While it was historically a city ofArab Christians, Bethlehem now has a majority ofArab Muslims; while it is still home to a significant population ofPalestinian Christians, this community has dwindled significantly, from about 86 per cent in 1950 to about 10 per cent in 2022.[10] Presently, Bethlehem has become encircled by dozens ofIsraeli settlements, which significantly hinder the ability ofPalestinians in the city to openly access their land and livelihoods, which has contributed to the exodus of Palestinians.[11]
Etymology
The current name for Bethlehem in local languages isBayt Laḥmⓘ /Bēt laḥm/ in Arabic (Arabic:بيت لحم), literally meaning "house of meat", andBet Leḥem in Hebrew (Hebrew:בֵּית לֶחֶם), literally "house of bread" or "house of food."[12][13] The city was called inAncient Greek:ΒηθλεέμAncient Greek pronunciation:[bɛːtʰle.ém] and inLatin:Bethleem.[14] In Aramaic, the name of Bethlehem was simply the Hebrew name בית לחם, and was pronounced as Beit Lekhem. Evidence for this spelling can be inferred based on the fact that the spelling ܒܝܬܠܚܡ can be found in the Syriac Aramaic version of the bible in Matthew 2[15] as well as other parts of the book. The letters ܒܝܬܠܚܡ transliterate to ביתלחם.Amarna letter EA290 makes reference to a town bīt-ninurta which has been read as Bit-Lachmi by scholarW. F. Albright, following a proposal by Otto Schroeder in 1815 and making it a potential first historical reference to Bethlehem. This reading is, however, uncertain and has met with objections.[16]
"House of the god Lahmu"
Canaanite and Israelite toponyms starting withbeth are interpreted to mean "house of", with 'house' understood as 'temple' and the second part of the name indicating the deity the local temple was dedicated to.[17][18] Accordingly, one longstanding suggestion in scholarship is that the name Bethlehem derives from theMesopotamian orCanaanite fertility godLaḫmu and his consort sisterLahamu,[19]lahmo being theChaldean word for "fertility".[14][18] Biblical scholarWilliam F. Albright believed that this hypothesis, first put forth byOtto Schröder [de], was "certainly accurate".[b] Albright noted that the pronunciation of the name had remained essentially the same for 3,500 years, even if the perceived meaning had shifted over time: "'Temple of the God Lakhmu' in Canaanite, 'House of Bread' in Hebrew andAramaic, 'House of Meat' in Arabic."[20] While Schröder's theory is not widely accepted,[12] it continues to find favour in academic literature over the later literal translations.[21]
"House of war"
Another suggestion is an association with the rootl-h-m "to fight", leading to the meaning of "house of war" or "house of fighting", but this is thought unlikely.[12][why?]
History
Canaanite period
The earliest reference to Bethlehem appears in theAmarna correspondence (c. 1400 BCE). In one of his six letters to Pharaoh,Abdi-Heba, the Egyptian-appointed governor of Jerusalem, appeals for aid in retakingBit-Laḫmi in the wake of disturbances byApiru mercenaries:[22] "Now even a town near Jerusalem, Bit-Lahmi by name, a village which once belonged to the king, has fallen to the enemy... Let the king hear the words of your servant Abdi-Heba, and send archers to restore the imperial lands of the king!"
It is thought that the similarity of this name to its modern forms indicates that it was originally a settlement of Canaanites who shared a Semitic cultural and linguistic heritage with the later arrivals.[23]Laḫmu was theAkkadian god of fertility,[24] worshipped by theCanaanites asLeḥem.[citation needed] Some time in the third millennium BCE, Canaanites erected a temple on the hill now known as the Hill of the Nativity, probably dedicated toLaḫmu. The temple, and subsequently the town that formed around it, was then known asBeit Lahama, "House (Temple) of Lahmu".[citation needed] By1200 BC, the area of Bethlehem, as well as much of theregion, was conquered by thePhilistines, which led the region to be known to the Greeks as "Philistia", later corrupted to "Palestine".[25]
A burial ground discovered in spring 2013, and surveyed in 2015 by a joint Italian–Palestinian team found that the necropolis covered 3 hectares (more than 7 acres) and originally contained more than 100 tombs in use between roughly 2200 BCE and 650 BCE. The archaeologists were able to identify at least 30 tombs.[26]
Israelite and Judean period
Archaeological confirmation of Bethlehem as a city in theKingdom of Judah was uncovered in 2012 at the archaeological dig at theCity of David in the form of abulla (seal impression in dried clay) inancient Hebrew script that reads "From the town of Bethlehem to the King". According to the excavators, it was used to seal the string closing a shipment of grain, wine, or other goods sent as a tax payment in the 8th or 7th century BCE.[27]
Biblical scholars believe Bethlehem, located in the "hill country" ofJudea, may be the same as the BiblicalEphrath,[28] which means "fertile", as there is a reference to it in theBook of Micah as Bethlehem Ephrathah or Bethlehem Ephratah.[29] TheHebrew Bible also calls it Beth-LehemJudah,[30] and theNew Testament describes it as the "City of David".[31] It is first mentioned in the Bible as the place where the matriarchRachel died and was buried "by the wayside" (Genesis 48:7).Rachel's Tomb, the traditional grave site, stands at the entrance to Bethlehem. According to theBook of Ruth, the valley to the east is whereRuth ofMoab gleaned the fields and returned to town withNaomi. In theBooks of Samuel, Bethlehem is mentioned as the home ofJesse,[32] father of KingDavid ofIsrael, and the site of David'sanointment by the prophetSamuel.[33] It was from the well of Bethlehem that three of his warriors brought him water when he was hiding in the cave ofAdullam.[34]
