Żejtun is preparing to celebrate the start of the olive picking season. Since the place name ‘Żejtun’ means ‘olive’ and is invariably associated with olive tree cultivation in all Semitic and Arabic-speaking cultures, it was only natural for the Żejtun Local Council to commemorate the olive pressing season.
Organised over the last weekend of September, this year it will be held on the evenings of Saturday 28 and Sunday 29.
The fest’s focal point is the blessing of freshly picked olives on the parvis of the parish church and the pressing of the olives followed by free tasting of crunches of Maltese ftajjar dressed in freshly pressed virgin olive oil.
All this occurs amid Maltese folk music singing and dancing accompanying a defile of village folk and farmers on carts carrying the olive harvest. Drummers and flag bearers provide a colourful background for several re-enactments which stretch from the centre of Żejtun to the precincts of the old medieval parish church, which will be open for the public.
There will also be folk singing and dancing in the open space of the chapel of St Mary in the upper part of the village and at the chapel of tas-Salvatur in the lower part, which will host performances of Maltese-style Commedia dell’Arte.
Indeed Żejt iż-Żejtun celebrates in style the revival of a rural industrial activity highly prevalent in Malta during Punic/Roman times, long neglected and almost totally forgotten. Since the late seventies the new interest generated by a fresh reappraisal of pure olive oil as an intrinsic element of the typically Mediterranean diet conductive to a healthy lifestyle, has resulted in great impetus for olive tree cultivation on a large scale and the production of olive oil.
This year we are going to have the International Festival of folk dancing where 12 foreign companies are taking part.
Żejtun is proud to be a protagonist in celebrating this revived heritage. The two civic bands of Żejtun will participate and all churches, clubs and places of interest will be open for visitors. During the evening, organist Joseph Caruana will give an organ recital on the grand organ of the parish church. Renowned traditional singers like Mikiel Cutajar (Is-Superstar) and Zeppi Spagnol are going to take part in this year’s event. All this make a visit to Żejtun during the evening of Saturday the 28th not only pleasant but also worthwhile.
On Sunday morning the festival will continue with several folk activities, band music a defile of horses for the animal blessing and of course olive pressing.
All are invited and more than welcome to participate!