Al-'Ubaydiyya العبيدية | |
|---|---|
Village | |
 Remains of agristmill | |
| Etymology: From personal name[1] | |
.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Ubeidiya, Tiberias (click the buttons) | |
  Al-'Ubaydiyya Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:32°41′21″N35°33′42″E / 32.68917°N 35.56167°E /32.68917; 35.56167 | |
| Palestine grid | 202/232 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Tiberias |
| Date of depopulation | March 5, 1948[4] |
| Area | |
• Total | 5,173dunams (5.173 km2; 1.997 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 870[2][3] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Fear of being caught up in the fighting |
Al-'Ubaydiyya (Arabic:العبيدية) was aPalestinianArab village in theTiberias Subdistrict. It was depopulated during the1948 Arab-Israeli War on March 3, 1948. It was located 11 km south ofTiberias, situated close to theJordan River.
Today the site is a desolate hill namedTel Ubeidiya.
It was mentioned in theOttomandefter for the year 1555-6, asMezraa land, (that is, cultivated land), located in theNahiya ofTabariyya of theLiwa ofSafad. The land was designated asSahi land, that is, land belonging to theSultan.[5]Pierre Jacotin called the villageAbadieh on his map from 1799.[6]
In 1838 Robinson'sBiblical Researches in Palestine noted it as aMuslim village,el-'Öbeidiyeh, in the Tiberias District,[7] located south oflake Tiberias.[8]
In 1881, thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine describedEl Abeidiyeh: "Stone and mud houses, built on a round tell, close to the Jordan river. It contains about 200 Moslems, and the plain is cultivated. There are several mills in the neighbourhood. There are a few small palms, but not many trees round the village."[9] The PEF wrote that the name comes from Arabic word "Abeed", meaning slave.[10]
A population list from about 1887 showedal Abediyeh to have about 310 inhabitants; all Muslims.[11]
Al-'Ubaydiyya had an elementary school which was founded by the Ottomans.[12]
At the time of the1922 census of Palestine conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities, Al-'Ubaydiyya had a population of 336 Muslims,[13] increasing in the1931 census to 625 Muslims, in 137 houses.[14]
In1944/1945, the village had a population of 870 Muslims,[2] with a total of 5,173 dunams of land.[3] Of this, Arabs used 3 dunams for citrus and bananas, 1,014 dunams were irrigated or used for orchards, 1,349 were used forcereals,[15] while 24 dunams were classified as built-up (urban) land.[16]
The village became depopulated on March 5, 1948.[4][17][18][19]
In 1988, a book about the village was published in Jordan.[20]
In 1992 the village site was described: "The remaining section of the walls of the canal (that provided themill with water) is the most prominent indication of the former existence of the village. Ruins of houses, piles of stones, the bases of walls, terraces, and date palms can be seen on the site. The lands around the site are cultivated mainly in cotton by the Israelis."[21]
from 'Obeid, "a little slave" (but perhaps connected with the Biblical name Obadiah).
