Linguist and Grammarian
Vella’s multi-faceted intellectual activity ranges from that of grammarian to lexicographer, and to writer of children’s books with a moral aim. He was probably one of the first writers of the 19th century to introduce this genre of writing in Maltese.
Arnold Cassola’s book published in 2003: Francesco Vella (1793-1868): an unsung protagonist of Maltese language development with a rare book written by him, revealed for the first time very interesting research. We know that Vella, who was born in Cospicua, son of Giuseppe Vella and Francesca Cilia, then he moved to Valletta, and spent more than 40 years in Leghorn, and was a merchant.
Francesco Vella, aged 61 married a well-to-do Italian widow, Rosa Corsi, aged 46 in a public religious ceremony on 29 June 1854 at the ‘Chiesa della Madonna in Livorno’.
He returned to Malta in 1860, was lived within the parish of S. Maria di Porto Salvo, Valletta and died on 5 June 1868.
Despite his 40 years in Leghorn, Vella remained a patriot, and a great lover of his native language, so much so that he produced a series of books and pamphlets to be used in the learning of Maltese including a grammar and a dictionary.
Vella’s seven books have all been published in the Tuscan harbour town of Leghorn. These books have been published by four different publishers.
According to Cassola, Vella’s Maltese alphabet consisted exclusively of Roman letters with an additional symbols. Vella’s book Maltese Grammar for the use of the English is not built on orthographic rules which were based on the real characteristics of Maltese lexes. In fact he made use of three Arabic letters (rgħajn, għajn, and ġe). But by 1831 Vella was no longer using these letters, and indeed was totally against the mixed alphabet.
According to Cassola, Vella’s contribution to Maltese culture in general and to solving the alphabetic question in particular provoked quite a number of reactions in the Maltese newspapers of his times. It is understood that Giuseppe Montebello Pulis, his contemporary, was a close associate of Vella in the compilation of his works. In fact the surname ‘Pulis’ appears in the first and last of Vella’s publications.
The Newberry Library in Chicago, USA, an independent private library has eleven books which are written in or about the Maltese language and go back to nineteenth century and early twentieth century. Four of these Maltese books are written by Vella: the 1838 - Abbecedario, the 1831 Maltese Grammar for the use of the English, and the 1843 Dizionario Portatile. The fourth one, ‘Racconti facili e morali adattati alla capacita dei piccoli fanciulli per imparare a leggere’, is the same as the 1840 publication: ‘Tahdit hafif u morali ghat tfal’. No copy has survived in either the National or University Libraries in Malta, but the Newberry Library of Chicago has preserved this copy. Cassola believes that this copy has managed to survive to our days.
This biography is part of the collection created by Michael Schiavone over a 30-year period. Read more about Schiavone and his initiative here.