In the Beginning
Algeria is the largest country in Africa today, bordered on the north by the Mediterranean with the capital Algiers lying 1000 km from Malta. Its size belies the population distribution with about 90% of the population living in the temperate and fertile areas of the far north of the country, the Sahara Desert covering the rest of the country. The French conquest of Algeria took place between 1830 and 1848 but these dates only covered occupation of the most northern areas. Accounts tell of massive losses amongst both the Algerians and the French. Conflicts continued into the 20th century before France gained control of the tribal lands to the south.
Records for Algeria have been found from 1832 to 1904, the first Baldacchino marriage recorded in 1839 quickly followed by the first baptisms. They initially settled in Algiers, the first place captured by the French, as the territorial battles continued. The most prevalent occupations of these early migrants were goatherds and merchants, mostly fruit and vegetables.
Migration
Marriage records show that new arrivals from Malta continued through the century. J M Hayes identifies that 85% of these migrants returned to Malta, what he terms ‘circular migration’ (Joshua M Hayes, ‘M’hemm l-ebda post iehor bhad-dar (There’s No Place Like Home): Maltese Migration to French Algeria in the Nineteenth Century’, Journal of Maltese History, Vol 2, No 1 (2010), p 43). A substantial presence in Algiers was maintained but Baldacchinos also spread along the coast establishing a similar presence in Bone and Constantine to the east. With increasing numbers, occupations became more varied. Goatherds and merchants were still the most prevalent occupations but there were also many day labourers, farmers and milkmen, carpenters and carriers.
The Surname Today
Forebears.io does not identify anyone living in Algeria today with the Baldacchino or variant surname. The Algerian War of Independence took place from 1954 to 1962 with about 80% of Europeans in Algeria leaving at that time. Within another two decades, the numbers had dwindled to few remaining. French death records identify that Baldacchinos continued to reside in Algeria through the first half of the 20th century, followed by migration to France. About 20% of Baldacchinos, Baldachinos and Baldaquins dying in France between 1977 and 2022 were born in Algeria.