Kalkara is a village in the South Eastern Region of Malta, with a population of 3100. The name is derived from the Latin word for lime. Kalkara forms part of the inner harbour area and occupies the area around Kalkara Creek.
Historians believe that the land that today is known as Kalkara, was one of the first to be inhabited by the initial dwellers of Malta that came from nearby island of Sicily.
There is a Palaeochristian hypogea in the zone known as Xagħra ta’ Santa Duminka situated in its parish boundary.
In the 19th and 20th century Kalkara developed into a small yet charming seaside resort while its waterfront and historical centre acquired its current layout. Many of the houses, built between the 1850s and the 1950s, stand to this very day. Kalkara bore the brunt of World War II due to its close proximity to Cottonera and its Drydocks. Kalkara still retains a charming and quiet atmosphere and constantly features in many paintings and postcards. One may find various important examples of fortifications in and around Kalkara, such as Fort Ricasoli which was designed in 1670, the Rinella Battery built by the British in the nineteenth century and other notable buildings such as Villa Bighi (1650), Villa Portelli, the Chapel of Our Saviour (Tas-Salvatur), the First Parish Church and Kalkara Cross that commemorates the end of the Great Siege.
