About
Xewkija
Xewkija, the village of the Rotunda Church, was the first countryside hamlet in Gozo to be raised to the status of a village in 1678. This status is gained when a particular area was elevated into a parish by the Bishop. Its name is Maltese and Arabic for a place where thistles abound. At the approach to the village from the main crossroads, there is a unique windmill; instead of a square building, it is an eight-sided edifice corresponding to the principal eight points of the compass and the eight dominant winds. Wied Ħanżira, literally the valley of the sow, one of the deepest valleys on the island and a veritable haven for the lover of wild plants, flows southwards from one end of the village. In 1952, the villagers decided to raise an enormous Rotunda. The dome, 75 metres high, with a diameter of 27 metres, and a circumference of 85 metres, is one of the largest in Europe. Its total weight is calculated to be around 45,000 tonnes. The Rotunda is dedicated to Saint John the Baptist.
Ix-Xewkija, ir-raħal tal-Knisja Rotunda, kien l-ewwel distrett fil-kampanja Għawdxija li fl-1678 twaqqaf parroċċa għal rasu. Meta l-Isqof kien jagħżel distrett f’parroċċa kien uffiċjalment isir raħal. Kemm bil-Malti, kif ukoll bl-Għarbi, l-isem jirreferi għal art mitluqa fejn jikber ħafna xewk. Fid-daħla tar-raħal, f’salib it-triq ewlenija ta’ Għawdex, jiġifieri dik bejn ir-Rabat u l-port tal-Imġarr, hemm mitħna tar-riħ unika. Il-binja tagħha mhix kwadra bħal tal-oħrajn, iżda ottagonali bi tmien naħat li jikkorrispondi mat-tmien ponot prinċipali tal-boxxla u t-tmien irjieħ l-iktar komuni tal-gżejjer Maltin. F’wieħed mit-trufijiet tar-raħal, jibda Wied Ħanżira, wieħed mill-widien l-aktar fondi fil-gżira u post miżgħud bi pjanti selvaġġi. Fl-1952, ir-raħħala u s-sajjieda tax-Xewkija qatgħuha li jibnu Knisja Rotunda. Kull persuna, mill-anzjani sat-tfal għamlu sagrifiċċji bla ma jaqtgħu biex setgħu ttellgħu din il-knisja monumentali. Il-koppla, għolja 75 metru, b’dijametru ta’ 27 metru, u b’ċirkonferenza ta’ 85 metru, hija waħda mill-akbar fl-Ewropa. Il-piż totali tal-koppla hu maħsub li joqrob lejn il-45,000 tunnellata. Ir-Rotunda hija ddedikata lil San Ġwann Battista.
