Marda, Salfit

Marda is {{convert|3.6|km|mi|sp=us}} north of Salfit. It is bordered by Iskaka and Jamma'in villages to the east, Salfit to the south, Kifl Haris and Qira villages to the west, and Jamma'in village to the north. The Israeli settlement of Ariel lies immediately south of Marda.

The village is mentioned by name in the Samaritan Chronicle.Conder, 1876, p. [https://archive.org/stream/quarterlystateme07pale#page/196/mode/1up 196]Conder and Kitchener, 1882, SWP II, p. [https://archive.org/stream/surveyofwesternp02conduoft#page/286/mode/1up 286] According to Ellenblum, no remains from the Byzantine era have been found here.Ellenblum, 2003, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=riHMZiH_Te4C&pg=PA263 263]

According to Ben-Zvi, there was a Samaritan population in Marda during the Fatimid period.{{Cite book |last=בן צבי |first=יצחק |title=ספר השומרונים |publisher=יד יצחק בן צבי |year=1976 |editor-last=טלמון |editor-first=שמריהו |editor-link=Shemaryahu Talmon |location=ירושלים |pages=69 |language=he |trans-title=The Book of the Samaritans |author-link=Yitzhak Ben-Zvi |editor-last2=גפני |editor-first2=ישעיהו |editor-link2=Isaiah Gafni}}

During the Crusader period, Diya' al-Din (1173–1245) writes that there was a Muslim population in the village,Ellenblum, 2003, [https://books.google.com/books?id=W08225mbAjAC&pg=PA244 p. 244]Talmon-Heller, 1994, pp. [https://www.academia.edu/7232922/ 110–111]Talmon-Heller, 2002, pp. [https://www.academia.edu/4429775 131, 141] and that followers of Ibn Qudamah lived here.Drory, 1988, p. 97 The maternal grandmother of Diya' al-Din came from Marda.Drory, 1988, p. 108

Yakut (1179–1229) noted that Marda was a "village near Nablus".Le Strange, 1890, p. [https://archive.org/stream/palestineundermo00lestuoft#page/503/mode/1up 503] Ben-Zvi cites a Samaritan text according which a priest by the name of Isaac son of Abraham who had resided in Marda relocated to Gaza, presumably during Saladin's rule, and it appears that the Samaritan community there lasted up until this time.

Sherds from the Crusader/Ayyubid and Mamluk era have been found here.Finkelsten, 1997, pp. 481–2 An important Hanbali judge, Amin-ed-dyn 'Abd-er-Rahman, was born in the village in the early 15th century.Moudjir ed-dyn, 1876, p. [https://archive.org/stream/histoiredejrus00ulayuoft#page/281/mode/1up 281]; cited in Finkelstein, 1997, p. 482

Marda was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in 1517 with all of Palestine, and in 1596 it appeared in the tax registers under the name of Marda, as being in the nahiya ("subdistrict") of Jabal Qubal, part of the Sanjak of Nablus. It had a population of 163 household; who were all Muslims. They paid a fixed tax-rate of 33.3% on agricultural products, including wheat, barley, summer crops, olive trees, goats and beehives, in addition to occasional revenues, a press for olive oil or grape syrup, and a market toll; a total of 25,634 akçe. All of the revenue went to a Muslim charitable endowment.Hütteroth and Abdulfattah, 1977, p. 131 During this era it was an important market town, one of the largest in the area. Sherds from the early Ottoman era have been found here.

In the 18th and 19th centuries, Marda formed part of the highland region known as Jūrat ‘Amra or Bilād Jammā‘īn. Situated between Dayr Ghassāna in the south and the present Route 5 in the north, and between Majdal Yābā in the west and Jammā‘īn, Mardā and Kifl Ḥāris in the east, this area served, according to historian Roy Marom, "as a buffer zone between the political-economic-social units of the Jerusalem and the Nablus regions. On the political level, it suffered from instability due to the migration of the Bedouin tribes and the constant competition among local clans for the right to collect taxes on behalf of the Ottoman authorities."{{Cite journal |last=Marom |first=Roy |date=2022-11-01 |title=Jindās: A History of Lydda's Rural Hinterland in the 15th to the 20th Centuries CE |url=https://www.academia.edu/90931976/Jind%C4%81s_A_History_of_Lyddas_Rural_Hinterland_in_the_15th_to_the_20th_Centuries_CE |journal=Lod, Lydda, Diospolis |volume=1 |pages=17}}

