Gozo is an island of the Maltese archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea, second in size to Malta Island. In Maltese, the island is called Għawdex (pronounced áw-desh). Gozo is part of the country of Malta.
Geography
Gozo is 67 km² in size, which is approximately the same as Hong Kong Island. It lies approximately 6 km northwest from the nearest point of Malta, is of oval form, 14 km in length and 7.25 km in extreme breadth.
Demography
In 2003, the island had a population of 30,750, of which 6,635 living in its capital Rabat, also known as Victoria. The crude birth rate was of 7.93, considerably lower than that of 9.59 for Malta. The town with the highest birth rate is of San Lawrenz (15.93) and the one with the lowest is of Xewkija (4.89).
Connection to the Maltese 'Mainland'
The construction of a bridge between the two islands was the subject of controversy for years. At present the island is reachable by ferry boat or by helicopter. Regular ferries relay between the port of Ċirkewwa on Malta and Mġarr on Gozo, establishing services for goods, tourism and commuting. Permanent residents of Gozo are able to use the ferry at a subsidised rate, significantly lower than the standard fare. The heliport at Xewkija provides passenger services to the mainland's airport in Luqa.
History
Gozo has been inhabitated since the 5th millennium BC, as witnessed by the megalithic structures at Ġgantija. The first Neolithic settlers probably crossed over from Sicily. Another interesting neolithic structure is the Xagħra Stone Circle.
In July 1551 Ottomans and Barbary pirates conquered Gozo and enslaved all 5,000 or 6,000 inhabitants, bringing them to Tarhuna Wa Msalata in Libya. Their departure port in Gozo was Mġarr ix-Xini.
The history of Gozo is strongly coupled with the history of Malta, since Gozo has been governed by Malta within living memory, with the exception of a short period of autonomy between October 28, 1798 and September 5, 1800.
External links
The content of this page is retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gozo under GFDL
