Lija, the orange-tree village in the middle of Malta

Lija is a small village in central Malta, with 3,880 residents according to the NSO, that forms the so-called Three Villages with Attard and Balzan. It isn’t a destination in itself, but its story is a very Maltese one, a handful of hamlets that ended up as a parish of their own at the end of the 16th century.

A village with prehistoric roots

Lija’s local council explains that the village’s origins go back to prehistory, as shown by megalithic tombs discovered in 1967. The village as it is today, though, grew from its elevation to a parish.

All three villages lay within the parish boundaries of Birkirkara. According to the council, Lija won its independence in 1594, about 19 years after Attard, and as a new parish it took in the hamlets of Ħal Bordi and Ħal Mann, which had belonged to Attard until their residents asked to move. Four centuries later the story ran the other way with Iklin, which belonged to Lija parish until it got a parish of its own in 2005.

The oranges in the motto

The village motto is «Suavi Fructo Rubeo», which the council renders in Maltese as «Bi Frott ħelu Nħammar», roughly «I blush with sweet fruit». Its explanation is that Lija has a great many orange trees, and it adds that the village is Malta’s biggest producer of the fruit. That’s the council’s own claim and I couldn’t confirm it anywhere else, but I rather like a village that defines itself by its oranges.

The parish church

The present church was begun in 1694 to a design by Ganni Barbara, an architect who lived in the village. The council says Count Frangisku Preziosi paid for the twin bell towers and the obelisks on the forecourt. If you’re passing through Lija, this is the building to see.

The Three Villages, one by one

Lija makes more sense alongside its neighbours. Attard was the first to break away from Birkirkara, around 1575 if you count back the 19 years Lija’s council mentions, and Lija followed in 1594. Balzan came last, in 1655, according to its parish. All three grew as farming hamlets around their churches and are now residential villages that run into one another. Lija is the smallest of the three, with 3,880 residents against Balzan’s 5,145 and Attard’s 13,413, according to the NSO.

Is Lija worth visiting?

On a short trip, there’s no need. Lija is residential, with 987 foreign residents according to the NSO, and no ticketed sights. What I’d do is combine it with its neighbours. San Anton Gardens are in Attard, and Balzan has the Corinthia Palace, the nearest five-star hotel on the MTA register. Lija itself has just two licensed holiday lets.

As for the so-called Lija Belvedere, which plenty of people search for, I haven’t found any official source describing it, so I’d rather not tell you anything I can’t back up. For villages with more character, my ranking of Malta’s prettiest villages will give you better ideas.