In 1838, Edward Robinson noted it as a village, Merda, in the Jurat Merda district, south of Nablus.Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, Appendix 2, p. [https://archive.org/stream/biblicalresearch03robiuoft#page/127/mode/1up 127]

In 1870 Victor Guérin observed: "the mosque, now partly destroyed, lies east and west, and seems to have succeeded a Christian church. Before it lies a platform, beside which are a cistern and a small birket. There are also several broken capitals lying on the ground."Guérin, 1875, p. [https://archive.org/stream/descriptiongogr04gugoog#page/n187/mode/1up 162], as given in Conder and Kitchener, 1882, SWP II, p. [https://archive.org/stream/surveyofwesternp02conduoft#page/361/mode/1up 361]

In 1870/1871 (1288 AH), an Ottoman census listed the village in the nahiya (sub-district) of Jamma'in al-Thani, subordinate to Nablus.{{Cite book |last=Grossman |first=David |title=Arab Demography and Early Jewish Settlement in Palestine |publisher=Magnes Press |year=2004 |location=Jerusalem |pages=252}}

In 1882, the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine described Merdah as: "a village of moderate size on low ground surrounded by olives."

In the 1922 census of Palestine conducted by the British Mandate authorities, Marda had a population of 290 Muslims,Barron, 1923, Table IX, Sub-district of Nablus, p. [https://archive.org/stream/PalestineCensus1922/Palestine%20Census%20%281922%29#page/n27/mode/1up 25] increasing in the 1931 census to 356 Muslims in 103 occupied houses.Mills, 1932, p. [https://archive.org/details/CensusOfPalestine1931.PopulationOfVillagesTownsAndAdministrativeAreas 63]

In the 1945 statistics the population was 470 MuslimsGovernment of Palestine, Department of Statistics, 1945, p. [http://users.cecs.anu.edu.au/~bdm/yabber/census/VSpages/VS1945_p19.jpg 19] while the total land area was 9,021 dunams, according to an official land and population survey.Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. [http://www.palestineremembered.com/download/VillageStatistics/Table%20I/Nablus/Page-060.jpg 60] Of this, 1,796 were allocated for plantations and irrigable land, 3,176 for cereals,Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. [http://www.palestineremembered.com/download/VillageStatistics/Table%20II/Nablus/Page-107.jpg 107] while 72 dunams were classified as built-up areas.Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. [http://www.palestineremembered.com/download/VillageStatistics/Table%20III/Nablus/Page-157.jpg 157]

In the wake of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, and after the 1949 Armistice Agreements, Marda came under Jordanian rule.

The Jordanian census of 1961 found 852 inhabitants in Marda.Government of Jordan, Department of Statistics, 1964, p. [http://users.cecs.anu.edu.au/~bdm/yabber/census/JordanCensusPages/JordanCensus1961-p26.pdf 26]

Since the Six-Day War in 1967, Marda has been under Israeli occupation.

After the 1995 accords, 15.8% of village land is defined as Area B land, while the remaining 84.2% is Area C land. According to ARIJ, Marda has suffered "numerous Israeli confiscations for the benefit of the various Israeli objectives," including the confiscations of 2,566 dunums (29%) of village land to establish the Israeli settlement of Ariel just south of Marda. In addition, land was confiscated from Salfit, Kifl Haris and Iskaka villages for Ariel.[https://web.archive.org/web/20160304120817/http://vprofile.arij.org/salfit/pdfs/vprofile/Marda_vp_en.pdf Marda Village Profile], ARIJ. p. 18