TheGospel of Matthew[39] and theGospel of Luke[40] represent Jesus as having been born in Bethlehem,[36][37][38] known in Aramaic by the Hebrew nameבית לחם (Beit Lekhem). However, modern scholars regard the two accounts as contradictory;[37][38] theGospel of Mark, the earliest gospel, mentions nothing about Jesus having been born in Bethlehem, saying only that he came fromNazareth.[38] Current scholars are divided on the actual birthplace of Jesus: some believe he was actually born in Nazareth,[41][42][43] while others still hold that he was born in Bethlehem.[44]
Nonetheless, the tradition that Jesus was born in Bethlehem was prominent in the early church.[36] Around 155, the apologistJustin Martyr recommended that those who doubted Jesus was really born in Bethlehem could go there and visit the very cave where he was supposed to have been born.[36] The same cave is also referenced by the apocryphalGospel of James and the fourth-century church historianEusebius.[36] After theBar Kokhba revolt (c. 132–136 CE) was crushed, the Roman emperorHadrian converted the Christian site above the Grotto into a shrine dedicated to the Greek godAdonis, to honour his favourite, the Greek youthAntinous.[45][46]
Around 395 CE,Jerome wrote in a letter: "Bethlehem... belonging now to us... was overshadowed by a grove ofTammuz, that is to say, Adonis, and in the cave where once the infant Christ cried, the lover ofVenus was lamented."[47] Many scholars have taken this letter as evidence that the cave of the nativity over which theChurch of the Nativity was later built had at one point been a shrine to the ancient Near Eastern fertility god Tammuz.[47][48] Eusebius, however, mentions nothing about the cave having been associated with Tammuz[47] and there are no other Patristic sources that suggest Tammuz had a shrine in Bethlehem.[47] Peter Welten has argued that the cave was never dedicated to Tammuz[47] and that Jerome misinterpreted Christian mourning over theMassacre of the Innocents as a pagan ritual over Tammuz's death.[47] Joan E. Taylor has countered this contention by arguing that Jerome, as an educated man, could not have been so naïve as to mistake Christian mourning over the Massacre of the Innocents as a pagan ritual for Tammuz.[47]
In 326–328, the empressHelena, widowedconsort of EmperorConstantius Chlorus and mother of the ruling emperor,Constantine the Great, made a pilgrimage to Syria-Palaestina, in the course of which she visited the ruins of Bethlehem.[9][36] TheChurch of the Nativity was built at her initiative over the cave where Jesus was purported to have been born.[36] During theSamaritan revolt of 529, Bethlehem was sacked and its walls and the Church of the Nativity destroyed; they were rebuilt on the orders of the EmperorJustinian I.[9][36] In 614, thePersian Sassanid Empire, supported byJewish rebels, invadedPalestina Prima and captured Bethlehem.[49] A story recounted in later sources holds that they refrained from destroying the church on seeing themagi depicted inPersian clothing in a mosaic.[50][9]
In 637, shortly afterJerusalem was captured by theMuslim armies,'Umar ibn al-Khattāb, the second caliph, promised that the Church of the Nativity would be preserved for Christian use.[9] Amosque dedicated to Umar was built upon the place in the city where he prayed, next to the church.[51] Bethlehem then passed through the control of the Islamic caliphates of theUmayyads in the 8th century, then theAbbasids in the 9th century. A Persian geographer recorded in the mid-9th century that a well preserved and much venerated church existed in the town. In 985, the Arab geographeral-Muqaddasi visited Bethlehem, and referred to its church as the "Basilica of Constantine, the equal of which does not exist anywhere in the country-round."[52] In 1009, during the reign of the sixth Fatimid Caliph,al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, the Church of the Nativity was ordered to be demolished, but was spared by local Muslims, because they had been permitted to worship in the structure's southern transept.[53]
In 1099, Bethlehem was captured by theCrusaders, who fortified it and built a new monastery and cloister on the north side of the Church of the Nativity. TheGreek Orthodox clergy were removed from theirsees and replaced withLatin clerics. Up until that point the official Christian presence in the region was Greek Orthodox. On Christmas Day 1100,Baldwin I, first king of the FrankishKingdom of Jerusalem, was crowned in Bethlehem, and that year a Latin episcopate was also established in the town.[9]
In 1187,Saladin, the Sultan ofEgypt andSyria who led theMuslim Ayyubids, captured Bethlehem from the Crusaders. The Latin clerics were forced to leave, allowing the Greek Orthodox clergy to return. Saladin agreed to the return of two Latin priests and two deacons in 1192. However, Bethlehem suffered from the loss of the pilgrim trade, as there was a sharp decrease of European pilgrims.[9]William IV, Count of Nevers had promised the Christian bishops of Bethlehem that if Bethlehem should fall under Muslim control, he would welcome them in the small town ofClamecy in present-dayBurgundy, France. As a result, the Bishop of Bethlehem duly took up residence in the hospital of Panthenor, Clamecy, in 1223. Clamecy remained the continuous 'in partibus infidelium' seat of the Bishopric of Bethlehem for almost 600 years, until theFrench Revolution in 1789.[54]
