Sha'ab
| |
|---|---|
| Hebrew transcription(s) | |
| • ISO 259 | Šaˁḅ |
| • Also spelled | Sha'av (unofficial) |
 | |
  Sha'ab  Sha'ab | |
| Coordinates:32°53′22″N35°14′19″E / 32.88944°N 35.23861°E /32.88944; 35.23861 | |
| Grid position | 172/254PAL |
| Country |  Israel |
| District | Northern |
| Area | |
• Total | 5,442dunams (5.442 km2; 2.101 sq mi) |
| Population (2023)[1] | |
• Total | 7,645 |
| • Density | 1,405/km2 (3,638/sq mi) |
Sha'ab (Arabic:شعب;Hebrew:שַׁעַבּ; meaning "The spur")[2] is anArab town andlocal council in theNorthern District of Israel. It has an area of 5,442dunams (6.4 km2 (2.5 sq mi)) of land under its jurisdiction. In 2023 its population was 7,645.[1]
French scholarVictor Guérin associated Sha'ab withSaab, a place mentioned by 1st-century Jewish historianJosephus.[3][4] TheMidrash Rabba (Leviticus Rabba s. 20,9) mentions a certain Rabbi Mani of Sha'ab, together with Yehoshua of Sakhnin and RabbiJohanan bar Nappaha. In the 14th century, the tax income from the village was given to thewakf of themadrasah andmausoleum of theShafi'i Manjaq inEgypt.[5]
In 1517, Sha'ab was incorporated into theOttoman Empire along with the rest ofPalestine. In 1573 (981AH) Sha'ab was one of several villages inGalilee which rebelled against the Ottomans.[6] In 1596, the village appeared in Ottomantax registers as being in theNahiya ofAcre, part ofSafad Sanjak, with a population of 102 households and 37 bachelors, allMuslims. The villagers paid a fixed tax rate of 33,3% on wheat, barley, fruit trees, "goats and bees", in addition to "occasional revenues"; a total of 14,354akçe. 3/4 of the revenue went to aWaqf.[7][8]
According to local tradition, the village started to flourish under anti-Ottoman rebelDaher al-Umar (c. 1768).[9] In 1859, the population was estimated to be 1,500. Some wereCatholic, the majority Muslim. The cultivated fields were estimated to be 80feddans.[10] Guérin visited in the 1870s, and wrote that the village of Sh'aib consisted of four quarters. The inhabitants, he wrote, were for the most part Muslim, about 800, and some 20 "Schismatic Greek" families. The Muslims had two Mosques and twowalis.[11][12] In 1881, Sha'ab was described as being in a valley with fine olive groves, while part of the hill behind it was cultivated in corn.[10]
A population list from about 1887 showed that Sha'ab had about 1,430 inhabitants; 1,345 Muslims and 85 Greek Catholics.[13]
In the1922 census of Palestine conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities, Sha'ab had a population of 1,206; 1,166 Muslims and 40 Christians,[14] where the Christians were 15 Orthodox and 25Melkites.[15] The population increased slightly in the1931 census to 1,297; 1,277 Muslims, 19 Christians and 1 Jew, in a total of 284 houses.[16]
During the1936 revolt in Palestine, the British Army attacked Sha'ab, demolishing 190 houses in the village. According to an eyewitness account, the British collectively punished the village for harboring a rebel who allegedly set off a roadside explosive that killed four British soldiers and injured three. A day prior to the demolition of the homes, the army rounded up around 200 of its adult male residents and led them to a valley outside the village. As they were being lined up, a rebel fighter positioned on a nearby hill began yelling and firing into the air, confusing the soldiers and causing Sha'ab's detained men to disperse chaotically. One resident named Hassan Hajj Khatib was killed.[17]
In the1945 statistics, Sha'ab had 1,740 inhabitants; 30 Christians and 1,710 Muslims.[18] They owned a total of 17,870dunams of land, while 121 dunams were public.[19] 3,248 dunams were used for plantations and irrigable land, 6,602 dunams for cereals,[20] while 231 dunams were built-up (urban) land.[21]
Sha'ab was captured by theIsrael Forces (IDF) on 19 July 1948 during the1948 Arab–Israeli War. The villagers surrendered without a fight.[22] In December 1948, the residents were ordered to leave by theOded Brigade.[23] The village was the headquarters and hometown of Abu Is'af, who led Arab resistance groups during the war and was viewed as a hero.[24] Many of the original residents settled in nearby Arab villages, predominantly inMajd al-Krum andSakhnin while refugees fromal-Birwa,al-Damun andMi'ar relocated to Sha'ab after the war. Refugees fromKirad al-Ghannam andKirad al-Baqqara in theHula Valley joined them in 1953. The original residents launched a campaign to return to their homes soon after the war.[25] Refugees from the Hula Valley and al-Birwa sympathized with them but those from al-Damun and Mi'ar were opposed. By 1950, roughly 10% of Sha'ab's original inhabitants returned to the village and eventually many more obtained permission to return.[26]
In 2022, 100% of the population was Muslim.[27]
Themosque ofDaher al-Umar is situated in the centre of the old village. In 1933 it was inspected by Na'im Makhouly from thePalestine Antiquities Museum, who found that the mosque dated from the time of Daher al-Umar. In 1933 the mosque was in disrepair. Pictures from the time show twoarcades: one had fourarches connected with the side wall, with twocolumns in the centre. A reusedIoniccapital could be seen, and above the doorway was a reusedRomanlintel (first noticed by Guérin in the 1870s).[9][28]
Andrew Petersen, an archaeologist specialising inIslamic architecture, surveyed the mosque in 1994. He found that the present mosque, built in the 1980s, encased the old building. The old part is the prayer hall, has an entrance to the north. This hall is square, covered with adome. The dome rests on largesquinches, which are supported bycorbels. According to Petersen, the domed prayer hall is consistent with an 18th-century construction date.[28]
TheMaqam Shaykh Alami is situated south of the mosque, within its enclosure. It is built at a slope, where the ground rises to the south. On the east side there are two entrances; to the maqam, and to an undergroundcistern.[28]
The building is rectangular, 10 x 20 m, with an interior divided into two. The southern part contains amihrab and is covered with abarrel vault. The northern end is covered with a dome, and has two largecenotaphs. According to Petersen, the buildings appear medieval.[28]
| Cities | .svg) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local councils |
| ||||
| Regional councils |
| ||||
