Fgura

Fgura (Maltese: Il-Fgura, Italian: Figura) is a town in the Port Region of Malta. It has a population of 13,066 as of 2021. Its northern fringes are bordered by the Cottonera Lines of fortifications while it merges with the towns of Żabbar to the east and Paola and Tarxien to the West. A modern settlement, Fgura expanded to the outskirts of the Grand Harbour area and was one of the fastest-growing towns of Malta. Fgura has grown to become one of the foremost commercial areas in the central-southern part of the island. Today, Fgura has one of the highest population densities in the country.

The name Fgura comes from the surname of the Ficura family who owner land and lived in the area when it was a rural village.

The coat-of-arms of Fgura is made up of a red horizontal stripe containing three golden 5-pointed stars, centred across a white background. Fgura Day was established by the local council in 1994, and its first celebration was held on 30 October. It is now celebrated on the last Sunday of October.

The patron saint of Fgura is Our Lady of Mount Carmel and an annual feast in her honour is celebrated on the second Sunday of July. Fgura also has one of the most peculiar shaped churches in Malta, built in the shape of a tent.

It is thought that a settlement where Fgura currently lies existed in Phoenician times. Between 28 October and 2 December 1948, six Phoenician tombs were found in Fgura, dating to the 3rd or 4th century B.C. These tombs were in irregular shapes and human skeletons, remains of animals, pottery and other Bronze materials and objects were found. In Fgura, a street was named 'Triq is-Sejba Punika' - in English 'Phoenician Discovery Street' - in honour of this historic finding.

Medieval archaeological remains including an Arabic inscription were discovered in Fgura during a construction project in April 2023.

Before World War II, Fgura was a rural village that consisted of a few scattered farmhouses, of which there remains practically nothing, situated near the new church, near the new school and on St. Thomas Street. There were 20 families and the people of this town were farmers. After the Second World War, the Carmelite Fathers were entrusted with the spiritual needs of the community. The Carmelite Fathers arrived in Fgura on 14 December 1945, where they built a new church and convent, which were inaugurated in November 1950, in the presence of Prime Minister Enrico Mizzi. Before Fgura was declared a parish on 21 January 1965, it was a suburb of Tarxien.

Lying inland from the Three Cities, Fgura was influenced by the growth of the Malta Dockyards, especially after World War II. Much of Fgura was built around the 1960s and 1980s. As the population grew, the need arose for the building of a new modern church. The new church was inaugurated on 25 May 1988 and was consecrated by Archbishop Joseph Mercieca on 1 February 1990.