Bethlehem, along with Jerusalem,Nazareth, andSidon, was briefly ceded to the CrusaderKingdom of Jerusalem by a treaty betweenHoly Roman EmperorFrederick II and Ayyubid Sultanal-Kamil in 1229, in return for a ten-year truce between the Ayyubids and the Crusaders. The treaty expired in 1239, and Bethlehem was recaptured by the Muslims in 1244.[55] In 1250, with the coming to power of theMamluks underRukn al-Din Baibars, tolerance of Christianity declined. Members of the clergy left the city, and in 1263 the town walls were demolished. The Latin clergy returned to Bethlehem the following century, establishing themselves in the monastery adjoining the Basilica of the Nativity. The Greek Orthodox were given control of the basilica and shared control of the Milk Grotto with the Latins and theArmenians.[9]
Ottoman era
A painting of Bethlehem byVasily Polenov, 1882View of Bethlehem, Christmas Day 1898
From 1517, during the years ofOttoman control, custody of the Basilica was bitterly disputed between the Catholic and GreekOrthodox churches.[9] By the end of the 16th century, Bethlehem had become one of the largest villages in the District of Jerusalem, and was subdivided into seven quarters.[56] The Basbus family served as the heads of Bethlehem among other leaders during this period.[57] The Ottoman tax record and census from 1596 indicates that Bethlehem had a population of 1,435, making it the 13th largest village in Palestine at the time. Its total revenue amounted to 30,000akce.[58]
Bethlehem paid taxes on wheat, barley and grapes. The Muslims and Christians were organized into separate communities, each having its own leader. Five leaders represented the village in the mid-16th century, three of whom were Muslims. Ottoman tax records suggest that the Christian population was slightly more prosperous or grew more grain than grapes (the former being a more valuable commodity).[59]
Bethlehem, from an 1810 illustration byLuigi Mayer
From 1831 to 1841, Palestine was under the rule of theMuhammad Ali Dynasty ofEgypt. During this period, the town sufferedan earthquake as well as the destruction of the Muslim quarter in 1834 by Egyptian troops, apparently as a reprisal for the murder of a favored loyalist ofIbrahim Pasha, during thePeasants' revolt in Palestine.[60] In 1841, Bethlehem came under Ottoman rule once again and remained so until the end of World War I. Under the Ottomans, Bethlehem's inhabitants faced unemployment,compulsory military service, and heavy taxes, resulting in mass emigration, particularly toSouth America.[9] An American missionary in the 1850s reported a population of under 4,000, nearly all of whom belonged to the Greek Church. He also noted that a lack of water limited the town's growth.[61]
Socin found from an official Ottoman village list from about 1870 that Bethlehem had a population of 179 Muslims in 59 houses, 979 "Latins" in 256 houses, 824 "Greeks" in 213 houses, and 41 Armenians in 11 houses, a total of 539 houses. The population count only included men.[62]Hartmann found that Bethlehem had 520 houses.[63]
Jordan retained control of the city until theSix-Day War in 1967, when Bethlehem was captured by Israel, along with the rest of theWest Bank. Following the Six-Day War, Israel took control of the city.
During the early months ofFirst Intifada, on 5 May 1989, Milad Anton Shahin, aged 12, was shot dead byIsraeli soldiers. Replying to a Member ofKnesset in August 1990 Defence MinisterYitzak Rabin stated that a group of reservists in an observation post had come under attack by stone throwers. The commander of the post, a senior non-commissioned officer, fired twoplastic bullets in deviation of operational rules. No evidence was found that this caused the boy's death. The officer was found guilty of illegal use of a weapon and sentenced to 5 months imprisonment, two of them actually in prison doing public service. He was also demoted.[69]
Today, the city is surrounded by two bypass roads forIsraeli settlers, leaving the inhabitants squeezed between thirty-seven Jewish enclaves, where a quarter of all West Bank settlers, roughly 170,000, live; the gap between the two roads is closed by the 8-metre highIsraeli West Bank barrier, which cuts Bethlehem off from its sister city Jerusalem.[76]
Christian families that have lived in Bethlehem for hundreds of years are being forced to leave as land in Bethlehem is seized, and homes bulldozed, for construction of thousands of new Israeli homes.[11] Land seizures for Israeli settlements have also prevented construction of a new hospital for the inhabitants of Bethlehem, as well as the barrier separating dozens of Palestinian families from their farmland and Christian communities from their places of worship.[11] Christians have reportedly suffered persecution under the Palestinian Authority, leading to emigration.[77][78]
Bethlehem is located at an elevation of about 775 meters (2,543 ft)above sea level, 30 meters (98 ft) higher than nearbyJerusalem.[79] Bethlehem is situated on theJudean Mountains.
