Daniel Cilia is a good photographer but his historiographical sensitivity is limited. I totally disagree with his proposal that the ‘Sette Giugno’ should be in Maltese (The Sunday Times of Malta, May 22) for two reasons.

First of all, ‘Is-Sebgħa ta’ Ġunju’ could be just another date in the calendar whereas the Sette Giugno is a distinct historical event of national importance, which has come down to us as such inter-generationally.

It has therefore assumed an identity and significance of its own, which it need not be shorn of out of a misplaced linguistic nationalism. By the same token, May 6 would be just another date but is-‘Sei Maggio’ (1891) is a specific historical event.

As the knowledge of our history by Cilia’s Italian friends is so abysmal, he should have told them that the term in use is not related to Italian involvement in the 1919 unrest (as had once been alleged falsely by loyalist elements) but simply because Italian had been Malta’s language of education and public life for centuries until its use was curtailed by decree in 1934 on the eve of Italy’s occupation of Abyssinia, which Britain opposed. (My chapters on this question in Europe and Empire, Midsea, 2012, pp. 447-698, refer.)

The very same front page of the Maltese language newspaper exhibited with Cilia’s plea carries adverts of P.P.Formosa’s ‘Banca’ in Strada Zaccaria and of ‘Franco Anglais Modes’ in Strada Forni.

The first names of three of those killed by British troops on the day are given as Emmanuele, Giuseppe and Lorenzo, although, as I have shown, there were others who died afterwards. In other words, in the public memory, the ‘Sette Giugno’ is far from being simply another day.

Secondly, why on earth should “the government make an official declaration that the national holiday should from now on be referred to as ‘Is-Sebgħa ta’ Ġunju’ and not ‘Sette Giugno’? Do we need further official sanction to prohibit the use of certain words by our people? We already had ‘nazzjon’, ‘Malta’ and now ( if some zealots have their way) ‘skond’ banned; should we now add ‘Sette Giugno’ to the list? How insular and repressive can we get? Of course ‘Sette Giugno’ could be rendered in Maltese, in French, or in any other language, with historical context and continuity somewhat lost in translaton, but should the government (sic) now ban ‘ANZAC Day’ in preference for ‘Jum il-Anzak’?

As the one who in response to a request for consultancy in 1988 had proposed the ‘Sette Giugno’ together with four other historic dates for a National Day (surprisingly the Cabinet had accepted all five to keep the peace), I take exception to meddling ‘officially’ with such an accepted and internalised historical term, or indeed with others which have long been used by our greatest historians, poets and litterateurs.

Such centralised interference from above has tended to be associated with fascist regimes.

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