History of Malta Ancient Egyptians and ancient Greeks have also inhabited the Maltese islands. In 533, Byzantine general Belisarius briefly landed at Malta while on his way from Sicily to North Africa, and by 535, the island was integrated into the Byzantine province of Sicily. During the Byzantine period, the main settlements remained the city of Melite on mainland Malta and the Citadel on Gozo, while Marsaxlokk, Marsaskala, Marsa and Xlendi are believed to have served as harbours. The relatively high quantity of Byzantine ceramics found in Malta suggests that the island might have had an important strategic role within the empire from
Districts of Malta Districts of Malta Malta is subdivided in districts of localities in order to administer the country in regions rather than locality. The districts have no administrative significance as the local councils provide the first-tier divisions of the country. There are 6 districts, used for statistical purposes and which are, in turn, grouped into 3 regions: Gozo, Malta Majjistral and Malta Xlokk. Each district consists of a number of localities. The Northern Harbour District, Western District and Northern District together form the North Western Region ("Malta Majjistral"). The South Eastern District and Southern Harbour District together form the South Eastern Region