The city is located 73 kilometers (45 mi) northeast ofGaza City and theMediterranean Sea, 75 kilometers (47 mi) west ofAmman,Jordan, 59 kilometers (37 mi) southeast ofTel Aviv,Israel and 10 kilometers (6 mi) south of Jerusalem.[80] Nearby cities and towns includeBeit Safafa and Jerusalem to the north,Beit Jala to the northwest,Husan to the west,al-Khadr andArtas to the southwest, andBeit Sahour to the east. Beit Jala and the latter form anagglomeration with Bethlehem. TheAida andAzza refugee camps are located within the city limits.[81]
In the center of Bethlehem is its old city. The old city consists of eight quarters, laid out in a mosaic style, forming the area around the Manger Square. The quarters include the Christian an-Najajreh, al-Farahiyeh, al-Anatreh, al-Tarajmeh, al-Qawawsa and Hreizat quarters and al-Fawaghreh—the only Muslim quarter.[82] Most of the Christian quarters are named after the ArabGhassanid clans that settled there.[83] Al-Qawawsa Quarter was formed byArab Christian emigrants from the nearby town ofTuqu' in the 18th century.[84] There is also aSyriac quarter outside of the old city,[82] whose inhabitants originate fromMidyat andMa'asarte inTurkey.[85] The total population of the old city is about 5,000.[82]
Climate
Bethlehem has aMediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification:Csa), with hot and dry summers and mild, wetter winters. Winter temperatures (mid-December to mid-March) can be cool and rainy. January is the coldest month, with temperatures ranging from 1 to 13 degree Celsius (33–55 °F). From May through September, the weather is warm and sunny. August is the hottest month, with a high of 30 degrees Celsius (86 °F). Bethlehem receives an average of 700 millimeters (28 in) of rainfall annually, 70% between November and January.[86]
Bethlehem's average annual relativehumidity is 60% and reaches its highest rates between January and February. Humidity levels are at their lowest in May. Night dew may occur in up to 180 days per year. The city is influenced by the Mediterranean Sea breeze that occurs around mid-day. However, Bethlehem is affected also by annual waves of hot, dry, sandy and dustKhamaseen winds from theArabian Desert, during April, May and mid-June.[86]
According toOttoman tax records, Christians made up roughly 60% of the population in the early 16th century, while the Christian andMuslim populations became equal by the middle of that century. However, there were no Muslim inhabitants counted by the end of the century, with a recorded population of 287 adult male taxpayers. Christians, like all non-Muslims throughout the Ottoman Empire, were required to pay thejizya tax.[56] In 1867, an American visitor describes the town as having a population of 3,000 to 4,000, of whom about 100 wereProtestant, 300 were Muslim and "the remainder belonging to the Latin and Greek Churches with a few Armenians."[88] Another report from the same year puts the Christian population at 3,000, with an additional 50 Muslims.[95] An 1885 source put the population at approximately 6,000 of "principally Christians, Latins and Greeks" with no Jewish inhabitants.[96]
Thecensus of 1922 lists Bethlehem as having 6,658 residents (5,838 Christians, 818 Muslims, and two Jews),[97] increasing in1931 to 6,804 (5,588 Christians, 1,219 Muslims, five with no religion, and two Jews) with 506 in nearby suburbs (251 Muslims, 216 Christians, and 39 Jews).[98]
The 1938 village statistics list the population as 7,520 with 499 in nearby suburbs (including 42 Jews).[99] The1945 village statistics list Bethlehem's population as 8,820 (6,430 Christians, 2,370 Muslims, and 20 "other").[100]
In 1948, the religious makeup of the city was 85% Christian, mostly of the Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic denominations, and 13% Muslim.[101] In the 1967 census taken by Israel authorities, the town of Bethlehem proper numbered 14,439 inhabitants, its 7,790 Muslim inhabitants represented 53.9% of the population, while the Christians of various denominations numbered 6,231 or 46.1%.[102][better source needed]
In the PCBS's 1997 census, the city had a population of 21,670, including a total of 6,570refugees, accounting for 30.3% of the city's population.[93][103] In 1997, the age distribution of Bethlehem's inhabitants was 27.4% under the age of 10, 20% from 10 to 19, 17.3% from 20 to 29, 17.7% from 30 to 44, 12.1% from 45 to 64 and 5.3% above the age of 65. There were 11,079 males and 10,594 females.[93] In the 2007 PCBS census, Bethlehem had a population of 25,266, of which 12,753 were males and 12,513 were females. There were 6,709 housing units, of which 5,211 were households. The average household consisted of 4.8 family members.[104] By 2017, the population was 28,591.[94]
After theMuslim conquest of the Levant in the 630s, the local Christians wereArabized even though large numbers were ethnically Arabs of the Ghassanid clans.[105] Bethlehem's two largest Arab Christian clans trace their ancestry to the Ghassanids, including al-Farahiyyah and an-Najajreh.[105] The former have descended from the Ghassanids who migrated fromYemen and from theWadi Musa area in present-dayJordan and an-Najajreh descend fromNajran.[105] Another Bethlehem clan, al-Anatreh, also trace their ancestry to the Ghassanids.[105]
