Palestinian
Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine.
*: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...
Jerusalem
Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
. In 2017, it had a population of 4,210. Some residents of Beit 'Anan hold
Israeli identity card
Israeli may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the State of Israel
* Israelis, citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel
* Modern Hebrew, a language
* ''Israeli'' (newspaper), published from 2006 to 2008
* Guni Israeli (b ...
s, while others hold
Palestinian identity card
Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine (region), Palestine.
*: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 6 ...
s.
History
In 1159, ''Bethanam'' is mentioned in Crusader sources in connection with defining the borders between it and Parva Mahomeria.
In 1883 the ''Survey of Western Palestine'' suggested that Beit 'Anan was identical with the Crusader village of ''Beithumen'', a
fief
A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...
of the Holy Sepulchre in the twelfth century.Conder and Kitchener, 1883, SWP III, p 11 /ref> In 1887 Röhricht thought it was a more likely that Beitunia was ''Beithumen'', and in 1890 Conder agreed fully with Röhricht.
Ottoman era
Beit 'Anan was incorporated into the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
in 1517 with all of Palestine, and in 1596 it appeared in the tax registers as being in the ''
Nahiya
A nāḥiyah ( , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiyeh, nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level divisi ...
'' of Quds of the '' Liwa'' of Quds. It had a population of 28 households, all
Muslim
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
, who paid a fixed tax sum of 3,400 akçe.Hütteroth and Abdulfattah, 1977, p. 121
Around 1740 Richard Pococke saw Beit 'Anan after travelling from Nabi Samwil.
In 1838 it was noted as a Muslim village, located in the ''Beni Malik'' area, west of Jerusalem.Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, Appendix 2, p. 124 /ref>
In 1863
Victor Guérin
Victor Guérin (; 15 September 1821 – 21 September 1890) was a French people, French intellectual, explorer and amateur archaeologist. He published books describing the geography, archeology and history of the areas he explored, which included ...
visited the village, and estimated that it had 600 inhabitants, while an official Ottoman village list of about 1870 showed that "Bet 'Anan" had 59 houses and a population of 220, though the population count included only men. In 1883, the PEF's '' Survey of Western Palestine'' (SWP) described the village as "a small village on top of a flat ridge; near a main road to the west are remains of a Khan with water, and about a mile to the east is a spring."Conder and Kitchener, 1883, SWP III, p 16 /ref>
In 1896 the population of Beit 'Anan was estimated to be about 450 persons.
By the beginning of the 20th century residents from Beit Anan settled Ajanjul near al-Ramla, establishing it as a dependency – or satellite village – of their home village.
British Mandate era
Beit 'Anan was captured by British forces in the 1917 Battle for Jerusalem during their campaign in Palestine against the Ottomans. It was described as a village situated on the hill commanding Dukka from the south, on the road to Kubeibeh, identified as ancient
Emmaus
Emmaus ( ; ; ; ) is a town mentioned in the Gospel of Luke of the New Testament. Luke reports that Jesus appeared, after his death and resurrection, before two of his disciples while they were walking on the road to Emmaus.
Although its geograp ...
.
In the
1922 census of Palestine
The 1922 census of Palestine was the first census carried out by the authorities of the British Mandate of Palestine, on 23 October 1922.
The reported population was 757,182, including the military and persons of foreign nationality. The divis ...
Muslim
Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
s,Barron, 1923, Table VII, Sub-district of Jerusalem, p 15 /ref> increasing in the 1931 census to a population of 654 Muslims, in 162 houses.Mills, 1932, p 38 /ref>
In the 1945 statistics Beit I'nan had a population of 820, all Muslims,Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics, 1945, p 24 /ref> with 10,105
dunam
A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; ; ; ), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area analogous in role (but not equal) to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amo ...
s of land, according to an official land and population survey. Of this, 2,015 dunams were plantations and irrigable land, 2,471 used for cereals, while 63 dunams were built-up (urban) land.
Jordanian era
In the wake of the
1948 Arab–Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, also known as the First Arab–Israeli War, followed the 1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine, civil war in Mandatory Palestine as the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. The civil war becam ...
, and after the
1949 Armistice Agreements
The 1949 Armistice Agreements were signed between Israel and Egypt,annexed by Jordan in 1950.