According to what the head of the village council told HRW: "We used to have 10,000 animals, now you can barely find 100, because there is nowhere for them to graze. So the economy collapsed and unemployment increased." He further noted, that as a result of the Israeli land confiscations, many of the Marda villagers now have little choice but to work in Israeli settlements.[https://www.hrw.org/report/2016/01/19/occupation-inc/how-settlement-businesses-contribute-israels-violations-palestinian Occupation, Inc. How Settlement Businesses Contribute to Israel’s Violations of Palestinian Rights], January 19, 2016, HRW

On 14 May 2021 during the 2021 demonstrations, 38-year-old Sharif Khaled Suleiman was killed.[https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-palestine-west-bank-protests-killed Palestinians killed in West Bank as Israeli crackdown intensifies], Shatha Hammad, 14 May 2021, Middle East Eye

{{reflist|25em}}

{{refbegin}}

• {{cite book | editor =Barron, J.B. | title = Palestine: Report and General Abstracts of the Census of 1922|url=https://archive.org/details/PalestineCensus1922 | publisher = Government of Palestine | year = 1923}}
• {{cite journal | author = Conder, C.R.| author-link=Claude Reignier Conder| title = Samaritan Topography | journal = Quarterly Statement – Palestine Exploration Fund | volume = 8 | pages = 182–197 | url = https://archive.org/details/quarterlystateme07pale| year = 1876| issue=4| doi=10.1179/peq.1876.8.4.182}}
• {{cite book|last1=Conder|first1=C.R.|author-link1=Claude Reignier Conder|last2=Kitchener|first2=H.H.|author-link2=Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener|year=1882|url=https://archive.org/details/surveyofwesternp02conduoft|title=The Survey of Western Palestine: Memoirs of the Topography, Orography, Hydrography, and Archaeology|location=London|publisher=Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund|volume=2}}
• {{cite book | last= Dauphin |first = C.|author-link= Claudine Dauphin | title = La Palestine byzantine, Peuplement et Populations |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FC1mAAAAMAAJ |volume = III : Catalogue | series = BAR International Series 726 | year = 1998 | publisher = Archeopress | location = Oxford|language =fr|isbn= 0-860549-05-4}} (p. 809)
• {{cite journal | author = Drory, Joseph| title =Hanbalis of the Nablus Region in the Eleventh and Twelfth Centuries | url= http://www.africabib.org/rec.php?RID=P00016380| journal = Asian and African Studies | volume = 22 | pages = 93–112 | year = 1988}}
• {{cite book |first=R.|last=Ellenblum|author-link= Ronnie Ellenblum|title=Frankish Rural Settlement in the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=riHMZiH_Te4C | publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=2003|isbn= 9780521521871}}
• {{cite book|editor1=Finkelstein, I. | editor1-link= Israel Finkelstein|editor2=Lederman, Zvi|year=1997|title=Highlands of many cultures|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hA59tgAACAAJ |location=Tel Aviv|publisher= Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University Publications Section| isbn = 965-440-007-3}}
• {{cite book | title = First Census of Population and Housing. Volume I: Final Tables; General Characteristics of the Population | author = Government of Jordan, Department of Statistics | year = 1964|url=http://cs.anu.edu.au/~bdm/yabber/census/JordanCensus1961bits.pdf}}
• {{cite book|title=Village Statistics, April, 1945 |url=http://web.nli.org.il/sites/nli/Hebrew/library/Pages/BookReader.aspx?pid=856390|author=Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics|year=1945}}
• {{cite book|last=Guérin|first=V.|author-link=Victor Guérin|title=Description Géographique Historique et Archéologique de la Palestine|url=https://archive.org/details/descriptiongogr04gugoog|volume=2: Samarie, pt. 2|year=1875|publisher= L'Imprimerie Nationale|location=Paris|language=fr}}
• {{cite book|title=Village Statistics of 1945: A Classification of Land and Area ownership in Palestine|url=http://www.palestineremembered.com/Articles/General-2/Story3150.html|first=S.|last=Hadawi|author-link=Sami Hadawi|year=1970|publisher=Palestine Liberation Organization Research Center}}
