Introduction of landscape ecology in Gozo

Abstract

Gozo or Ghawdex, as it is called in Maltese, is the second largest isle within the Maltese archipelago that comprises a relatively low lying small group of calcareous islands, islets and rocks located in the central Mediterranean. The history of human settlement on the island of Gozo dates to at least seven thousand years B.P., when it is thought that cultural development commenced with the arrival of settlers from nearby Sicily. As evidenced by the monumental megalithic temples at Ggantija, within the precincts of the village of Xaghra, and other such Neolithic artefacts such as the Xaghra Circle hypogeum complex, societal development at the time appears to have reached its apex during the Temple period. It is largely recognized that the physical environment is, to a great extent, a determining and conditioning factor in the manner by which cultural patterns are fashioned. Yet, given the meagre local resources of the time, the temple culture seemed to attain a level of grandeur that went beyond what one would deem achievable (Bonanno, 1995). Over the millennia, cultural traits were progressively shaped by the island's landform, or geomorphology, and available natural resources, as also by its chequered history as determined by circumstances, more often than not, influenced by the human agency. Following the unexplained disappearance of the Temple culture from the Maltese Islands, Calypso's isle, as it is often referred to in mythology, was colonised by bronze-using settlers. Later, the islands came under the successive influence of various advanced civilizations, including Phoenician, Carthaginian, Greek, Roman and Byzantine; throughout these times, the island of Gozo became known as Gwl, Gaulos, Ogygia, Gaudos and various other derivatives and forms. Subsequent to more than two hundred years of Arab rule (870-1091 AD), the Middle Ages were characterized by various invaders-cum- liberators-cum-colonizers from present-day Europe. Significant change occurred between early modern times (which was marked by the arrival of the Knights of St John in 1530) and independence in 1964. Each historical epoch that followed left its mark on Gozitan way of life, which as a consequence led to the evolvement of contemporary Gozitan culture with its own distinct identity and character. Each epoch also left its imprint in terms of land-use and, often, a host of associated conflicts, which over time characterized the landscape to one which we have come to know in the last century or so.