WATCH | Rabat or Victoria? A tale of two city names

Earlier this year, I wrote a style guide for MaltaToday that collects all the quiet, unseen editorial decisions that shape our stories every day. One chapter dealt with the places that have two names. Do we go by Bormla or Cospicua? Paola or Raħal Ġdid? Eventually, we settled on following the Electoral Commission’s list of official localities. I assumed the list would be the gold standard. Turns out this isn’t the case.  

My editor, Kurt Sansone, was leafing through the book two weeks ago when he pointed out that our house style uses Rabat (Gozo) instead of Victoria. “We’re going to need to update this book,” he said. We also planned to update the book as time passes. Then he added: “We should actually be using Victoria instead of Rabat.” 

I thought this was nonsense. Then he sent me a Facebook post from the Maltese-language Facebook group Kelmet il-Malti, where photographer Daniel Cilia explained that Citta Victoria is the city and Rabat is merely a district within it. “Rabat is in Victoria, yet Victoria is not Rabat,” he wrote. In other words, the common habit of calling the whole place Rabat is, technically, wrong. 

Confused, I pulled up the Electoral Commission website: Rabat (Għawdex). Then the local council’s website, which uses Rabat with “Citta Victoria” in brackets. Even the NSO’s digitised Blue Books from colonial times use Rabat, but only until 1888. That’s when the name Victoria appears for the first time.  

So now we had an official contradiction. Cilia’s reasoning was sound, and the Blue Books back him up, yet government agencies overwhelmingly use Rabat. Even the Rabat Local Council’s own website can’t pick a side. “Welcome to Rabat Citta Victoria Local Council,” it cheerfully declares, before explaining in the next paragraph that the locality has been officially called Victoria since 1887.  

I’m not one to write about municipal identity crises, but it ended up being a hot debate in the newsroom. Kurt insisted the story would resonate; let’s hope it does. 

 

The pilgrimage to Rabat-Victoria 

I messaged the mayor, Brian Azzopardi, and we set a meeting. A couple of days later I found myself on the 9am Gozo Channel ferry (the infamous Nikolaus) surrounded by November tourists whose hair was being violently re-styled by the wind. It was a long journey: half an hour to Ċirkewwa, 15 minutes waiting to board, 15 minutes crossing, 20 minutes driving through Gozo’s roads to the city whose name I was no longer confident writing.  

Driving down It-Tiġrija (or Republic Street, depending which sign you trust), I spotted dustbins sporting the city’s coat of arms. Maybe these would settle the matter? No luck. Even the rubbish bins hedge their bets: Rabat and Citta Victoria side by side.  

The mayor greeted us in the historic Banca Giuratale, offering coffee (we declined) and an enthusiastic history lesson (we accepted). “The name of this city is Victoria,” he said. “There are many people who still refer to it as Rabat, the old name before city status. Other say Rabat Citta Vittoria. But the proper name is Victoria.” 

He recounted how, in 1887, Rabat’s residents led by Bishop Pietro Pace and Chief Justice Adrian Dingli petitioned the British Governor to grant city status, believing a capital would strengthen Gozo’s identity and autonomy. The name Victoria was chosen by the residents themselves, he emphasised, not imposed by the British. 

So why do government websites insist on calling it Rabat? 

Azzopardi said this is a mistake. “The legal name is Victoria. It is a mistake that should be corrected. The proper name is Victoria and that’s how it should be referred to.” 

He said the council is obliged by law to refer to locality as Rabat Citta Vittoria, but insisted this does not override the legal name. And, like any local, he uses both names in casual conversation. “But legally, the name of this city is Victoria. Not Rabat Citta Vittoria or Rabat Għawdex, but Victoria.” 

 

Rabat for locals, Victoria for tourists 

After a caffeine boost at Cafe Jubilee, photographer James Bianchi and I wandered through It-Tokk (or Independence Square) to ask residents what they call the city. 

At Cafe Royal, the owners didn’t hesitate. “Maltese say Rabat, Victoria is for tourists.” His wife chimed in: “Though even tourists are starting to say Rabat.” 

A group of women agreed. One of them said if she’s working in Għajnsielem, where there’s bound to be more tourists, she will say Victoria. Other than that, it’s Rabat.  

Shopkeepers echoed the same pattern: Rabat for everyday life, Victoria when speaking to tourists in English. One long-term foreign resident drew a distinction: Rabat is the old quarter, Victoria the larger city.  

After an hour of vox-popping, the score looked like this:  

And what do the politicians say? 

For fun, I texted the PR reps for Alex Borg and Clint Camilleri, both Gozitans by blood and politicians by poor choice. 

I caught Alex Borg outside Dar Ċentrali. “Both names have significance,” he said. “Rabat once meant a fortified city. Belt Victoria was the recognised name given in the 1880s. In my opinion it is more prestigious to use Belt Victoria, showing that it is a city with a recognised name.” 

Camilleri’s team is yet to get back to me on the matter. But on Facebook, he tags his posts with Victoria-Rabat and seems to use both interchangeably. 

 

The MaltaToday verdict 

Victoria versus Rabat. Rabat within Victoria. Rubbish bins that refuse to take sides. Our MaltaToday style guide is in crisis because in Gozo, even the names have names. 

Days after my pilgrimage to Rabat-Victoria, I reported back to the rest of the newsroom. I explained to them that the official name is Victoria, but everyone still calls it Rabat. The local council has to refer to itself as the Rabat Local Council because that’s what the law says. Were we going to stick to what’s popular or what’s official? 

The verdict is this: We’re still going to use Rabat as a general rule of thumb. It’s the preferred word among locals and remains the official name of the locality as per the law on local councils. Having said this, we might occasionally use Victoria, especially when referring to its bid to become the 2031 European Capital of Culture. 

And just like that, our naming crisis ends not with a grand revelation but with shrug. The only certainty is that identity isn’t dictated solely by paperwork or plaques. Rabat lives in the mouths of the people who call it home while Victoria lingers in the legal text and ceremonial titles. If the island itself can live with the ambiguity, the MaltaToday style guide can too.