Bir Zait
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Bir Zait بيرزيت |
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| Administration : |
 Palestinian Territories
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| Area: | West Bank | ||
| Governorate : | Ramallah and al-Bira | ||
| Coordinates : | 31 ° 58 ' N , 35 ° 12' E | ||
| Height : | 765 - 815 m | ||
| Area : | 14 km² | ||
| Residents : | 4,529 (2006) | ||
| Population density : | 324 inhabitants per km² | ||
| Community type: | city | ||
| Mayor : | Hassib Kaileh | ||
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Bir Zait ( Arabic بير زيت, DMG Bīr Zayt , locally pronounced bīr zēt , also transcribed as Bir Zeit ) is a place in the West Bank .
The place became known to fairy tale researchers and orientalists in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century because of what is probably the most extensive collection of Arab fairy tales after the Arabian Nights , the folk tales from Palestine, collected from the farmers of Bīr Zēt . Today it is considered a center of resistance against the Israeli occupation , especially due to its nearby university of the same name .
Surname
The name of the place means "oil cistern" and in fact the numerous olive trees in and around the village are characteristic of the landscape. The original farming population lived mainly from olive growing. However, the place name is said to go back to a Roman name for the settlement, which is passed down as Berzethe in Arabic sources . The current Arabic name could also be a folk etymological reinterpretation of an originally Latin name.
Geographical location
The place is between 765 and 815 meters above sea level in the already biblically mentioned mountain range Ephraim , about ten kilometers north of Ramallah and about 25 kilometers north of Jerusalem . Its neighboring towns are Atara in the north , Dschifna and Ain Siniya in the west, Surda , Abu Qash and the fortified refugee camp Jalazun in the south , and Abu Shuchaidim and Burham in the west . On a clear day, from Bir Zait you can see Tel Aviv about 50 km to the west and the Mediterranean Sea .
population
Bir Zait originally had a predominantly Christian, Arab population. The place was never purely Christian like, for example, its closest neighbor Jifna , but always had a Muslim part: four of the long-established clans are Christian, two Muslim. In 1931 Bir Zait had 1233 inhabitants, of which 871 were Christians and 362 were Muslims. In 1961 the population had grown to 3,253 people, of which 1,424 were Christians and 1,829 were Muslims. In 2014 Bir Zait had 5479 inhabitants. The proportion of Christians continues to decrease, as Christians leave the country to a far greater extent than Muslims. There are two mosques in town and three churches. By far the largest church with the most numerous parishes is the Latin (= Roman Catholic), then the Greek Orthodox and finally the Protestant.
history
Bir Zait already played an important role in the 1948 war , when Abd il-Qadir il-Husaini stationed armed forces of the Arabs there. Even after the occupation in 1967, Bir Zait was a center of the Palestinian resistance. In 1973 one of the most famous sons in the village, the PLO politician Kamal Butrus Nasir , was killed in an Israeli commando operation. Especially during the first Intifada from 1987 to 1994, the location often hit the headlines because the nearby university initiated numerous civil and armed resistance actions.
university
Today the place is mainly known for its university of the same name. The Birzeit University is located south, outside the village, on the way to Ramallah.
Culture
The Palestinian National Museum opened in Bir Zait in 2016 .
Personalities
- Sulayman Mansur (born 1947), artist
- Sumayya Farhat Nasir (* 1948), civil rights activist and peace activist
- Kamal Butrus Nasir (1924–1973), PLO politician
- Dschirius Jusif , teacher at the Protestant day school on the Muristan and fairy tale collector.
See also
literature
- Hans Schmidt, Paul Kahle , Jirius Jusif: Folk tales from Palestine, collected from the farmers of Bīr Zēt. 2 volumes. Göttingen 1918/1930
