Swatar, colloquially known as Is-Swatar and Tas-Swatar, is a hamlet in

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

situated in

Birkirkara Birkirkara (abbreviated as B'Kara) is a city in the central region of Malta. It is the second most populous on the island, with 24,356 inhabitants as of 2020. The town consists of five autonomous parishes: Saint Helen, Saint Joseph the Worker, Ou ...

and in

Msida Msida ( mt, L-Imsida, it, Misida) is a harbour town in the Central Region of Malta with a population of 7, 623 (2021). Location The town is located just west of Valletta on the northeast coast of Malta. The neighbouring towns of Msida are ...

. In 2015 it had a population of over 5,100 people, with around 1,600 families. Swatar has its own separate parish since 8 November 2006, by an official decree issued by the

Bishop of Malta The Archdiocese of Malta (Malti: ''Arċidjoċesi ta' Malta'') is a metropolitan archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church in Malta. History Tradition claims that St. Paul the Apostle established the diocese of Malta in the year 60 A ...

Monsignor Paul Cremona.Scerri, John (undated)
"Swatar"
Malta-Canada. Swatar is located on a hill. It is in the proximity to

Mater Dei Hospital Mater Dei Hospital (MDH; mt, Sptar Mater Dei), also known simply as ''Mater Dei'', is an acute general and teaching hospital in Msida, Malta. It was opened in 2007, replacing St. Luke's Hospital. It is a public hospital affiliated to the Univers ...

and the

University of Malta The University of Malta (, UM, formerly UOM) is a higher education institution in Malta. It offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, postgraduate master's degrees and postgraduate doctorates. It is a member of the European University Association ...

which are found in an area in Msida known as ''Tal-Qroqq''. Swatar is also found next to ''Tal-Qattus'' and ''Ta' Paris'' areas in Birkirkara. The hamlet has been consisting of mainly farmlands until most of the 20th century.Unknown (8 November 2008)
"Swatar today becomes St Ġorġ Preca parish"

Times of Malta The ''Times of Malta'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Malta. Founded in 1935, by Lord and Lady Strickland and Lord Strickland's daughter Mabel, it is the oldest daily newspaper still in circulation in Malta. It has the widest circu ...

, Retrieved February 11, 2016. Some buildings, such as farmhouses, were built during the rule of the Order of St. John. Most of the buildings today were built sometimes after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and consist of modern neighborhoods. Some significant economic activity takes place on the side of ''Birkirkara Bypass''.

History

Swatar has been an agricultural land since the Arab period in Malta when it was not considered as a reference area on its own. During the Order of St. John the area remained largely uninhabited but the areas in the surroundings were both agricultural and hunting zones. The area started to be populated mostly after

when several families started to settle out of the cities. 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 ...

has given financial advantages to acquire and build land in the 1970s and 1980s for families who moved to live there; with similar schemes around Malta.Unknown (8 November 2008)
"Swatar today becomes St Ġorġ Preca parish"

; retrieved February 11, 2016. Swatar has had its own spiritual service, by the Roman Catholic Church, since 1989, and became a separate parish in 2008. The current parish priest is Fr Robert Grech. The patron of the church is Saint George Preca, a Maltese. The area has its own social gathering groups such as the

Society of Christian Doctrine The Society of Christian Doctrine ( la, Societas Doctrinæ Christianæ, it, Società della Dottrina Cristiana, mt, Soċjetà Duttrina Nisranija; abbreviated SDC), better known as MUSEUM, is a society of Catholic lay volunteers, made of men and wo ...

(M.U.S.E.U.M), the

Żgħażagħ Azzjoni Kattolika Żgħażagħ Azzjoni Kattolika (ŻAK) (English: "Youth Catholic Action") is a youth organization as part of the Catholic Action in Malta. It is a wide national organization of the Roman Catholic Church in Malta. ŻAK is a member of the Catholic u ...

(ŻAK) and a relative new pastoral center. The pastoral center includes the parish church, a community gathering garden, a car park and a farmhouse. The farmhouse host three main community gathering being; the Adoration Chapel, the house of the parish priest and the gathering place of the ŻAK. The farmhouse is a vernacular building and is one of the oldest buildings in Swatar. It has gone under different

adaptive reuse Adaptive reuse refers to the process of reusing an existing building for a purpose other than which it was originally built or designed for. It is also known as recycling and conversion. Adaptive reuse is an effective strategy for optimizing the o ...

and structural changes. The carpark is not for general public use. There is a public garden, named ''Swatar Garden'', which is situated at Balliju Guttenberg Street. The garden is equipped with European standard facilities such as; a 5-a-side football ground, energy efficient lightning and safety and security measures. Swatar hosts a relative large number of companies, banks and other investments, which are mainly situated overlooking the

on ''Birkirkara Bypass''. Banks include the headquarters of the APS Bank and the

HSBC Bank HSBC Bank may refer to any one of the following principal local banks or divisions of the HSBC Group: Asia-Pacific * HSBC (Hong Kong) ** PayMe, its local payment service * HSBC Bank (China) * HSBC Bank Australia * HSBC Bank India * HSBC Bank Mala ...

