Majolica, Maiolica, Majoliche and Maioliche

Andrea della Robbia, 1435-1525
carried on the family tradition
started by his uncle Luca. They
created a new ceramics product
with secret recipes. 

The letter "J" is an old fashioned way of writing the letter "i" in Italian, therefore the word maiolica can be written either ways: Majolica or Maiolica. Of course "Maiolica" is more modern. The sound in Italian of the letter "j" is the same as the letter "i".
The other two options (Majoliche and Maioliche) is the plural of the original word.

Maiolica is a specific kind of ceramics. Indeed ceramics is the name of the group of manufacts which originate from clays that can be either caolin (used for porcelains), gres (used for tiles) and any other clays, such as the porous clay that we specifically use in Deruta, which is originally of grey color and turns reddish when it is fired.

Therefore maiolica is a ceramic based on a this specific porous clay, fired, glazed, handpainted, sprayed with a see-through glaze and fired again. So to say it is the process itself that defines the general name of the ceramic product, because each clay is different and receives various treatments.

A beautiful example of Maiolica translated into art is the work of the  Della Robbia family from Tuscany, if we want to mention other maiolicas besides Deruta, Italy and  located in the Umbria region.

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One of the historical patterns of Deruta, Italy, called Raffaellesco
and a classical example of majolica. The water painting is effected
on a white glazing.