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Hadatha | |
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| Etymology: "new"[1] | |
.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Hadatha (click the buttons) | |
  Hadatha Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:32°40′59″N35°29′19″E / 32.68306°N 35.48861°E /32.68306; 35.48861 | |
| Palestine grid | 196/232 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Tiberias |
| Date of depopulation | May 12, 1948[4] |
| Area | |
• Total | 10,310 dunams (10.31 km2 or 3.98 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 520[2][3] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Abandonment on Arab orders |
Hadatha, alsoEl Hadetheh orHadateh, was aPalestinianArab village in theDistrict of Tiberias, located 12.5 km southwest ofTiberias. It was depopulated in the1947–1948 civil war in Mandatory Palestine.
Ceramics from the late Roman and Byzantine era have been found.[5]
According to tradition, Hadatha was one of the "Al-Hija" villages named afterEmir Hussam al-Din Abu al-Hija.[6] Abu al-Hija ("the Daring") was aKurdish commander that partook in SultanSaladin's conquest (1187–93) of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. He was renowned for his bravery, and commanded the garrison ofAcre at the time of theSiege of Acre (1189–1192).[6]
Abu al-Hija apparently returned toIraq, but several members of his family remained in the country under orders from Saladin, and these family members settled on large tracts of land that they were given in theCarmel region, in the Lower, Eastern and WesternGalilee, and in the Hebron Highlands.[6] Self-proclaimed kinsmen of al-Hija settled in the villages of Hadatha andSirin in theLower Galilee, andRuweis andKawkab in theWestern Galilee. By tradition the descendants today still claim to be blood relations of al-Hija.[6]
In 1596, Hadatha was part of theOttoman Empire, and thetax register of that year revealed a population of 121.[7][8] All the villagers wereMuslim.[9] A map fromNapoleon's invasion of 1799 byPierre Jacotin showed the place, named asEl Hadaci.[10]
Victor Guérin, who visited in 1875, noted: "Some of the houses, which are still inhabited, have been constructed of good cut stones taken from some old buildings and mixed with small materials. On the slopes of the hill are found some ten shafts ofcolumns lying scattered about the ground. They are the remains of a monument totally destroyed".[11][12]
In 1881, thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine (SWP) describedEl Hadetheh as: "Stone village, containing 250 Moslems, on cultivated plain, growing barley, etc. No trees or gardens near. Good spring of water and cisterns in the village".[13] They further noted that there was a "Spring on south-east side; good supply of water, perennial; a small stream flowing from it in winter and spring."[14]
A population list from about 1887 showedel Hadatheh to have about 1,100 inhabitants; all Muslims.[15]
In the1922 census of Palestine, conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities,Hadatheh had a population of 333, all Muslim,[16] increasing in the1931 census to 368; 1 Christian, 1 Druze and 366 Muslims, in a total of 75 houses.[17]
By the1945 statistics, the village population was 520 Muslims,[2] and the total land area was 10,310 dunams (10.31 km2; 3.98 sq mi).[3] 199 dunams (0.199 km2; 0.077 sq mi) were irrigated or used for orchards, 8,379 dunams (8.379 km2; 3.235 sq mi) were used forcereals,[18] and 38 dunams (0.038 km2; 0.015 sq mi) were built-up (urban) land.[19]
According toMorris, the village was abandoned during the1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine on May 12, 1948, under the orders of theArab Higher Committee.[20] However,Khalidi noted an inconsistency in the account, since theHistory of Haganah wrote that "the inhabitants fled in fear of the Jews".[21]
In 1992, it was noted that though there were no settlements on village land, the inhabitants ofKefar Qish were cultivating the surrounding lands.[21] A number of Hadatha's dispossessed inhabitants resettled inTamra, nearAcre, during the 1950s.[22]
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