Here's what makes one wonder whether these two Maltese beaches have exchanged names in the course of time.
Just ask locals where the bay of Ghajn Tuffieha is and you may get directed to one of two adjacent beaches: Golden Bay or Riviera. Ask anybody where il-Bajja tal-Mixquqa is and they’ll probably tell you they’ve never heard of it. The two beaches somehow get by with the one name in Maltese, while the origins of the latter remains a mystery.
And who doesn’t love unravelling a mystery?
I always thought that there was something odd about this confusion among locals, despite many of them having lived on these tiny islands their entire lives. I mean, they should know these rocks in the Mediterranean like the back of their hands, right? So, what is all the confusion about?
Where is Ghajn Tuffieha?
The signposts and Google maps today state that the Ghajn Tuffieha bus terminus lies just by Golden Bay; the Ghajn Tuffieha scouts group is located on the north side of Golden Bay; and the restaurant that has been there since British colonial times is called The Apple's Eye, which could translate as 'ghajn it-tuffieha'. Yet, they also state that Ghajn Tuffieha beach lies south of Golden Bay at Riviera Bay, with its 200 or so steps leading down to it.
As I was growing up, Ghajn Tuffieha always seemed to refer to Golden Bay (far left in the main picture). It was about twenty years ago that newly installed signposts stated that the adjacent bay of Riviera was actually called Ghajn Tuffieha. Indeed, now that it has been confirmed that Riviera is Ghajn Tuffieha, Golden Bay's original Maltese name has still continued to elude everyone I asked; even on Google Maps, you'll find no Maltese name for this famous Maltese beach.
To avoid any confusion, locals began to use the English names for Golden Bay or Riviera. Alternatively they'd add a description: Ghajn Tuffieha l-kbira (... the large one) or Ghajn Tuffieha tat-Tarag (... of the stairs).
Golden Bay vs Riviera Bay
You'd think that the English name Golden Bay should simply be a translation of the Maltese Bajja tad-Deheb. Wrong. It was a name probably coined by the British services during their rule over Malta between 1800 and 1964; they had army barracks nearby. To be fair, all ex-British colonies have places with alternative English names that have zilch to do with the original names. I personally think it is a good name for that beach with golden sands; it suits it well.
The English name Riviera Bay, on the other hand, probably came from the now broken down hotel still perched at the top of the intimidating flight of steps leading to the beach. Or was it the hotel that got its name from the beach? Unlikely. There’s certainly no Maltese word for Riviera because in Malta there is no actual riviera - you certainly can't describe the Mellieha -Mgarr coast as having a subtropical climate and vegetation.
Where is il-Bajja tal-Mixquqa?
On finally discovering a signpost on a back road from the village of Manikata pointing to Golden Bay as il-Bajja tal-Mixquqa, I was overjoyed to have -seemingly - fallen upon the Maltese name of this popular beach. I must admit I felt uncertain as to what ‘mixquqa’ actually meant, though, from its root, I somewhat assumed that it should refer to a crack of some sort. The Semitic origin of the Maltese language usually means many word variations are derived from a root sound and this was confirmed on the Maltese language forum Kelmet il-Malti which states that the name il-Bajja tal-Mixquqa refers to "the bay of the cracked (promontory)". For those not up to date on their geography, the term promontory refers to a raised mass of land that plunges into water (or lowland). You can actually see examples of this in the main picture.
Great, now it makes sense. Or does it? The sign I saw pointed to Golden Bay, yet the cracked promontory is at Riviera! That’s when it dawned on me that there might be a mistake here. Could an error in the placing of signposts years ago have swapped the names of these two beaches?
Just look again at the main picture: it is as evident as can be that Golden Bay's promontories are all but cracked and it is the one lying south of Riviera that is cracked. That cracked promontory - Ras il-Qarraba - has slid away from the mainland due to the movement of the blue clay that supports it. Interestingly, a bus stop very near Riviera and nowhere near Golden Bay, is also named Mixquqa. Also noteworthy is the fact that Riviera was very little frequented compared to Golden Bay until just a decade or so ago, when a kiosk settled in and brought conveniences; it would explain why only few people would have known this original name.
So, which is which?
On Instagram, #ghajntuffieha has 12,620 posts at the time of publishing; #mixquqa has just 5. Considering that Golden Bay (supposedly, Mixquqa) is Malta's most famous beach and Ghajn Tuffieha (supposedly, Riviera) is even more difficult to spell, that's just odd. In itself, it points at how the misnomer might have stuck on the 'newly' signposted Riviera beach but also to the beach known as Golden Bay.
I believe there is no doubt that the cracked promontory at Riviera is the source of the name Mixquqa. But, the investigation can be considered final only when we can locate the ancient spring after which ‘Ghajn’ Tuffieha probably got its name; our ancestors often named places after freshwater springs as there were so few of them and they were therefore considered of great importance.
Local lore and the names of surrounding areas, establishments and even bus stops already give a good indication that somebody on signpost duty made a huge mistake when planning their placement. Perhaps, if we found this spring at Golden Bay, this dilemma over nomenclature would be solved forever and the proper identity of these beaches could be finally restored.