Cardona, Teuma, Chouaref: the evolution of Maltese football and Maltese surnames

In the past few weeks, Maltese football enthusiasts were regaled with sterling performances by our teams at international level.

Despite having at its helm one of the shadiest business persons, who seems to have a finger in many illegalities that happen in our country, Ħamrun Spartans have managed to make history by being the first Maltese side to qualify for the second phase of the UEFA Conference League.

What, for me, is even more comforting is that, apart from having Henry Bonello doing miracles in goal, Ħamrun have played a blend of tactically well-organised attacking football which provided the team with numerous occasions to score. This was so evident in the matches against the Swiss and Polish teams.

The failure to concretise such clear chances proved to be fatal to the Maltese champions. Hopefully, the lessons learnt from this year’s very positive campaign will come in useful in the near future, where we might see the Maltese emulate the Gibraltarians of Lincoln Red Imps, who have made European history by qualifying for the next third phase of the European Conference League.

The positive evolution of Maltese football reveals another facet of Maltese identity

The fortunes of the Maltese national team this past year more or less emulate those of the Spartans. With a win against Finland and two draws against Lithuania, we have equalled the highest number of points, five, ever obtained at group stage.

Apart from Bonello’s usual miracles, this progress in Maltese national football coincides with the “discovery” of players of Maltese origin abroad. In particular, the wonderful display against Poland, though still leaving us pointless, was also achieved through the contribution of the Franco-Maltese attacking trio made up of Teuma, Cardona and Chouaref.

The positive evolution of Maltese football, even through the dribblings, shots and tactical intelligence of Teuma, Cardona and Chouaref, reveals another facet of Maltese identity: the transformative evolution, or lack of it, of Maltese surnames in different parts of the Mediterranean in the course of different centuries. 

Cardona’s surname is a clear example of the conservation phenomenon.

Cardona

The surname Cardona (1420), combined with that of Monroy, strikes a chord with every Maltese child or former child since we were all exposed to the story of how two historical figures with these surnames played about with Malta’s destiny in the Middle Ages. However, the medieval Cardona was a foreigner of noble lineage. 

Instead, the surname Cardona was already first recorded as a Maltese surname in 1375 (Fiorini, 1999).

However, in my various studies on Maltese migration in different towns of Sicily, in Corfu and Cephalonia, Greece, and in the towns of Sousse, Sfax, Monastir, Mahdia, Djerba and Moknine, in Tunisia, I have never come across the Maltese surname Cardona.

Yet, today, the living proof that Maltese migrants carrying this surname did migrate abroad is our national team’s centre forward. In fact, Irvin Cardona today carries the surname of his Maltese great-grandfather who, in the late 19th century, must have formed part of the thousands of Maltese who migrated all over the Mediterranean basin in search of a better life. The surname Cardona has survived untouched till this day.

Teuma

The history of our genial midfielder Teddy Teuma’s surname is a bit more varied. Born in Toulon, France, he is also of Maltese descent, through some distant Maltese migrant. The Maltese surname Teuma was first recorded in Malta in 1519. Cassar (2011) writes that this surname has been recorded in four different variants in our country, Theuma, Teuma, Thewma and Tewma.

Again, in my studies on Maltese migration in different towns of Sicily, in Corfu and Cephalonia, Sousse, Sfax, Monastir, Mahdia, Djerba and Moknine, I have never encountered the Maltese surname Teuma. Our Franco-Maltese midfielder Teddy is, however, testimony that a Teuma did migrate from Malta in the distant past and the surname has maintained the original and oldest form surviving in Maltese.

Chouaref

The surname story of our “fantasioso” Franco-Moroccan-Maltese left-winger Ilyas Chouaref is instead much richer. The surname Xuerib was first recorded in Malta in the 1417 Militia Roster published by Godfrey Wettinger. Maltese migrants have carried the surname all over the Mediterranean, where it has undergone transformations of all kinds.

In Scicli, the surname was recorded in its variant Xueref in 1679. In Pachino, the surname was recorded in its variants Xuerif in 1768, Sueref in 1774 and Xueref in 1818-19.

In Vittoria, the surname was recorded in its variants Xuarep (1764) and Xiurep (1788).

In Corfu, the surname in its standard form Xuereb was recorded in 1825 and 1828. The variant Suieres was recorded in 1827, while the variant Shiriuf was recorded in 1828.

In Cephalonia, it was recorded in the variant Xuaref in 1828, while, in Tripoli, the surname was recorded in its variants Xuerif and Xueref in 1860.

And, thus, today we have Chouaref leading our attack and, together with Teuma and Cardona (plus Bonello and co.), giving us hope that, one day, like our women’s football team, we will be able to emulate tiny San Marino and get promoted to the third division of the Nations League and, why not, even minuscule Curacao, by qualifying for the FIFA World Cup finals.

Forza Malta always.