• {{cite book | last1= Hütteroth |first1=W.-D.|author-link1=Wolf-Dieter Hütteroth |first2=K. | last2=Abdulfattah |author-link2=Kamal Abdulfattah| title = Historical Geography of Palestine, Transjordan and Southern Syria in the Late 16th Century |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=wqULAAAAIAAJ | year = 1977 | publisher = Erlanger Geographische Arbeiten, Sonderband 5. Erlangen, Germany: Vorstand der Fränkischen Geographischen Gesellschaft|isbn= 3-920405-41-2}}
• {{cite book|title=Palestine Under the Moslems: A Description of Syria and the Holy Land from A.D. 650 to 1500|url=https://archive.org/details/palestineundermo00lestuoft |first=G.|last=Le Strange|author-link=Guy Le Strange|year=1890|publisher=Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund}}
• {{cite book | editor = Mills, E. | title = Census of Palestine 1931. Population of Villages, Towns and Administrative Areas |url=https://archive.org/details/CensusOfPalestine1931.PopulationOfVillagesTownsAndAdministrativeAreas | publisher = Government of Palestine | location = Jerusalem | year = 1932}}
• {{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/histoiredejrus00ulayuoft|title=Histoire de Jérusalem et d'Hébron depuis Abraham jusqu'à la fin du XVe siècle de J.-C. : fragments de la Chronique de Moudjir-ed-dyn|year=1876|author=Moudjir ed-dyn|author-link=Mujir al-Din|editor=Sauvaire}}
• {{cite book|last=Palmer|first=E.H.|author-link=Edward Henry Palmer|year=1881|url=https://archive.org/details/surveyofwesternp00conduoft|title=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|publisher=Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund}}
• {{cite book|last1=Robinson|first1=E.|author-link1=Edward Robinson (scholar)|last2=Smith|first2=E.|author-link2=Eli Smith|year=1841|url=https://archive.org/details/biblicalresearch03robiuoft |title=Biblical Researches in Palestine, Mount Sinai and Arabia Petraea: A Journal of Travels in the year 1838| location=Boston|publisher=Crocker & Brewster|volume=3}}
• {{cite journal | author = Talmon-Heller, Daniella | title =Popular Hanbalite Islam in 12th–13th Century Jabal Nablus and Jabal Qasyūn | journal = Studia Islamica | volume = 79 | pages = 103–120 | url =https://www.academia.edu/7232922 | year = 1994| doi=10.2307/1595838| jstor=1595838}}
• {{cite book | author =Talmon-Heller, Daniella | url =https://www.academia.edu/4429775 | title =The Cited Tales of the Wondrous Doings of the Shaykhs of the Holy Land| year = 2002| pages =111–154| volume =1| others =published in Crusades |editor= Riley-Smith, J.|editor-link=Jonathan Riley-Smith|publisher =Published by Ashgate for the Society for the Study of the Crusades and the Latin East|location =Aldershot, Hampshire |isbn =0754609189}}

{{refend}}

• [http://www.palestineremembered.com/GeoPoints/Marda_1399/index.html Welcome to Marda]
• Survey of Western Palestine, Map 14: [https://web.archive.org/web/20180928072721/http://www.iaa-archives.org.il/zoom/zoom.aspx?folder_id=93&type_id=6&id=8376 IAA], [http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Survey_of_Western_Palestine_1880.14.jpg Wikimedia commons]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20171021061101/http://vprofile.arij.org/salfit/pdfs/factsheet/Marda.pdf Marda Village (Fact Sheet)], Applied Research Institute–Jerusalem (ARIJ)
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20160304120817/http://vprofile.arij.org/salfit/pdfs/vprofile/Marda_vp_en.pdf Marda Village Profile], ARIJ
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20161011004729/http://vprofile.arij.org/salfit/images/english/Marda_ap_en.jpg Marda, aerial photo], ARIJ
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20171021061029/http://vprofile.arij.org/salfit/pdfs/needsfordevelopment/Marda_needs_en.pdf Development Priorities and Needs in Marda], ARIJ

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Category:Towns in Salfit Governorate

Category:Salfit Governorate

Category:Municipalities of Palestine

Category:Ancient Samaritan settlements