The percentage of Christians in the town has been in a steady decline since the mid-twentieth century.[101][106][107][108] In 1947, Christians made up 85% of the population, but by 1998, the figure had declined to 40%.[101][106] In 2005, themayor of Bethlehem,Victor Batarseh, explained that "due to the stress, either physical or psychological, and the bad economic situation, many people are emigrating, either Christians or Muslims, but it is more apparent among Christians, because they already are a minority."[109] The Palestinian Authority is officially committed to equality for Christians, although there have been incidents of violence against them by thePreventive Security Service and militant factions.[110][111]
In 2006, aZogby poll that interviewed more than 1,000 Palestinian Christians from Bethlehem found that 79% of the respondents cited theIsraeli occupation as source of difficulties leading the emigration of their community.[112] In the same year, the Palestinian Centre for Research and Cultural Dialogue conducted a poll among the city's Christians according to which 90% said they had had Muslim friends, 73.3% agreed that the PNA treated Christian heritage in the city with respect and 78% attributed the exodus of Christians to the Israeli blockade.[113] The only mosque in the Old City is theMosque of Omar, located in the Manger Square.[51] By 2016, the Christian population of Bethlehem had declined to only 16%.[107] The Christian population's proportion of Bethlehem fell from 87% in the 1950s to 12% in 2016.[114]
A study byPew Research Center concluded that the decline in the Arab Christian population of the area was partially a result of a lowerbirth rate among Christians than among Muslims,[107][115] but also partially due to the fact that Christians were more likely to emigrate from the region than any other religious group.[107][115] The seizure of Christian land by Muslim mafias and the bias of the Palestinian Judicial system have been cited as reasons leading to emigration.[116] Amon Ramnon, a researcher at theJerusalem Institute for Policy Research, stated that the reason why more Christians were emigrating than Muslims is because it is easier for Arab Christians to integrate into western communities than for Arab Muslims, since many of them attend church-affiliated schools, where they are taught European languages.[107] A higher percentage of Christians in the region are urban-dwellers, which also makes it easier for them to emigrate and assimilate into western populations.[107] Astatistical analysis of the Christian exodus cited lack of economic and educational opportunity, especially due to the Christians'middle-class status andhigher education.[117] Since theSecond Intifada, 10% of the Christian population have left the city.[109] However, it is likely that there are many other factors, most of which are shared with the Palestinian population as a whole.[118]
Shopping is a major attraction, especially during theChristmas season. The city's main streets and old markets are lined with shops sellingPalestinian handicrafts,Middle Eastern spices, jewelry and oriental sweets such asbaklawa.[119] Olivewood carvings[120] are the item most purchased by tourists visiting Bethlehem.[121] Religious handicrafts include ornaments handmade frommother-of-pearl, as well as olive wood statues, boxes, and crosses.[120] Other industries include stone and marble-cutting, textiles, furniture and furnishings.[122] Bethlehem factories also produce paints, plastics,synthetic rubber, pharmaceuticals, construction materials and food products, mainly pasta and confectionery.[122]Cremisan Wine, founded in 1885, is a winery run by monks in the Monastery of Cremisan. The grapes are grown mainly in theal-Khader district. In 2007, the monastery's wine production was around 700,000 liters per year.[123]
In 2008, Bethlehem hosted the largesteconomic conference to date in thePalestinian territories. It was initiated byPalestinian Prime Minister and formerFinance MinisterSalam Fayyad to convince more than a thousand businessmen, bankers and government officials from throughout theMiddle East to invest in the West Bank andGaza Strip. A total of 1.4 billion US dollars was secured for business investments in the Palestinian territories.[124] Tourism is Bethlehem's main industry.[108][72] Unlike other Palestinian localities prior to 2000, the majority of the employed residents did not have jobs in Israel.[72] More than 20% of the working population is employed in the industry.[125] Tourism accounts for approximately 65% of the city's economy and 11% of thePalestinian National Authority.[126] The city has more than two million visitors every year.[125] Tourism in Bethlehem ground to a halt for over a decade after theSecond Intifada,[108] but gradually began to pick back up in the early 2010s.[108]Schneider Electric operates a facility in the Multidisciplinary Industrial Park of Bethlehem, which was developed by thePalestinian government andFrance.[127]
TheChurch of the Nativity is one of Bethlehem's majortourist attractions and a magnet for Christian pilgrims. It stands in the center of the city — a part of theManger Square — over a grotto or cave called the Holy Crypt, where Jesus is believed to have been born. Nearby is the Milk Grotto where the Holy Family took refuge on their Flight to Egypt and next door is the cave whereSt. Jerome spent thirty years creating theVulgate, the dominant Latin version of the Bible until the Reformation.[9] There are over thirty hotels in Bethlehem.[128]Jacir Palace, built in 1910 near the church, is one of Bethlehem's most successful hotels and its oldest. It was closed down in 2000 due to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but reopened in 2005 as the Jacir Palace InterContinental at Bethlehem.[129] The hotel is managed by world renowned international brand — theIntercontinental Hotel Group (IHG) and is second IHG hotel in the country afterIHG inJerusalem.
