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THE MALTESE
FALDETTA
L-GĦONNELLA |
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by
Frank Scicluna |
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The għonnella, pronounced
"awe-nel-la" (pl. għonnielen,
pronounced "awe-nee-lan"),
sometimes referred to as a
Faldetta, was a form of
women's head dress and shawl, or
hooded cloak, unique to the
Merranean islands of Malta and
Gozo. It was generally made of
cotton or silk, and usually
black or some other dark colour,
although from the sixteenth
century onwards, noble women and
women from wealthier households
frequently wore white or
brightly coloured għonnielen.
The għonnella covered the
head, and framed but did not
cover the face. The upper part
of the għonnella was
starched quite stiffly, and
given a broad, rounded frame,
formed by means of a board,
cane, or whalebone. This gave
the għonnella a
mysterious but alluring,
sail-like appearance. From a
practical perspective, this
broad bonnet captured much
needed cooling breezes during
the hot and humid Maltese
summer. On cooler days, the
wearer could wrap the
għonnella around her face
more tightly, by making a slight
adjustment. The lower part of
the għonnella could be
worn loosely draped around the
wearer's bodice and hips, or
more tightly wrapped in the case
of inclement weather. It would
typically fall to mid-calf
length. While walking, the
wearer would hold one or both
sides of the għonnella
clasped in her right hand.
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Local
variants |
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In some Maltese villages (most
notably, Żabbar and Żejtun),
women wore a variant of the
għonnella known as a
ċulqana, which was typically
blue, decorated with white polka
dots or a white floral
embroidery. In Għargħur, the
għonnella was known as
stamina.
The colour of the għonnella
was always very dark, mainly
black. But there was another
type of
għonnella called ċulqana ,
bluish in colour with white polka dots,
worn by the peasant women of Żabbar It
was dotted with small white floweret’s
for Żejtun womenfolk. This was not made
with the same care and finesse as the
għonnella.
In fact it was an outer garment worn on
the head and covering three quarters of
the back and sides of the body. It is
said that the ċuqlana preceded
the għonnella. In the 18th
century the għonnella worn by
rich or noble ladies was white and
sometimes coloured.
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Origins |
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The
origins of the għonnella are
unknown. It has been described as a
"western garment, worn in an eastern
fashion." Maltese historians Ciantar and
Abela were of the view that the
għonnella had evolved from
traditional Sicilian dress: "One
cannot deny that the frequent
interchange made between the Maltese and
Sicilians did not influence local
customs. Sicilian influence may be
discovered both in the eating habits of
the Maltese as well as in the costumes
worn in Malta. The garb worn by the
Maltese women is a case in point. The
women of Malta wear a long black mantel
that flows down from the head to the
heels. Unlike in |
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Sicily, the net (strascino)
is not worn. Our women of the lower
classes wear a mantel made of black
wool. Noble women, the wives of
the Professors of Law and
Medicine and rich citizens wear
mantels made of silk...."
According to local legend, the
għonnella was first
introduced to Malta in 1224 C.E.
as a sign of mourning by the
women of Celano in the Abruzzi
region of Italy, who were said
to have been expelled - first to
Sicily, and then to Malta - by
Enrico de Morra, acting on the
orders of Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II, following the
massacre of their husbands.
There is some historical
evidence of this event recorded
in the chronicles of Riccardo di
San Germano: "Henricus de
Morra iussu imperiali Celanenses
reuocat ubique dispersos, ut ad
propria redeant, et redeuntes
capit et in Siciliam mittit,
quos apud Maltam dirigit
Imperator."
An alternate legend,
which plays on the similarity
between the Faldetta and
a traditional nun's habit,
suggests that the women of Malta
adopted this costume in 1798, to
ward off the unwanted advances
of Napoleon
onaparte's troops.
However, this theory was |
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dismissed as a fairy tale in a National
Geographic essay about Malta (1935).
According to yet another legend,
the għonnella
developed due to the strict Canonical
requirement (pre-Vatican Council II)
that women veil their head before
entering a Catholic church. It is said
that poorer country girls, who could not
afford a cloak or shawl, met the veiling
requirement by placing a
spare skirt over their head,
which gradually evolved into the
għonnella. Others
speculate that it is a
vernacular modification of the
eastern veil, in which case it
likely dates back to the period
of Arab rule over Malta
(869-1127 C.E.). It could also
be a local variation of the
Spanish mantilla, in which case
it could date back to the period
of direct Spanish rule over
Malta (1283-1530 C.E.).
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Historical References |
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There are
references to the għonnella in the early
records of the Knights of St. John (Order of
Malta), and in eighteenth century travel books.
Louis De Boiseglin, historian of the Knights of
Malta wrote as follows: "The Maltese women are
little, and have beautiful hands and feet. They
have fine black eyes, though they sometimes
appear to squint, owing to their always looking
out of the same eye; half of the face being
covered with a sort of veil made of silk called
Faldetta, which they twist about very
gracefully, and arrange with much elegance. The
women even of the highest rank, unlike their
husbands, constantly preserve their costume; and
any one who should adopt the French fashion
would make herself very ridiculous. They are
extremely fond of gold and silver ornaments, and
it is not uncommon to see even the peasants
loaded with trinkets of those metals."
Victorian illustrator and
traveller, William Henry
Bartlett, was clearly intrigued
by the Faldetta,
describing it as follows in 1851: "Next,
tripping lightly down the steps behind,
is a Maltese lady, enveloped in her
elegant black silk mantilla, a costume
of which it may be said that it renders
even the ugly attractive, while the
pretty become positively irresistible:
so grave, and yet so piquant, so
nun-like, and yet so coquettish, are its
rustling folds, tastefully drawn round
the head, so as to throw additional
expression into |
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a deep dark eye, and to
relieve a white-gloved
hand, and taper Andalusian foot."
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Disappearance of the
Għonnella |
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For centuries, the għonnella
was ubiquitous throughout Malta,
worn by virtually all adult
Maltese women. It was so popular
that there were many
seamstresses whose sole job was
to design, cut and sew
għonnielen (plural of
għonnella). However, it
rapidly fell into disuse in the
1940s and 1950s, following World
War II. By the 1970s, it was
rarely seen at all, except among
the older members of the Maltese
lay missionary movement, the
Societas Doctrinæ Christianæ (M.U.S.E.U.M.).
By the end of the 20th century,
it had disappeared altogether.
The Maltese "Faldetta",
now seen only in vintage
postcards. (see right)
Most Maltese women up to the
1930s and even during the Second
World War days used to wear the
għonnella. That headgear
used to distinguish her from all
other women of the world.
The għonnella covered the
head and wrapped round the body
from the waist upward; it did
not cover the face, but with a
little move hid it from curious
eyes. The għonnella
endowed Maltese women with a
proud and pretty appearance. It
became her, showed her sprightly
and honoured her in people's
eyes. The cover of għonnella
was like a charm which
bewitched and enticed men to
yearn for a more revealing look
at the eager face hidden behind
it while the big and alluring
eyes shot through the little
hoop in the għonnella
like the arrow of the Son of
Venus. |
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