The Western Region (

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 Maltese ...

: ''Reġjun Punent'') is one of the six

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

of Malta. Spread over an area of , it is located in the southwestern part of the main island of Malta. The region borders the Northern and Southern regions. While the region is amongst the largest regions by land area, it is the least populated region in the main island. It was created by the Act No. XIV of 2019 and carved from parts of the Central Region in 2022. The region was one of the shooting locations of the popular television series

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American Fantasy television, fantasy Drama (film and television), drama television series created by David Benioff and for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of high fantasy novels by ...

History

The region came under the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

after the

Second Punic War The Second Punic War (218 to 201 BC) was the second of Punic Wars, three wars fought between Ancient Carthage, Carthage and Roman Republic, Rome, the two main powers of the western Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean in the 3rd century BC. For ...

in 218 BCE. The Romans established the city of

Mdina Mdina ( ; ), also known by its Italian epithets ("Old City") and ("Notable City"), is a fortifications of Mdina, fortified city in the Western Region, Malta, Western Region of Malta which served as the island's former capital, from antiquity ...

in the region, and named it as "Melita" after the

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

name for the island of Malta. The region expanded significantly during the period, around the present day city of

Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ) is the Capital (political), capital city of Morocco and the List of cities in Morocco, country's seventh-largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan population of over 1.2 million. ...

, which also served as the administrative center of the island. After the fall of the Roman Empire, the walls around the region were fortified. An invasion in 870 CE resulted in large scale destruction of the region, which became largely uninhabited. In the 11th century,

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

spread in the region, and the region was re-constructed in Arab style. In 1530, the Order of St. John took over the region, and made various modifications and reconstructions. An

earthquake An earthquakealso called a quake, tremor, or tembloris the shaking of the Earth's surface resulting from a sudden release of energy in the lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from those so weak they ...

in 1693 led to significant destruction and reconstruction later. The Western Region was officially created by the Act No. XIV of 2019, which came into effect in 2022. It was carved from parts of the erstwhile Central Region.

Geography

Western Region is one of the six

of Malta. Spread over an area of , it is located in the southwestern part of the main island of Malta. It is part of the

NUTS Nut often refers to: * Nut (fruit), fruit composed of a hard shell and a seed * Nut (food), a dry and edible fruit or seed, including but not limited to true nuts * Nut (hardware), fastener used with a bolt Nut, NUT or Nuts may also refer to: A ...

-3 statistical

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

of the main island of Malta. The region borders the Northern and Southern regions. While the region is amongst the largest regions by land area, it is the least populated region in the main island. It includes ten local councils–

Dingli Dingli () is a village in the Western Region of Malta, with a population of 3,865 as of 2021. It is from the capital Valletta and two kilometers () from the nearest town, Rabat. The village lies on a plateau some 230 metres above sea level, ...

Kirkop Kirkop () is a village in the Western Region, Malta, Western Region of Malta. Located near the Malta International Airport, it has been inhabited since pre-history. The parish church is dedicated to Saint Leonard. The football team of the village ...

Mqabba Mqabba () is a town in the Western Region of Malta. It has a traditional Maltese village layout, with a population of about 3,339 inhabitants, as of January 2019. The focal point is the Parish Church of the Assumption, found at the core of the v ...

Qrendi Qrendi () is a village in the Western Region, Malta, Western Region of Malta, with a population of 3,148 people as of October 2021. It is located close to Mqabba, Żurrieq and Siġġiewi. Within its boundaries are the two Neolithic temples of ...

, Safi,

Siġġiewi Siġġiewi ( ), also called by its title Città Ferdinand, is a city and a local council in the Western Region of Malta. It is the third largest council in Malta by surface area, after Rabat and Mellieħa. Siġġiewi is situated on a plateau ...

Żebbuġ Żebbuġ ( ), also known by its title Città Rohan, is a city in the Western Region of Malta. It is one of the oldest towns in the country, and its population is 11,074 as of June 2021. History and origins The parish church is dedicated to P ...

, and

Żurrieq Żurrieq ( ) is a town in the Western Region of Malta. It is one of the oldest towns in the country, and has a population of 11,823 inhabitants as of March 2014. Żurrieq is one of the 10 parishes to be documented in 1436 and is dedicated to S ...

. The highest point in Malta is located at Dingli in the region.

Demographics

As of 2021, the Western region had a population of 65,266 individuals. While the region is amongst the largest regions by land area, it is the least populated region in the main island. The populace included 35,212 males and 33,462 females. About 10,724 (16%) inhabitants were under the age of seventeen. The population also included about 5,736 foreigners residing in the region.

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

is the largest religion, adhered to by 94.2% of the population. About 1.6% of the population practice

, and the remaining population have no religion or have not declared so.

References

External links

Official website
* {{Regions of Malta Regions of Malta States and territories established in 2019