Khirbet Abu Falah
| Khirbet Abu Falah | |
|---|---|
| Other transcription(s) | |
| • Arabic | خربة ابو فلاح |
|
General view of Khirbet Abu Falah | |
  Khirbet Abu Falah Location of Khirbet Abu Falah within the Palestinian Territories | |
| Coordinates: 32°0′56″N 35°18′5″E / 32.01556°N 35.30139°ECoordinates: 32°0′56″N 35°18′5″E / 32.01556°N 35.30139°E | |
| Governorate | Ramallah & al-Bireh |
| Government | |
| • Type | Village council |
| • Head of Municipality | Masoud D'ais Hasan Abu Morra[1] |
| Population (2007) | |
| • Jurisdiction | 4,237 |
Khirbet Abu Falah (Arabic: خربة ابو فلاح) is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate, located 26 kilometers (16 mi) north of Ramallah in the central West Bank. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the village had a population of 4,237 in the 2007 census.[2]
History
The modern village was founded in the 18th century.[3] Prior to becoming a permanent settlement, it was khirba i.e. a temporary settlement. Khirbet Abu Falah became a permanent village when the Jaradat and Shu'man clans moved there from al-Mazraa al-Sharqiya as a result of a dispute with other clans in that village.[4] The village was named after one of its leaders, Abu Falah.[3]
In 1998, a village council was established to administer Khirbet Abu Falah's civil affair. The council has nine members appointed by the Palestinian National Authority. The council is also included in the Joint Services Council, which is a cooperative board that also includes the villages of al-Mazraa al-Sharqiya, Kafr Malik and al-Mughayyir.[3]
Geography
Khirbet Abu Falah is situated in a hilly area in the central highlands of the West Bank and has an average elevation of 743 meters above sea level. It is located 15.7 kilometers northeast of Ramallah. The nearest localities are al-Mazraa al-Sharqiyah to the southwest, Turmus Ayya to the north, al-Mughayyir to the east and Kafr Malik to the south.[3]
Demographics
Khirbet Abu Falah had a population of 2,900 in the 1997 census by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). Palestinian refugees and their descendants accounted for 1.4% of the inhabitants.[5] In the 2007 PCBS census, Khirbet Abu Falah's population grew to 3,966. The number of households was 620, with each household containing an average of between six and seven members. Women made up 49% of the population and men 51%.[2]
The population is Muslim and there are three mosques in the village: the Old Mosque, the Eastern Mosque, and the Abu Ubeidah Mosque. The principal clans of Khirbet Abu Falah are Abu Murrah, Abu Falah, Al Fuqaha', Nazel, As Saraseer and Abu Hayyah. Since 2000, five families have emigrated from the village.[3]
Economy
The largest source of employment in Khirbet Abu Falah is the services sector, which accounts for about 50% of the village's labor force. Other major sectors are government or professional employment (20%), agriculture (17%) and trade (10%). Industry, which accounts for 3% of Khirbet Abu Falah's labor, largely revolves around the local stone masonry industry. There are three quarries, 30 grocery stores, two produce stores, three butcheries and three professional workshops in the village. In 2011, the unemployment rate in Khirbet Abu Falah was 20%.[3]
The village has a total area of 8,245 dunams. Built-up areas make up 8.4% of the village's land, while cultivable areas and open spaces constitute 56.4% and 35.1%, respectively. Of the cultivable areas, 3,981 dunams are planted with permanent crops, mainly olive trees and grains. About 5% of Khirbet Abu Falah's residents raise livestock and together own 835 sheep and 549 goats.[3]
References
- ↑ West Bank Local Elections ( Round two)- Successful candidates by local authority, gender and No. of votes obtained, Abu Falah p 22
- 1 2 2007 PCBS Census. Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics. p. 113.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Khirbet Abu Falah Village Profile" (PDF). Applied Research Institute-Jerusalem. 2012.
- ↑ Amiry, 1987, pp. 18-19.
- ↑ Palestinian Population by Locality and Refugee Status at the Wayback Machine (archived February 7, 2012). 1997 Census. Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). 1999.
Bibliography
- Amiry, Suad (1987). Space, Kinship and Gender: The Social Dimension of Peasant Architecture in Palestine. University of Edinburgh-Faculty of Social Sciences.
- Barron, J. B., ed. (1923). Palestine: Report and General Abstracts of the Census of 1922 (PDF). Government of Palestine.
- Conder, Claude Reignier; Kitchener, H. H. (1882). The Survey of Western Palestine: Memoirs of the Topography, Orography, Hydrography, and Archaeology 2. London: Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund. (pp. 292, 327)
- Finkelstein, Israel; Lederman, Zvi, eds. (1997). Highlands of many cultures. Tel Aviv: Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University Publications Section. ISBN 965-440-007-3. (II p. 593)
- Hadawi, Sami (1970). Village Statistics of 1945: A Classification of Land and Area ownership in Palestine. Palestine Liberation Organization Research Center.
- Mills, E., ed. (1932). Census of Palestine 1931. Population of Villages, Towns and Administrative Areas (PDF). Jerusalem: Government of Palestine.
- Palmer, E. H. (1881). The Survey of Western Palestine: Arabic and English Name Lists Collected During the Survey by Lieutenants Conder and Kitchener, R. E. Transliterated and Explained by E.H. Palmer. Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund. (p. 231)
- Prawer, Joshua; Benvenisti, David (1970). Palestine under the Crusaders. In: Amiran, D.H.K. et al., eds. Atlas of Israel. IX: 10. Jerusalem.
External links
- Welcome To Khirbat Abu Falah
- Survey of Western Palestine, Map 14: IAA, Wikimedia commons
- Khirbet Abu Falah Village (Fact Sheet), Applied Research Institute - Jerusalem (ARIJ)
- Khirbet Abu Falah, areal photo, Applied Research Institute - Jerusalem (ARIJ)
- Settlers reportedly set blaze to West Bank home in possible hate crime
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