Jump to content

Druze in Mandatory Palestine: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
→‎top: rewrite ref
 
(35 intermediate revisions by 15 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|Ethnoreligious group}}
⚫
Palestinian Druze are [[Demographics of Mandatory Palestine|Palestine's citizens]] who belonged to the [[Druze]] ethnoreligious group. During the first census of the British protectorate, Druze were one of eight religious demographic groups whom were categorized,<ref> Barron, Table I.</ref> The sense of a distinct identity among Druze began to increase in the 1930s when some other Palestinian citizens viewed them as being neutral during ethnic contentions.<ref>[https://www.mepc.org/druze-between-palestine-and-israel-1947-49]</ref> During the early 20th century, many authors depicted the Druze as neutral during the clashes that happened between Arabs and Jews in the 1920s and 1930s. This perception eventually culminated in Israeli leadership approaching the Druze who were in leadership positions and offering them a treaty of non-aggression, leading to somewhat tranquil relations between the two.<ref name=Gelber2004>[[Yoav Gelber]], ''Independence Versus Nakba''; Kinneret–Zmora-Bitan–Dvir Publishing, 2004, {{ISBN|965-517-190-6}}, p. 115</ref>
[[File:דרוזיות אופות פיתות-JNF022334.jpeg|thumb|Palestinian Druze family making bread 1920.]]
⚫
[[Druze in Israel|Palestinian Druze]] were people in [[Mandatory Palestine]] who belonged to the [[Druze]] [[ethnoreligious group]].<ref name=dawn>{{cite book|title=Displacement and Dispossession in the Modern Middle East|last= Chatty|first= Dawn |publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-81792-9|date= 2010-03-15}}</ref><ref name="Harrison1">{{cite book|author=Simon Harrison|title=Fracturing Resemblances: Identity and Mimetic Conflict in Melanesia and the West|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B9-LF_Of_E8C&pg=PA121|year=2006|publisher=Berghahn Books|isbn=978-1-57181-680-1|pages=121–}}</ref> During the first census of the British mandate, Druze were one of eight religious demographic groups who were categorized,<ref>Barron, Table I.</ref> The sense of a distinct identity among Druze began to increase in the 1930s when some other Arab citizens viewed them as being neutral during ethnic contentions.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mepc.org/druze-between-palestine-and-israel-1947-49|title=The Druze Between Palestine and Israel, 1947-49 &#124; Middle East Policy Council|website=www.mepc.org}}</ref> During the early 20th century, many authors depicted the Druze as neutral during the clashes that happened between Arabs and Jews in the 1920s and 1930s. This perception eventually culminated in Israeli leadership approaching the Druze who were in leadership positions and offering them a treaty of non-aggression, leading to somewhat tranquil relations between the two.<ref name=Gelber2004>[[Yoav Gelber]], ''Independence Versus Nakba''; Kinneret–Zmora-Bitan–Dvir Publishing, 2004, {{ISBN|965-517-190-6}}, p. 115</ref>


During the [[Mandatory Palestine|British Mandate for Palestine]], the Druze did not embrace the rising [[Arab nationalism]] of the time or participate in violent confrontations. In 1948, many Druze volunteered for the Israeli army and no Druze villages were destroyed or permanently abandoned.<ref name="IDMC">{{cite web|url=http://www.internal-displacement.org/idmc/website/countries.nsf/(httpEnvelopes)/F11200E8ECD83F71802570B8005A7276?OpenDocument |title=Internal Displacement Monitoring Center – Israel |access-date=2009-04-22 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20060903022121/http://www.internal-displacement.org/idmc/website/countries.nsf/%28httpEnvelopes%29/F11200E8ECD83F71802570B8005A7276?OpenDocument |archive-date=3 September 2006}}</ref> Since the establishment of the state, the Druze have demonstrated solidarity with Israel and distanced themselves from Arab and Islamic radicalism.<ref>{{cite journal | last=Nisan | first = Mordechai | journal = The Middle East Journal| volume=64| number=4 | year= 2010 | pages= 575–596|title=The Druze in Israel: Questions of Identity, Citizenship, and Patriotism| url=https://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/mei/mei/2010/00000064/00000004/art00005| doi=10.3751/64.4.14}}</ref> Druze citizens serve in the [[Israel Defense Forces]].<ref name="Christian Arabs">{{cite news|url=http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=555549|title=Christian Arabs / Second in a series – Israel's Christian Arabs don't want to fight to fit in|first=Yoav|last=Stern|publisher=Haaretz|date=23 March 2005|access-date=7 January 2006|archive-date=10 December 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071210000545/http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=555549|url-status=dead}}</ref>
The term ''Palestinian Druze'' is sometimes also used for Arab Israeli citizens who belong to the Druze faith.<ref>[https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/druze-nation-state-bill-180816125453184.html]</ref>

== Demographics ==

The [[1922 census of Palestine|1922 census]] recorded 7,028 Druze, mostly living in the Sub-Districts of Acre, Haifa, Tiberias and Safed.<ref name="Census1922">{{cite book | editor = J. B. Barron | title = Palestine: Report and General Abstracts of the Census of 1922 | publisher = Government of Palestine | year = 1923 | at = Table XI}}</ref> By the time of the [[1931 census of Palestine|1931 census]], this number had risen to 9,148 persons.<ref name=Census1931v2>{{cite book | author = E. Mills | title = Census of Palestine 1931. Volume II. | place = Alexandria | year = 1933 | publisher = Government of Palestine | at = Table VII}}</ref> The 1945–1946 [[Survey of Palestine (Anglo-American Committee)|Survey of Palestine]] estimated that about 13,000 Druze lived in Palestine at that time.<ref>{{cite book | author = Government of Palestine | title = A Survey of Palestine, prepared in December 1945 and January 1946 for the information of the Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry | volume = II | page = 925}}</ref>

