Mi'ilya
| |
|---|---|
Local council (from 1957) | |
| Hebrew transcription(s) | |
| • ISO 259 | Miˁilyaˀ |
| • Also spelled | Malia (unofficial) |
 | |
 | |
  Mi'ilya  Mi'ilya | |
| Coordinates:33°1′31″N35°15′34″E / 33.02528°N 35.25944°E /33.02528; 35.25944 | |
| Grid position | 174/269PAL |
| Country |  Israel |
| District | Northern |
| Founded | Prior to 1160[1] |
| Area | |
• Total | 1,365dunams (1.365 km2; 0.527 sq mi) |
| Population (2023)[2] | |
• Total | 3,272 |
| • Density | 2,397/km2 (6,208/sq mi) |
| Ethnicity | |
| • Arabs | 97.5% |
| • Jews and others | 2.5% |
| Name meaning | "The High place"[3] |
Mi'ilya (Arabic:معليا;Hebrew:מִעִלְיָא), also calledMi'elya, is anArablocal council in the westernGalilee in theNorthern District ofIsrael. Its name during theKingdom of Jerusalem era inGalilee wasCastellum Regis.[1] In 2023 it had a population of 3,272,[2] all of whom areMelkite Greek Catholics.[4] The town is located immediately to the northwest ofMa'alot-Tarshiha.
Archaeological excavations in Mi'ilya gives indication of inhabitation from the LateBronze Age andIron Age, as well asHellenistic,Roman,Byzantine,Crusader,Mamluk andOttoman periods.[5] Remains include amosaic carpet with aGreek inscription, dating from the fifth or early sixth century CE.[6]
In theCrusader period, Mi'ilya was first mentioned in 1160, when it and several surrounding villages was transferred to a Crusader namedIohanni de Caypha (Johannes of Haifa).[7]
In 1179 Viscountess Petronella ofAcre sold the houses, vineyards and gardens of Mi'ilya to CountJocelyn III, uncle ofBaldwin IV,[8] and in 1183, Baldwin IV transferred a house that he had bought in Mi'ilya from the scribe, John of Bogalet, in addition to other possessions in the vicinity of Mi'ilya to the same uncle, Jocelyn III.[9]
However, in 1187 Mi'ilya (including its castle) fell toSaladin.[10] In 1188 it was granted byConrad of Montferrat to thePisans who were defending Acre,[11] but it is unclear if they ever took control of it.
In 1220 Jocelyn III's daughterBeatrix de Courtenay and her husbandOtto von Botenlauben,Count of Henneberg, sold Mi'ilya to theTeutonic Knights on 31 May, for the sum of 7000 marks of silver. This included Mi'ilya with its dependencies, and a third of the fief of St. George.[12][13] In 1228, Jocelyn III's grandson James ofMandale sold his part to the Teutonic Knights.[14]
Between 1220 and 1243, the Teutonic Knights bought a number of properties from private owners around the castle.[15]
Another document from the year 1257 mentions a house and other property in Mi‘ilya that belonged to the Bishop of Akko.[16]
By 1268–1271 Mi'ilya was conquered byBaibars.[17]
In 1596, Mi'ilya appeared inOttomantax registers as being in theNahiya ofAkka of theLiwa Safad, with a population of 15Muslim households and 2 Christian households. The villagers paid a fixed tax-rate of 25% on various agricultural products, including wheat, barley, olives, and goats or beehives, a total of 2,151akçe.[18][19]
In 1838,Ma'lia was noted as a village in theEl Jebel district, located west ofSafad.[20]
In the 1881PEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine Mi'ilya was described as being a large and well-built village of stone, containing 450 Christians, surrounded byolives and arable land.[21]
In 1890, Missionary Père Angelil requested the help of the nuns from the Lebanese village ofAin Ebel to teach the people of neighboring Mi'ilya for eight days. Following this, two nuns from Ain Ebel stayed behind to oversee the operation of the newly established school.[22]
A population list from about 1887 showedMa'lia to have about 775 inhabitants, all Christians.[23]
In the1922 census of Palestine conducted by theBritish Mandatory authorities, Mi'ilya had a population of 442 inhabitants; 429 Christians and 13 Muslims.[24] Of the Christians, 3 were Orthodox, 2 Catholics and 424 Greek Catholic (Melchite).[25] The population had increased in the1931 census to 579; 553 Christians, 25 Muslims and 1 Druze, in a total of 138 houses.[26]
In the1945 statistics, the population had increased to 900; 790 Christians and 110 Muslims,[27] while the total land area was 29,084dunams, according to an official land and population survey.[28] Of this, 1,509 dunams were allocated for plantations and irrigable land, 2,883 for cereals,[29] while 123 dunams were classified as built-up areas.[30]
In the early part of 1948 the village suffered from food shortages and harassment from neighbouring Jewish areas.[citation needed] It was captured by theIsrael Defense Forces duringOperation Hiram at the end of October. After a short fight, most of population fled into the countryside. The following day the localIDF commander allowed them to return to their homes. This was one of the few occasions when villagers were allowed back into their villages after they had left.[31] In January 1949 some villagers from Mi'ilya were expelled toJenin; they complained of being robbed by Israeli soldiers whilst being deported. TheMinistry for Minority Affairs reported that a further 25 villagers were expelled in March being suspected of passing information to the enemy.[32] Mi'ilya was recognized as a local council in 1957. The Arab population remained undermartial law until 1966.
In 2022, 99.8% of the population was Christian, 0.1% was Druze and 0.1% was Muslim.[33]
Mi'ilya is located onHighway 89 which connectsNahariya withElifelet viaSafed.
King's Castle, was first noted in Crusader sources in 1160,[34] when it was probably built duringKing Baldwin III's reign, along with one of the biggest wineries in theCrusader states.[35]
By 1179 the castle had apparently been rebuilt, as it was then called Castellum Novo.[8] In 1182,Baldwin IV granted the castle to his uncle,Jocelyn III. At this time it was called "The new castle in the mountains of Acre".[36]
By 1187, the castle fell toSaladin, but was soon back in Crusader control. In the 1220, ownership passed to theTeutonic Knights. However, the importance of the castle of Mi'ilya was by this time superseded by theMontfort Castle.[12]
The Arab geographer,Al-Dimashqi, noted the "fine castle", and that close to it was a very pleasant valley, where musk-pears and large citrons were grown.[37]
Victor Guérin found in 1875 that “on the highest part of the hill we remark the remains of an ancient fortress, flanked by four square towers; considerable portions remain, showing that it was built of regular blocks, some levelled plane and some embossed; the latter were reserved for the angles. The ruins and interior of this fortress are now inhabited by about twenty families, which have built their little habitations in the midst of the debris.”[38]
Giovanni Mariti passed by in 1761, and noted "an ancient church, in which the Catholic Greeks perform divine service."[39]
Victor Guérin visited in 1875, and noted that "The Greeks had just rebuilt their church on the foundations of another much more ancient, which was decorated with monolithiccolumns with capitals imitatingCorinthian columns.“[40]
| Cities | .svg) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local councils |
| ||||
| Regional councils |
| ||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