Silver star marking the place where Jesus was born according to Christian traditionAltar of the Magi opposite the Holy Manger, Nativity GrottoCatholic procession onChristmas Eve 2006Christmas tree in Bethlehem; behind it, theChurch of the Nativity, 2014
In theNew Testament, theGospel of Luke says thatJesus' parents traveled fromNazareth to Bethlehem, where Jesus was born.[31] TheGospel of Matthew mentions Bethlehem as the place of birth,[130] and adds that King Herod was told that a 'King of the Jews' had been born in the town, prompting Herod to order the killing of all the boys who were two years old or under in the town and surrounding area.Joseph, warned of Herod's impending action by anangel of the Lord, decided to flee to Egypt with his family and then later settled in Nazareth after Herod's death.
Early Christian traditions describeJesus as being born in Bethlehem: in one account, a verse in theBook of Micah is interpreted as a prophecy that theMessiah would be born there.[131] The second centuryChristian apologistJustin Martyr stated in hisDialogue with Trypho (written c. 155–161) that theHoly Family had taken refuge in a cave outside of the town and then placed Jesus in a manger.[132]Origen of Alexandria, writing around the year 247, referred to a cave in the town of Bethlehem which local people believed was the birthplace of Jesus.[133] This cave was possibly one which had previously been a site of the cult ofTammuz.[134][135][136] TheGospel of Mark and the Gospel of John do not include a nativity narrative, but refer to him only as being from Nazareth.[137] In a 2005 article inArchaeology magazine, archaeologist Aviram Oshri points to an absence of evidence for the settlement of Bethlehem near Jerusalem at the time when Jesus was born, and postulates that Jesus was born inBethlehem of Galilee.[138] However, other archaeologists argue that there is evidence that Bethlehem of Judea was inhabited at that time.[139]: 6–10 In a 2011 article inBiblical Archaeology Review magazine,Jerome Murphy-O'Connor argues for the traditional position that Jesus was born in Bethlehem near Jerusalem.[140]
Christmas celebrations
Christmas pilgrims, 1890
Christmas rites are held in Bethlehem on three different dates: December 25 is the traditional date by the Roman Catholic andProtestant denominations, but Greek,Coptic andSyrian Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas on January 6 andArmenian Orthodox Christians on January 19. Most Christmas processions pass through Manger Square, the plaza outside theBasilica of the Nativity. Roman Catholic services take place inSt. Catherine's Church and Protestants often hold services at Shepherds' Fields.[141]
Other religious festivals
Bethlehem celebrates festivals related to saints and prophets associated with Palestinian folklore. One such festival is the annualFeast of Saint George (al-Khadr) on May 5–6. During the celebrations, Greek Orthodox Christians from the city march in procession to the nearby town ofal-Khader to baptize newborns in the waters around theMonastery of St. George and sacrifice a sheep in ritual.[142] The Feast of St.Elijah is commemorated by a procession to Mar Elias, a Greek Orthodox monastery north of Bethlehem.
The women embroiderers of Bethlehem were known for their bridalwear.[143] Bethlehem embroidery was renowned for its "strong overall effect of colors and metallic brilliance."[144] Less formal dresses were made of indigo fabric with a sleeveless coat (bisht) from locally woven wool worn over top. Dresses for special occasions were made of striped silk with winged sleeves with a shorttaqsireh jacket known as the Bethlehem jacket. The taqsireh was made ofvelvet orbroadcloth, usually with heavy embroidery.[143]
Bethlehem work was unique in its use of couched gold or silver cord, or silk cord onto the silk, wool, felt or velvet used for the garment, to create stylized floral patterns with free or rounded lines. This technique was used for "royal"wedding dresses (thob malak), taqsirehs and theshatwehs worn by married women. It has been traced by some toByzantium, and by others to the formal costumes of the Ottoman Empire's elite. As a Christian village, local women were also exposed to the detailing on church vestments with their heavy embroidery and silver brocade.[143]
Bethlehem traditional dress
Chest panel from Bethlehem dress
Embroidery detail
Taqsireh jacket embroidered with Palestinian patterns
The art of mother-of-pearl carving is said to have been a Bethlehem tradition since the 15th century when it was introduced byFranciscanfriars fromItaly.[145] A constant stream ofpilgrims generated a demand for these items, which also provided jobs for women.[146] The industry was noted byRichard Pococke, who visited Bethlehem in 1727.[147]
Cultural centers and museums
Bethlehem is home to thePalestinian Heritage Center, established in 1991. The center aims to preserve and promote Palestinian embroidery,art and folklore.[148] The International Center of Bethlehem is another cultural center that concentrates primarily on the culture of Bethlehem. It provides language and guide training, woman's studies andarts and crafts displays, and training.[7]
The Bethlehem branch ofthe Edward Said National Conservatory of Music has about 500 students. Its primary goals are to teach children music, train teachers for other schools, sponsor music research, and the study of Palestinian folklore music.[149]
