sport

Mtarfa has its own football club, Mtarfa F.C. Founded in 2006, the club took part in the Maltese Third Division for the first time in their history in the 07/08 season. They entered the Malta Football Association in lieu of Ta' Xbiex F.C., who lost their status due to their consistent poor results in the lowest of Maltese divisions. Currently (2022–23) play in the Maltese Challenge League (second tier).

Former World Speedway Champion Mark Loram, who won the title representing Great Britain in 2000, was born in Mtarfa. British cyclist David Millar was also born in Mtarfa, and won a gold medal representing Malta at the 2001 Games of the Small States of Europe.

Zones in Mtarfa

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e7/Mtarfa_1.jpg" caption="Mtarfa Clock Tower"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/Statue_of_St._Nicholas_in_Mtarfa_stands_on_the_site_of_the_former_Temple_of_Proserpina.jpeg" caption="The Statue of St. Nicholas, which stands on the site of a former [[Temple of Proserpina"] ::

References

(16 May 2014). "Estimated Population by Locality 31st March, 2014". [[Government of Malta]].
"A Century Ago".
(1882). "Report on the Phoenician and Roman antiquities in the group of the islands of Malta". Government Printing Office.
(2008–2009). "The known unknown: identification, provenancing, and relocation of pieces of decorative architecture from Roman public buildings and other private structures in Malta". Malta Archaeological Review.
"Restoration Of Mtarfa chapel ready by end of month - The Malta Independent".
"RNH Mtarfa".
"Mtarfa".
(2004). "A Chronicle of Twentieth Century Malta". Book Distributors Limited.
(January 2013). "Realities of Crime, Society and Landuse in the Mediterranean: JANUS I". Department of Criminology, [[University of Malta]].
(2015). "'Dar Kenn Ghal Sahhtek' - an eating disorder and obesity service in Malta". Psychiatria Danubina.
(2016). "'Dar Kenn Ghal Sahhtek' – an Effective Therapeutic Intervention". European Psychiatry.
(22 April 2008). "Temporary committee to take over at Mtarfa". [[Times of Malta]].
"Electoral Commission of Malta Mtarfa Local Council Election".
"Mtarfa".
Camilleri, Valhmor. (18 May 2011). "Millar to race for Malta".

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