Qabba'a قبّاعة | |
|---|---|
Village | |
| Etymology: "large-headed"[1] | |
.jpg) 1870s map.jpg) 1940s map.jpg) modern map.jpg) 1940s with modern overlay mapA series of historical maps of the area around Qabba'a (click the buttons) | |
  Qabba'a Location withinMandatory Palestine | |
| Coordinates:32°59′55″N35°32′17″E / 32.99861°N 35.53806°E /32.99861; 35.53806 | |
| Palestine grid | 200/267 |
| Geopolitical entity | Mandatory Palestine |
| Subdistrict | Safad |
| Date of depopulation | May 26, 1948[4] |
| Area | |
• Total | 13,817 dunams (13.817 km2 or 5.335 sq mi) |
| Population (1945) | |
• Total | 460[2][3] |
| Cause(s) of depopulation | Military assault byYishuv forces |
Qabba'a was aPalestinianArab village in theDistrict of Safad. It was depopulated during the1948 War on May 26, 1948, by the Palmach's First Battalion ofOperation Yiftach. It was located 6 km northeast ofSafad.
In 1596 the village appeared under the name ofQabba'a in theOttomantax registers as part of thenahiya (subdistrict) ofJira, part ofSafad Sanjak. It had an allMuslim population, consisting of 11 households and 2 bachelors, an estimated 99 persons. The villagers paid a fixed tax rate of 20 % on agricultural products, including as wheat, barley, olive trees, vineyards, goats and beehives, in addition to occasional revenues; totalling 2,280akçe.[5][6][7]
The village appeared under the name ofKoubaa on the map thatPierre Jacotin compiled duringNapoleon's invasion of 1799.[8]
In 1838el-Kuba'ah was noted as a Muslim village, located in theel-Khait district.[9]
In 1875Victor Guérin found the village to have 120 Muslim inhabitants.[10]
In 1881 thePEF'sSurvey of Western Palestine described asKabbaah: "A masonry village, with a few caves to the south contains about 150 Moslems; situated on a ridge, with olives and arable land. Water frombirket and good springs".[11]
A population list from about 1887 showedKaba'ah to have about 385 Muslim inhabitants.[12]
In the1922 census of Palestine, conducted by theBritish Mandate authorities,Qaba'a had a population of 179 Muslims,[13] increasing in the1931 census when Kabba' had 256 Muslim inhabitants, in a total of 44 houses.[14]
In the1945 statistics it had a population of 460 Muslims[2] with a total land area of 13,817dunums.[3] Of this, 379 dunums was plantations and irrigable land, 7,966 were forcereals,[15] while 66 dunams were built-up (urban) land.[16]
On 2 May 1948,Yigal Allon withHaganah launched an operation, conquering‘Ein al Zeitun andBiriyya, and intimidating withmortar barrages the villages ofFir’im, Qabba‘a andMughr al Kheit, leading to a mass evacuation.[17] Qabba'a finally became depopulated on May 26, 1948, after a military assault by Israeli forces.[4][18]
In 1953,Hatzor HaGlilit was founded 3 km south of the village site, but not on village land.[5]
In 1992 the village site was described: "The stone debris of destroyed houses covers the site, where shrubs, grass, cactuses, and fig and pine trees grow. Most of the surrounding land are cultivated by Israeli farmers, but some are wooded and others are used as pasture."[5]
