It has been suggested that this was the place of origin ofDosthai ofKefar Iathma who is mentioned in theMishnah as a disciple of theHouse of Shammai,[5][6] and that it was theEincheitem of the Crusader period.[4]
Sherds from theMamluk era has also been found here.[4]
In 1517, the village was included in theOttoman empire with the rest ofPalestine, and in the 1596tax-records it appeared asYitma, located in theNahiya of Jabal Qubal of theLiwa ofNablus. The population was 10 households and 2 bachelors, allMuslim. They paid a fixed tax rate of 33,3% on agricultural products, such as wheat, barley, summer crops, olive trees, goats and beehives, a press for olive oil or grape syrup, in addition to occasional revenues and a fixed tax for people of Nablus area; a total of 1,800akçe.[7] Sherds from the early Ottoman era have also been found here.[4]
In 1838,Edward Robinson noted it as part ofJurat Merda District, south of Nablus.[8][9]
In the1945 statistics the population was 440 Muslims[16] while the total land area was 3,777dunams, according to an official land and population survey.[17] Of this, 1,214 dunams were used for plantations and irrigable land, 1,741 for cereals,[18] while 44 dunams were classified as built-up areas.[19]
Since theSix-Day War in 1967, Yatma has been underIsraeli occupation. According to the Israeli census taken that year, the village had a population of 681.[21]
After the1995 accords, 29% of village land is defined asArea B land, while the remaining 71% is defined asArea C land. Israel has also confiscated village land for Israeli bypass roads.[22]
In 2011, two cars were set ablaze in Yatma and the village mosque was vandalised with Hebrew graffiti, reading "price tag" and "Migron", in what was assumed to be aprice tag attack byIsraeli settlers.[23][24]