Call Centre. There was a Meditation Centre for some Asian communities in Malta until September 2014 but it was closed for not having legal permits by the

Malta Environment and Planning Authority The Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA, mt, L-Awtorità ta' Malta dwar l-Ambjent u l-Ippjanar) was the national agency responsible for the environment and planning in Malta. It was established to regulate the environment and planning ...

(MEPA). Swatar is a common housing rental area specifically for students attending the

, that are from

Gozo Gozo (, ), Maltese: ''Għawdex'' () and in antiquity known as Gaulos ( xpu, 𐤂𐤅𐤋, ; grc, Γαῦλος, Gaúlos), is an island in the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After t ...

or are on Erasmus Programme.

Governance

Swatar remains an integral part under the Birkirkara and Msida Local Councils, however it has its own administration being the ''Swatar Administrative Committee''. The Labour Party generally gains the popular vote.

Gallery

Community buildings

Swatar_Parish_Church.jpeg, Parish Church of St Ġorġ Preca Swatar_centre_farmhouse.jpg, Pastoral Centre Farmhouse Interior_of_Chapel_of_Adoration_in_Swatar,_Malta.jpeg, Interior of the Chapel of the Adoration (farmhouse) Swatar_-_Day_services_for_persons_with_disabilities_-_Swatar.jpeg, Swatar centre for people with disabilities Swatar_-_St._Martin's_School_in_Swatar.jpeg, St Martin's College

Farmhouses and farmlands

Swatar_-_Farmhouse_in_Swatar_in_Msida.jpeg, Farmhouse built in 1714 Swatar_-_Malta_-_Niche_on_farmhouse_façade_says_1714.jpeg, Niche with date reading 1714 Oldest_farmhouse_in_Swatar.jpeg, Farmhouse built during the rule of the Order of St. John Swatar_farmhouse_-_near_University.jpeg, Farmhouse near the

Agricultural lands and stables

Swatar_-_Horse_stable_in_Swatar.jpeg, Stable in Swatar Swatar_agricultural_land_overlooking_Valletta.jpeg, Agricultural land overlooking Msida Swatar_-_Agricultural_land_overlooking_Tal-Qroqq_in_Swatar.jpeg, Agricultural land overlooking Tal-Qroqq Swatar_-_cultivated_land_in_Swatar_near_Mater_Dei_Hospital.jpeg, Cultivated land with a

folly In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but suggesting through its appearance some other purpose, or of such extravagant appearance that it transcends the range of usual garden buildings. Eighteenth-cent ...

Residential buildings

Swatar_Birkirkara_-_Maisonettes_in_Swatar.jpeg, Maisonettes Swatar_Birkirkara_-_Apartments_in_Swatar.jpeg, Apartments Swatar_Birkirkara_-_Government_apartments_in_Swatar.jpeg, Government built apartments Swatar_-_Neighbourhood_in_Swatar.jpeg, Typical neighborhood in Swatar

Public gardens and landscaping

Swatar_-_Playingfield_in_Swatar.jpeg, Playingfield Swatar_government_Landscaping_-_Swatar.jpeg, WWII

pillbox Pillbox may refer to: * Pill organizer, a container for medicine * Pillbox hat, a woman's hat with a flat crown, straight upright sides, and no brim * Pillbox (military) A pillbox is a type of blockhouse, or concrete dug-in guard-post, norm ...

in limits of Swatar

Business buildings

Swatar_-_APS_Bank_Swatar.jpeg, APS Bank headquarters Swatar_-_HSBC_Contact_Centre_in_Swatar.jpeg, HSBC Call Centre Swatar_-_Meditation_Centre_in_Swatar.jpeg, House formerly a Meditation Centre Swatar_-_Tower_Business_Centre.jpeg, Tower Business Centre

Schools

St. Martin's College St Martin's College was a British higher education college with campuses in Lancaster, Ambleside and Carlisle, as well as sites in Whitehaven, Barrow and London. It provided undergraduate and postgraduate courses in the arts, humanities, b ...

*International School of Beauty Therapy *International School of Hairdressing *Malta Sailing Academy, as part of RYA Sea School

Businesses

*Maypole, as part of a chain of groceries (closed) *Tower Business CentreUnknown (24 September 2015)
"Hili Properties aiming high"

, Retrieved February 13, 2016.

References

{{malta-LocalCouncils Populated places in Malta Birkirkara Msida