{| class=wikitable
|+ Principle centers of Druze population in Palestine<ref name="Census1922tabs">{{cite book | editor = J. B. Barron | title = Palestine: Report and General Abstracts of the Census of 1922 | publisher = Government of Palestine | year = 1923}}</ref><ref name="Census1931">{{cite book | editor = E. Mills | title = Census of Palestine 1931. Population of Villages, Towns and Administrative Areas | publisher = Government of Palestine | location = Jerusalem | year = 1932}}</ref>
! village
! 1922 census
! 1931 census
|-
| [[Daliyat al-Karmel]] || 921 || 1154
|-
| [[Yirka]] || 937 || 1138
|-
| [[Beit Jann]] || 895 || 1099
|-
| [[Maghar, Israel|Maghar]] || 676 || 877
|-
| [[Isfiya]] || 590 || 742
|-
| [[Julis]] || 442 || 586
|-
| [[Shefa-Amr]] || 402 || 496
|-
| [[Hurfeish]] || 386 || 474
|-
| [[Peki'in|El Buqei'a]] || 304 || 412
|}

==See also==
* [[Druze in Israel]]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


{{Druze footer}}
⚫
{{Asia-ethno-group-stub}}
{{Palestine topics}}
⚫
{{MEast-stub}}


[[Category:Ethnic groups in Mandatory Palestine]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Mandatory Palestine]]


⚫
{{Asia-ethno-group-stub}}
⚫
{{MEast-stub}}

Latest revision as of 01:41, 26 April 2024

Palestinian Druze family making bread 1920.

Palestinian Druze were people in Mandatory Palestine who belonged to the Druze ethnoreligious group.[1][2] During the first census of the British mandate, Druze were one of eight religious demographic groups who were categorized,[3] The sense of a distinct identity among Druze began to increase in the 1930s when some other Arab citizens viewed them as being neutral during ethnic contentions.[4] During the early 20th century, many authors depicted the Druze as neutral during the clashes that happened between Arabs and Jews in the 1920s and 1930s. This perception eventually culminated in Israeli leadership approaching the Druze who were in leadership positions and offering them a treaty of non-aggression, leading to somewhat tranquil relations between the two.[5]

During the British Mandate for Palestine, the Druze did not embrace the rising Arab nationalism of the time or participate in violent confrontations. In 1948, many Druze volunteered for the Israeli army and no Druze villages were destroyed or permanently abandoned.[6] Since the establishment of the state, the Druze have demonstrated solidarity with Israel and distanced themselves from Arab and Islamic radicalism.[7] Druze citizens serve in the Israel Defense Forces.[8]

Demographics

[edit]

The 1922 census recorded 7,028 Druze, mostly living in the Sub-Districts of Acre, Haifa, Tiberias and Safed.[9] By the time of the 1931 census, this number had risen to 9,148 persons.[10] The 1945–1946 Survey of Palestine estimated that about 13,000 Druze lived in Palestine at that time.[11]

Principle centers of Druze population in Palestine[12][13]
village 1922 census 1931 census
Daliyat al-Karmel 921 1154
Yirka 937 1138
Beit Jann 895 1099
Maghar 676 877
Isfiya 590 742
Julis 442 586
Shefa-Amr 402 496
Hurfeish 386 474
El Buqei'a 304 412

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Chatty, Dawn (2010-03-15). Displacement and Dispossession in the Modern Middle East. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81792-9.
  2. ^ Simon Harrison (2006). Fracturing Resemblances: Identity and Mimetic Conflict in Melanesia and the West. Berghahn Books. pp. 121–. ISBN 978-1-57181-680-1.
  3. ^ Barron, Table I.
  4. ^ "The Druze Between Palestine and Israel, 1947-49 | Middle East Policy Council". www.mepc.org.
  5. ^ Yoav Gelber, Independence Versus Nakba; Kinneret–Zmora-Bitan–Dvir Publishing, 2004, ISBN 965-517-190-6, p. 115
  6. ^ "Internal Displacement Monitoring Center – Israel". Archived from the original on 3 September 2006. Retrieved 2009-04-22.
  7. ^ Nisan, Mordechai (2010). "The Druze in Israel: Questions of Identity, Citizenship, and Patriotism". The Middle East Journal. 64 (4): 575–596. doi:10.3751/64.4.14.
  8. ^ Stern, Yoav (23 March 2005). "Christian Arabs / Second in a series – Israel's Christian Arabs don't want to fight to fit in". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 10 December 2007. Retrieved 7 January 2006.
  9. ^ J. B. Barron, ed. (1923). Palestine: Report and General Abstracts of the Census of 1922. Government of Palestine. Table XI.
  10. ^ E. Mills (1933). Census of Palestine 1931. Volume II. Alexandria: Government of Palestine. Table VII.
  11. ^ Government of Palestine. A Survey of Palestine, prepared in December 1945 and January 1946 for the information of the Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry. Vol. II. p. 925.
  12. ^ J. B. Barron, ed. (1923). Palestine: Report and General Abstracts of the Census of 1922. Government of Palestine.
  13. ^ E. Mills, ed. (1932). Census of Palestine 1931. Population of Villages, Towns and Administrative Areas. Jerusalem: Government of Palestine.


Stub icon

This article about an ethnic group in Asia is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Stub icon

This Middle East–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Druze_in_Mandatory_Palestine&oldid=1220810116"