Bethlehem has several museums: The Crib of the Nativity Theatre and Museum offers visitors 31 three-dimensional models depicting the significant stages of the life of Jesus. Its theater presents a 20-minute animated show. TheBadd Giacaman Museum, located in the Old City of Bethlehem, dates back to the 18th century and is primarily dedicated to the history and process ofolive oil production.[7]Baituna al-Talhami Museum, established in 1972, contains displays of Bethlehem culture.[7] The International Museum of Nativity was built byUnited Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to exhibit "high artistic quality in an evocative atmosphere".[7] ThePalestine Museum of Natural History is the first of its kind and is based on Bethlehem University campus.[150]
Bethlehem held its first municipal elections in 1876, after themukhtars ("heads") of the quarters of Bethlehem's Old City (excluding theSyriac Quarter) made the decision to elect a local council of seven members to represent each clan in the town. ABasic Law was established so that if the victor for mayor was aCatholic, his deputy should be of theGreek Orthodox community.[151]
Throughout, Bethlehem's rule by the British and Jordan, the Syriac Quarter was allowed to participate in the election, as were the Ta'amrahBedouins and Palestinian refugees, hence ratifying the number of municipal members in the council to 11. In 1976, an amendment was passed to allow women to vote and become council members and later the voting age was increased from 21 to 25.[151]
Bethlehem is home toBethlehem University, aCatholic Christian co-educational institution of higher learning founded in 1973 in the Lasallian tradition, open to students of all faiths. Bethlehem University is the first university established in the West Bank, and can trace its roots to 1893 when theDe La Salle Christian Brothers opened schools throughout Palestine and Egypt.[158]
Transportation
A street in Bethlehem
Bethlehem has three bus stations owned by private companies which offer service to Jerusalem, Beit Jala, Beit Sahour,Hebron,Nahalin,Battir,al-Khader,al-Ubeidiya andBeit Fajjar. There are two taxi stations that make trips to Beit Sahour, Beit Jala, Jerusalem,Tuqu' andHerodium. There are also two car rental departments: Murad and 'Orabi. Buses and taxis with West Bank licenses are not allowed to enter Israel, including Jerusalem, without a permit.[159]
The Israeli construction of theWest Bank barrier has affected Bethlehem politically, socially, and economically. The barrier is located along the northern side of the town's built-up area, within distance of houses in the Aidarefugee camp on one side, and the Jerusalem municipality on the other.[72] Most entrances and exits from the Bethlehem agglomeration to the rest of theWest Bank are currently subjected toIsraeli checkpoints and roadblocks. The level of access varies based on Israeli security directives. Travel for Bethlehem's Palestinian residents from the West Bank intoJerusalem is regulated by a permit-system.[160] Palestinians require a permit to enter the Jewish holy site ofRachel's Tomb. Israeli citizens are barred from entering Bethlehem and the nearby biblicalSolomon's Pools.[72]
^The explanation of Bet-leḥem as the "House of (the god) Lahmu" is due to Otto Schröder, OLZ, 1915, pp. 294 f. This explanation is certainly correct [...][20]
^2 Chronicles 11:5–6 (Note: Though v. 6 is frequently translated to say simply that Rehoboambuilt the city, the Hebrew phrase in v. 5, just prior, וַיִּ֧בֶן עָרִ֛ים לְמָצ֖וֹרwayyiḇen ‘ārîm lemāṣôr means "(and) he built cities into fortresses". Verse 5 is cited by at least one prominent Hebrew lexicon in illustration of this fact. See Koehler, L., Baumgartner, W., Richardson, M. E. J., & Stamm, J. J.,The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (electronic edition; Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1994–2000), entry for the pertinent root בנהbnh, p. 139. Def. 3 reads as follows: "—3. with לְ to develop buildings: עָרִים לְמָצוֹר cities into fortresses 2C[hronicles] 11:5".)
^abcPhilp, Catherine (December 24, 2013). "Settlements choke peace in the little town of Bethlehem".The Times. pp. 28–29.
^abcCorpus inscriptionum Iudaeae/Palaestinae: a multi-lingual corpus of the inscriptions from Alexander to Muhammad. Vol. IV: Iudaea / Idumaea. Eran Lupu, Marfa Heimbach, Naomi Schneider, Hannah Cotton. Berlin:de Gruyter. 2010. p. 635.ISBN978-3-11-022219-7.OCLC663773367.The name Bethlehem (Hebr. Bet Leḥem; LXX Βηθλέεμ; Βαιθλέεμ; Aramaic Bêt leḥem) combines the Hebrew wordsbayit "house" andleḥem "bread" and thus means "house of bread/food." Some claim that it is connected with the verb rootlḥm "to fight," whence it would mean "house of war/fighting." That seems less likely. It has also been suggested that there is a connection with the name of the Mesopotamian goddess, Laḫmu, the mother of Anšar (sky) and Kišar (earth) in the Babylonian creation myth, Enuma Elish, but this is generally rejected.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
^abWright, G. R. H. (January 1, 1986)."The Mother-Maid at Bethlehem".Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft.98 (1):56–72.doi:10.1515/zatw.1986.98.1.56.ISSN1613-0103.S2CID170130221.The form of the name Bethlehem certainly connotes that the latter element is not a common noun but a proper noun, the name of a god who has his temple (house) there - cf. Beth Shemesh etc. Accordingly the literal version, House of Bread, has been put down as folk etymology. Divine names can be found to fit the bill; e.g., Lahmu and Lahamu mentioned in the Babylonian creation epic as offspring of Apsu and Tiamat (v. Staples, AJSL 52, 149—50). Since, however, the name as generally understood is so apt for an agricultural fertility cult centre, it is possible that the question has not been fully probed (cf. Interpreters' Bible Vol. 2, 853).
