Hizma | |
|---|---|
| Arabic transcription(s) | |
| • Arabic | حزما |
| • Latin | Hizme (official) |
 Hizma | |
  Hizma Location of Hizma withinPalestine | |
| Coordinates:31°50′06″N35°15′43″E / 31.83500°N 35.26194°E /31.83500; 35.26194 | |
| Palestine grid | 175/138 |
| State | State of Palestine |
| Governorate | Quds |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipality |
| Area | |
• Total | 4.6 km2 (1.8 sq mi) |
| Population (2017)[1] | |
• Total | 7,118 |
| • Density | 1,500/km2 (4,000/sq mi) |
| Name meaning | "The bundle"[2] |
Hizma (Arabic:حزما) is aPalestinian town in theJerusalem Governorate, seven kilometers from Jerusalem'sOld City. The town, mostly located inArea C of the West Bank, borders four Israeli settlements,Neve Yaakov andPisgat Ze'ev (both officially considered part ofJerusalem),Geva Binyamin andAlmon.
Hizma is identified with the biblical town ofAzmaveth of theIsraelite tribe ofBenjamin.[3][4] Archaeological findings confirm aJewish presence duringRoman times, marked by a thriving stoneware industry, and the discovery of aburial cave housingossuaries inscribed in theHebrew alphabet.[5][6]Byzantine period ceramics were also found at the site.[7] ThroughoutOttoman,British, andJordanian rule, Hizma was a small village inhabited byMuslims.
Since 1967, Hizma has been occupied by Israel. The village is cut off from Jerusalem by theIsraeli West Bank barrier in the west and from the West Bank bysettlements in the east. As of 2017, Hizma had a population of about 7,118 residents.[1]
In the 1920s,Albright suggested that Hizma was identical with the biblical town of (Beth) Azmaveth of theIsraelitetribe of Benjamin (seeEzra 2:24; Neh. 7:28, 12:29).[8][4]
Gibson, after surveying the village in 1981,[4] questioned this identification, citing the lack of archaeological remains from the necessary time period.[9] However, another survey conducted two years later by Uri Dinur yieldedIron Age II pottery.[4]
Dinur and Feig found sherds from Iron Age II,Persian andHellenistic period. Based on the findings,Finkelstein asserts that Hizma can be positively identified with Azmaveth.[3]
Stone vessels made ofchalkstone (a type of soft limestone) are typical for and unique to Jewish sites from the time between the second half of the first century BCE and theBar Kokhba revolt (132–135 CE), frequently found inJudea,Transjordan,Galilee and theGolan, with Hizma being one of the few identified quarrying and production sites.[5][6] Towards the end of theRoman period, there was an industry in Hizma producing fine stoneware from the local limestone.[10] Products included vases and bowls turned on alathe, and mugs carved by hand.[10] Examples of stoneware that may have originated here have been found in many places in the Jerusalem region, mostly dating from the first and second centuries CE.[10]
A burial cave from the first centuries BCE and CE was found in Hizmeh in 1931. Six ossuaries were present, two of which had inscriptions, which bear the namesHoshea andMariam inHebrew andAramaic using theJewish script.[11] In 1983, an ancient Jewish ossuary said to be from Hizma appeared in the Jerusalem antiquities market and was acquired by theDepartment of Antiquities. This ossuary is inscribed in Aramaic, indicating it belonged to "Yehoḥanah, Granddaughter of theHigh Priest Theophillus". Josephus, the historian, references a high priest of the same name, appointed byVitellius in the brief period before he was informed ofTiberius' death, approximately around 37 AD.[12]
Ceramics from theByzantine period have also been found at Hizma.[7]
In 1517, the village was incorporated into theOttoman Empire with the rest ofPalestine, and in the 1596tax-records it appeared asHamza, located in theNahiye of Jerusalem in theSanjak of theMutasarrifate of Jerusalem. The population was 28 households, allMuslim according to census records. They paid a tax rate of 33,3% on agricultural products, which included wheat, barley, vineyards and fruit trees, occasional revenues, goats and beehives; a total of 2800akçe.[13][a]
In 1838,Edward Robinson found the village had been deserted for two months, as the villagers had "fled across theJordan" to escapeconscription.[14]He further noted it as a Muslim village, located in the immediate vicinity of Jerusalem.[15]
In 1863Victor Guérin found the village to have 200 inhabitants. He further noted that some of the houses, particularly the lower part, seemed to be built from ancient materials, and somecisterns also looked ancient.[16]
An Ottoman village list of about 1870 showed 51 houses and a population of 150, though the population count included only the men.[17][18]In 1883, thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine (SWP) described Hizma as a "small stone village, standing high on a prominent hill, the slopes of which are covered with olives. It has awell to the west."[19]
In 1896 the population of Hizma was estimated to be about 192 persons.[20]
In the1922 census of Palestine, conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities, Hizma had a population of 515 Muslims,[21] increasing slightly in the1931 census to 521 Muslims in 91 inhabited houses.[22]
In the1945 statistics the population of Hizma was 750 Muslims,[23]and the total land area was 10,438 dunams of land according to an official land and population survey.[24] Of this, 200 dunams were plantations and irrigable land, 2,338 for cereals,[25] while 45 dunams were built-up (urban) land.[26]
In the wake of the1948 Arab–Israeli War, and after the1949 Armistice Agreements, Hizma came underJordania rule.
In 1961, the population ofHizme was 1,134.[27]
Since theSix-Day War in 1967, Hizma has been underIsraeli occupation. The population in the 1967 census conducted by the Israeli authorities was 1,109, 5 of whom wererefugees from the previous war.[28]
In the 1970-1980s 19% of the village's total area wereexpropriated by Israel in order to establish threeIsraeli settlements which are considered illegal by the international community:
After the1995 accords, about 9% of the village area was classified asArea B, while the remaining 91% becameArea C.[29]
There is a bypass road connecting the settlements with the neighboring Israeli settlements. There is also a buffer zone of 75 meters along the roads on each side. Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank are prohibited from using these roads, only Israelis and foreign nationals can use them, the status purpose being security concerns.[29]
The Israel-West Bank barrier cuts off 40% of the village's area, with the Israeli side incorporating the settlements and surrounding forests, agricultural lands, open spaces, and a small part of the Palestinian residential area. As of 2012, an Israeli checkpoint located west of the village at an opening in the controls the passage to and from Hizma. Palestinians living outside Jerusalem must have a special permit that is reportedly hard to obtain.[29]Israeli citizens (including settlers) and permanent residents (including Palestinians in East Jerusalem) are allowed to pass in and out without any permits.
Israeli authorities demolish the homes of Palestinians built without permits. Strict conditions for Palestinians applying for permits must be fulfilled and the permits are usually denied.[29][31]
The village has on occasion been sealed off with road blocks in response to reported stone-throwing and rioting, characterized by many rights groups as a form ofcollective punishment.[32]
In 2010, more than half of the workforce was working in the government or private employees sector; 22% was working in the Israeli labor market, 14% onagriculture, and 7% worked in the trade sector.
Hizma village is known for the cultivation of olives; 112 dunums of land were cultivated with olive trees in 2010. Cereals were grown on 233 dunums.[29]
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help){{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)| Subdistrict | Jerusalem J1(Territories ofEast Jerusalem unilaterally annexed byIsrael in itsJerusalem Municipality) |  |
|---|---|---|
| Cities | ||
| Municipalities | ||
| Villages | ||
| Refugee camps | ||
Authority control databases: National |
|---|
