Fontana, Gozo
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Fontana (), as a local council, is an administrative unit of
Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...
, on the island of
Gozo Gozo ( ), known in classical antiquity, antiquity as Gaulos, is an island in the Malta#The Maltese archipelago, Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea. The island is part of the Republic of Malta. After the Malta Island, island of Malta ...
, with a population of 985 people (as of March 2014).


History

Fontana originated from the suburb of Victoria on the Rabat-Xlendi road. It took its local name, "It-Triq tal-Għajn" (lit. the way to the spring), from a spring at the bottom of the road leading to Xlendi, known locally as "l-Għajn il-Kbira", (the big spring). Fontana is the Italian word for a spring. On the lower part of Fontana, on the right-hand side of the road to Xlendi, one cannot help but notice the evergreen Lunzjata Valley going up to the village of
Ta' Kerċem Taw, tav, or taf is the twenty-second and last letter of the Semitic abjads, including Arabic ''tāʾ'' , Aramaic ''taw'' 𐡕‎, Hebrew ''tav'' , Phoenician ''tāw'' 𐤕, and Syriac ''taw'' ܬ. In Arabic, it also gives rise to the derived ...
. Local farmers are busy around the year in this fertile part of Gozo.


The People

Most of the fishermen that operated from the fishing village of Xlendi lived in Fontana. Also, some other people used to go hunting in the adjacent Lunzjata Valley. Later in the nineteenth century, they began setting aside part of the proceeds from their catches to construct a church.


Zones in Fontana

*Is-Saqwi *Tal-Għajn *Wied tal-Lunzjata *Wied Siekel *Ix-Xari *Manresa *Santa Duminka


The Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Fontana

The foundation stone of the church was laid on 29 January 1893. The church was consecrated twelve years to that day on 29 January 1905, and was dedicated to the
Sacred Heart of Jesus The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus () is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus Christ is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devotion to Christ is p ...
. The church was established as the parish of Fontana on 27 March 1911 under Bishop Giovanni Maria Camilleri. The spectacular village feast is celebrated each year around the 2nd and 3rd week of June. The Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Fontana is also a parish church, and considered to be a national sanctuary of the Sacred Heart.


L-Għajn il-Kbira - The Big Spring

Arched shelters were built in the sixteenth century over the springs for the convenience of people when washing their clothes. A very old irrigation system made up from stone gutters constantly brings water from a spring situated in the Kerċem part of the valley.


Fireworks

The village of Fontana always been known to have fireworks enthusiasts. The start of it all was a certain short and quiet man, Ninu Farrugia, who had brought the skill of pyrotechnics from Malta. He was a prime master in fireworks and performed technical work in this skill with great skill and precision. His children later on continued this work. The Fontana Brothers, a number of youths from Fontana helped Ninu, and by time also turned into experts in this dangerous craft. Over time this group became champions in Gozo for constructing fireworks for the Sacred Heart feast. Although Fontana was a small village, the amount of fireworks that was produced for the festival would be greater than that of other villages in Gozo. Thousands of people attended the feast to follow the infernal box that had a certain rhythm and quality. Fontana Brothers was the Brand name of Fontana and has been famous since the start. Some were obviously very proud because it meant expertise in pyrotechnics and courage which lead them creating bigger and better fireworks which could only be seen in Fontana. Those who make them and set these fireworks off from the fields, both were justifiable to celebrate their 'bravura' or their insanity during the march of the latter at the end of the feast. However a new organisation, 'Għaqda tan-Nar Fontana' was set up in 2014, following the 2010 tragedy at Farrugia Brothers Fireworks Factory that cost the lives of 5 people from Fontana. To this day, it is said that the village of Fontana still leads the pyrotechnics side of Gozo by setting up grand fireworks shows including them with vast variety of spectacular fireworks.


Shelters

Shelters were built beside the Springs. This was useful for the ''Fontanin'' to go for shelter when there were raids during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. This shelter started at the Springs and ended on a cliff overlooking Fontana.


Sport

In the 1950s and 1960s, Fontana used to be represented by its own
football club In association football, a football club (or association football club, alternatively soccer club) is a sports club that acts as an entity through which association football teams organise their sporting activities. The club can exist either as ...
.


Administration of the Local Council

*Thomas Mizzi (Mayor, PN) *Ivana Mizzi (PN) *Joseph Mercieca (PN) *Horace Micallef (PL) *Carmel Micallef (PL)


References


External links


Fontana Local Council Official Website

Sacred Heart Parish Official Website
{{Authority control Populated places in Malta Gozo Local councils of Malta