^"International Dictionary of Historic Places: Vol 4, Middle East and Africa", Trudy Ring, K.A Berney, Robert M. Salkin, Sharon La Boda, Noelle Watson, Paul Schellinger, p. 133, Taylor & Francis, 1996,ISBN978-1-884964-03-9.
^Losch, Richard R. (2005).The Uttermost Part of the Earth: A Guide to Places in the Bible. Wm. A. Eerdmans. p. 51.
^de Sivry, L: "Dictionnaire de Géographie Ecclésiastique", p. 375., 1852 ed, from ecclesiastical record of letters between the Bishops of Bethlehem 'in partibus' to the bishops of Auxerre.
^abcdeOffice for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) & Office of the Special Coordinator for the Peace Process in the Middle East (December 2004)."Costs of Conflict: The Changing Face of Bethlehem"(PDF). United Nations. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on July 29, 2013. RetrievedJuly 22, 2009.
^CNEWA (January 23, 2002)."Christian Emigration Report: Palestine".CNEWA. RetrievedDecember 7, 2023.Selected accounts of Christians expressing feelings of intimidation/persecution due to rise in Muslim extremism: Muslims refusing to hire Christian workers or to sell property to Christians Christian women describe increasing harassment from Muslim men.
^abEllen Clare Miller, 'Eastern Sketches – notes of scenery, schools and tent life in Syria and Palestine'. Edinburgh: William Oliphant and Company. 1871. p. 148.
^abcAndrea Pacini (1998).Socio-Political and Community Dynamics of Arab Christians in Jordan, Israel, and the Autonomous Palestinian Territories. Clarendon Press. p. 282.ISBN978-0-19-829388-0.
^"Bethlehem strained under occupation".Al Jazeera. May 14, 2008. RetrievedDecember 11, 2023.A Zogby International poll in 2006 interviewing 1,000 Palestinians from Bethlehem showed that 79 per cent of respondents believed the difficulties of living under occupation are the reason for Christians leaving Palestine.
^Marsh, Leonard (July 2005). "Palestinian Christianity – A Study in Religion and Politics".International Journal for the Study of the Christian Church.57 (7):147–66.doi:10.1080/14742250500220228.S2CID143729196.
^Taylor, 1993, pp. 99–100. "Joseph ... took up his quarters in a certain cave near the village; and while they were there Mary brought forth the Christ and placed him in a manger, and here the Magi who came from Arabia found him."(Justin Martyr,Dialogue with Trypho, chapter LXXVIII).
^In Bethlehem the cave is pointed out where he was born, and the manger in the cave where he was wrapped in swaddling clothes. And the rumor is in those places, and among foreigners of the Faith, that indeed Jesus was born in this cave who is worshipped and reverenced by the Christians. (Origen,Contra Celsum, book I, chapter LI).
^Taylor, 1993, pp. 96–104./ref>Many modern scholars question the idea that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, seeing the biblical stories not as historical accounts but as symbolic narratives invented to present the birth as fulfillment of prophecy and imply a connection to the lineage of King David.ref>Vermes, 2006, p. 22.
^Jerome Murphy-O'Connor,Bethlehem ... Of CourseArchived March 10, 2009, at theWayback Machine, Biblical Archaeology Review. ; see also A. Puig i Tàrrech, "The Birth of Jesus and History: The Interweaving of the Infancy Narratives in Matthew and Luke", B. Estrada, E. Manicardi, A. Puig i Tàrrech (ed.), ≤The Gospels, History and Christology. The Search of Joseph Ratzinger≥, Vatican City:LEV, 2013, 353–97.
Amara, Muhammad (1999).Politics and sociolinguistic reflexes: Palestinian border villages (Illustrated ed.). John Benjamins Publishing Company.ISBN978-90-272-4128-3.
Brynen, Rex (2000).A very political economy: peacebuilding and foreign aid in the West Bank and Gaza (Illustrated ed.). US Institute of Peace Press.ISBN978-1-929223-04-6.
Crossan, John Dominic; Watts, Richard G.Who Is Jesus?: Answers to Your Questions About the Historical Jesus. Westminster John Knox Press.
Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics (1945).Village Statistics, April, 1945.Archived from the original on April 2, 2019. RetrievedJanuary 19, 2018.
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