Most Gibraltarian surnames are of Mediterranean or British extraction. The exact breakdown (including non-Gibraltarian British residents) of family names according to the electoral register according to the 1995 Census was as follows:
Jews in Gibraltar by 1755 together with the Genoese in Gibraltar formed 50% of the civilian population (then 1,300). In 1888 construction of the new harbour at Gibraltar began to provide an additional coaling station on the British routes to the East. This resulted in the importation of Maltese labour both to assist in its construction, and to replace striking Genoese labour in the old coaling lighter-based industry. Maltese and Portuguese people formed the majority of this new population.
Immigration from Spain (including refugees from the Spanish Civil War) and intermarriage with Spaniards from the surrounding Spanish towns was a constant feature of Gibraltar's history until General Francisco Franco closed the border with Gibraltar, cutting off many Gibraltarians from their relatives on the Spanish side of the border. The Spanish government reopened the land border, but other restrictions remain in place.
For the period of World War II the border was closed, although Spain was nominally neutral, as Franco's regime was effectively allied with Nazi Germany.
The following are the most common Genoese surnames in Gibraltar, according to Toso's research. The number of Gibraltarian residents who have these surnames, according to Gibraltar's Yellow Pages are provided in parentheses.
By 1912, the total number of Maltese living in Gibraltar was not above 700. Many worked in the dockyard and others operated businesses which were usually ancillary to the dockyard. However, the economy of Gibraltar was not capable of absorbing a large number of immigrants from Malta; the number of Maltese was already in decline as they returned to the Maltese Islands. Eventually those who stayed in Gibraltar became very much involved in the economic and social life of the colony, most of them also being staunch supporters of links with the UK.
Below is a list of the most common Maltese surnames in Gibraltar along with the current number of Gibraltarians who possess them.
Azzopardi (22), Barbara (12), Borg (46), Bugeja (11), Buhagiar (14), Buttigieg (18), Zammit (37).[11]
Gibraltarians are British citizens, albeit with a distinct identity of their own. Gibraltar is sometimes referred by the younger generation as "Gib" (/dʒɨb/). They are colloquially referred to as Llanitos (or Yanitos),[12] both locally and in Spain.[13] There are also other nicknames in English for Gibraltar, relating to the Rock of Gibraltar.[14]
2012 census
Statistics for the usually-Resident Population and Persons Present in Gibraltar.[15] A usual resident of Gibraltar, for census purposes, is anyone who, on 12 November 2012:
(a) was in Gibraltar and had stayed or intended to stay in Gibraltar for a period of 12 months or more, or;
(b) has a permanent Gibraltar address but is outside Gibraltar and intends to be outside Gibraltar for less than 12 months.
(*) Includes all nationalities different from Gibraltarian, UK and other British and Moroccan.
The 2012 census showed a total Usually-Resident population of 32,194. There was a small decrease in the proportion of Gibraltarians (79.0%), an increase in the ratio of "Other British" (13.2%) and a small increase in the ratio of "Other" (6.2%).[15]
English (used in schools and for official purposes) and Spanish are the main languages of Gibraltar. Although English is the official language, Gibraltarians are typically bilingual, speaking Spanish as fluently as English.[21] Most Gibraltarians converse in Llanito, Gibraltar's vernacular. It is an old dialect of Andalusian Spanish with modern British English influence, as well as influences from Genoese Ligurian, Maltese, Portuguese and Haketia. Gibraltarians may also code-switch to English. Hebrew is spoken by the significant Jewish community. Arabic is also spoken by the Moroccan community, similar to Hindi and Sindhi being spoken by the Indian community of Gibraltar. Maltese is still spoken by some families of Maltese descent.
Gibraltarians have a light, but unique, accent when speaking English; the accent is primarily influenced by Andalusian Spanish and southern British English. Many educated Gibraltarians are able to converse in Received Pronunciation.
^Jackson, William (1990). The Rock of the Gibraltarians. A History of Gibraltar (second ed.). Grendon, Northamptonshire, UK: Gibraltar Books. p. 225. ISBN0-948466-14-6. The open frontier helped to increase the Spanish share, and naval links with Menorca produced the small Menorcan contingent.
^Levey, David (2008). "English, Spanish... and Yanito". Language Change and Variation in Gibraltar. John Benjamins Publishing. p. 1. ISBN978-9027218629. Yanito (or Llanito) is the name popularly given to the native of Gibraltar as well as the local/vernacular they speak