In 1961 the population of ''Beit I'nan'' was 1,255.
Post-1967
Since the
Six-Day War
The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...
in 1967 Beit 'Anan has been under Israeli occupation. The population of ''Beit Inan'' in the 1967 census conducted by the Israeli authorities was 1,261, of whom 212 originated from the Israeli territory.
After the 1995 accords about 12.9% of the land (or 1,309 dunams) was classified as Area B, and the remaining 87.1% (or 8,797 dunams) as Area C.
As of 2012, the Israeli plans for the Separation Wall would isolate a total of 1,009 dunams of village land on, or behind the wall, out of reach for its Palestinian owners.
Biddu enclave
Beit 'Anan along with
Biddu
Biddu Appaiah (born 8 February 1945) is a British-Indian singer-songwriter, composer, and music producer who composed and produced many worldwide hit records during a career spanning five decades. Considered one of the pioneers of disco, Euro ...
Ramallah
Ramallah ( , ; ) is a Palestinians, Palestinian city in the central West Bank, that serves as the administrative capital of the State of Palestine. It is situated on the Judaean Mountains, north of Jerusalem, at an average elevation of abov ...
by underpasses and a fenced road.
West Bank barrier
In July 2004, the Israeli High Court of Justice cancelled military orders for the confiscation of hundreds of dunams of village land to build the
separation barrier
A separation barrier or separation wall is a Barricade, barrier, wall or fence, constructed to limit the movement of people across a certain line or border, or to ethnic segregation, separate peoples or cultures. A separation barrier that runs a ...
.High Court of Justice, Beit Sourik Village Council versus the Government of Israel and the Commander of the IDF Forces in the West Bank HCJ 2056/04 , June 30, 2004. The barrier would have passed close to Beit 'Anan and cut off the village from a lot of its land. Following the ruling, the barrier was rerouted at a greater distance from the village.
Demography
Residents of Beit 'Anan, along with residents in nearby villages in the Ramallah Governorate such as At-Tira,
Beit Ur al-Fauqa
Beit Ur al-Fauqa () is a Palestinians, Palestinian village located in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the northern West Bank, west of Ramallah and southeast of Beit Ur al-Tahta.
Beit 'Ur al-Fauqa is identifie ...
, and Dura al-Qar', trace back their ancestry to the town of Dura, southwest of
Hebron
Hebron (; , or ; , ) is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Hebron is capital of the Hebron Governorate, the largest Governorates of Palestine, governorate in the West Bank. With a population of 201,063 in ...
.
Families in the village include the Jumhoor, Rabee' and Hmeid families. Tsvi Misinai reports that within the Rabee' clan, there is a tradition of lighting Shabbat lamps on Friday evening using olive oil and wicks, a practice inherited, uncommonly, through paternal lineage. Additionally, the clan uses the first name Zadoc and observes the custom of reciting Tefilat HaDerech, a Jewish prayer for safe travel, before going on a journey.
Education and culture
Beit 'Anan has an
UNRWA
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA, pronounced ) is a UN agency that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees. UNRWA's mandate encompasses Palestinians who fl ...
school for girls with 560 students, two elementary schools for boys and three kindergartens. The Abu Ayob al-Ansary mosque is located in Beit 'Anan. The village has two health clinics and several sports clubs. In 2009, a four-day culture festival was held in Beit Anan and was attended by more than 15,000 people.
Shrine of Abu Yamin
''Abu Yamin'' (), or ''a-Naby Yamin'', is a shrine located in Beit 'Anan. It is situated inside a cemetery dedicated to a saint of the same name and houses the tombs of this saint, his son, and his grandson, who according to local legend was gifted with foresight. More of his descendants' tombs surround the location. Tradition holds that ''Abu Yamin'' had
Egypt
Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...
ian origins and it is said he appeared wearing a green crown. The residents of the village consider him to be the village's founding father. He was allegedly seen floating above the village to the sound of a band of musicians. According to local tradition, ''Abu Yamin'''s descendants were a people chosen by
Allah
Allah ( ; , ) is an Arabic term for God, specifically the God in Abrahamic religions, God of Abraham. Outside of the Middle East, it is principally associated with God in Islam, Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), althoug ...
Wikimedia commons
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