The ''Malta Government Gazette'' ( mt, Gazzetta tal-Gvern ta' Malta, it, Gazzetta del Governo di Malta) is a

government gazette A government gazette (also known as an official gazette, official journal, official newspaper, official monitor or official bulletin) is a periodical publication that has been authorised to publish public or legal notices. It is usually establis ...

published by the Department of Information of the

Government of Malta A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

. It was first published in 1813 when the islands were a

British colony The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remnants of the former Bri ...

and it continued to be published after Malta became independent in 1964. Since then, the newspaper has been published in

Maltese Maltese may refer to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to Malta * Maltese alphabet * Maltese cuisine * Maltese culture * Maltese language, the Semitic language spoken by Maltese people * Maltese people, people from Malta or of Malte ...

and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

; previous editions were in Italian or a combination of some or all of the three languages. Since 2015 the gazette has been published in a digital-only format, and only a limited number of copies are printed for archival purposes.

Publication history

The ''

Journal de Malte The ''Journal de Malte'' was Malta's first newspaper, and it was published between July and September 1798 during the French occupation of Malta. Written in French and Italian, a total of ten issues of the newspaper are believed to have been pu ...

'', a newspaper which was published during the

French occupation of Malta The French occupation of Malta lasted from 1798 to 1800. It was established when the Order of Saint John surrendered to Napoleon Bonaparte following the French landing in June 1798. In Malta, the French established a constitutional tradition in M ...

in 1798, is regarded as the predecessor of the ''Malta Government Gazette''. After British rule was established in Malta in 1800, a number of newspapers were published by the government under different titles: '' Foglio d'Avvisi'' (1803–1804), '' L'Argo'' (1804), ''

Il Cartaginese ''Il Cartaginese'' was a newspaper published in the British protectorate of Malta between 1804 and 1805. At the time of its issue, it was the only periodical publication in Malta. ''Il Cartaginese'' was preceded by '' L'Argo'' (1804) and it was ...

'' (1804–1805) and the ''

Giornale di Malta The ''Giornale di Malta'' was a newspaper published in the British protectorate of Malta between 1812 and 1813. At the time of its issue, it was the only periodical publication in Malta. The ''Giornale di Malta'' was preceded by '' Il Cartagine ...

'' (1812–1813). The first edition of the ''Gazzetta del Governo di Malta'' was published on 27 October 1813. The first edition entitled ''Malta Government Gazette'' in

was published on 7 August 1816. Before

freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic News media, media, especially publication, published materials, should be conside ...

was established in 1839, the gazette was the only newspaper published in the islands. From 1930, the gazette began to be published in three languages: English,

and Italian. Since Malta's independence in 1964, the gazette has been published in Maltese and English, with its Maltese title being ''Gazzetta tal-Gvern ta' Malta''. Printed editions of the gazette were discontinued in favour of digital versions in 2015, and the latter are available on the website of the Department of Information. Since then, only 25 physical copies of each edition of the gazette have been printed, and they are kept at the Department of Information and at the

National Library of Malta The National Library of Malta ( mt, Bibljoteka Nazzjonali ta' Malta), often known as the Bibliotheca ( mt, Bibljoteka), is a reference library in Republic Square, Valletta, Malta. It was founded by Grand Master Emmanuel de Rohan-Polduc in 1776 ...

. The Department of Information holds an archive of gazettes published since 1813.

References

{{reflist

External links

Malta Government Gazette Repository (latest issues in PDF format)Malta Government Gazette Indexes 2003–2018Guze Gatt (1935-1940) Il-gazzetta tal-gvern 1813-1840
1813 establishments in Malta English-language newspapers published in Europe Government gazettes Government of Malta Italian-language newspapers Maltese-language newspapers Newspapers published in Malta Publications established in 1813 Law of Malta