Maltese emigration to the United States of America (1919-1939)

Abstract

The subject of Emigration is not new to the Maltese now-a-days. The thousands of inhabitants that left Maltese shores in search of a better life go back centuries and relate to many of Malta’s inhabitants today. Even now-a-days in conversation, terms such as iz-ziju tal-Amerika or il-kuġini tal-Awstralja (my uncle in America or my cousins in Australia) are used. The link between Malta and the emigrant’s destination has always been a strong one, particularly in Maltese communities scattered across the globe. The decision to research this topic stems from interest on the topic, with numerous members of one’s family emigrating to the United States during, and prior to, the period in question. With quite significant gaps in this field of study, the decision was made to look into them and provide answers to a relatively unexplored field. This topic of Maltese, US-bound migration is important since it signifies the struggle faced by those many thousands of ‘lower class’s individuals who had, and made, the decision to emigrate specifically to the United States and, having started the process to do so, the challenges they faced along the way – and the void they left behind. What this dissertation seeks to achieve is to explain exactly how emigration was promoted during the interwar period (1919-1939), with the United States taken as an example of a prime emigrant destination. Upon considering the literature available on the subject of US-bound emigration, one notices that very little have been produced. This work seeks to explain the process of emigration in its entirety, including the reasons for the prospective emigrant to take the decision to leave, and the life built in three cities in the United States. This work was compiled through various forms of methodologies, from quantitative reports and qualitative archival research, to interviews, content analysis and case studies – which led to the conclusions presented by this thesis.