Beitin

Beitin
Other transcription(s)
• Arabic	بيتين
• Also spelled	Baytin (official) Bittin (unofficial)
The ruins of al-Burj in Beitin, 1935
Beitin Location of Beitin within the Palestinian territories
Coordinates: 31°55′42.02″N 35°14′17.41″E
Governorate	Ramallah & al-Bireh
Founded	Early 19th-century
Government
• Type	Village Council (from 1996)
• Head of Municipality	Diab Yassin
Area
• Jurisdiction	4,764 dunams (4.8 km2 or 1.839 sq mi)
Population (2007)
• Jurisdiction	2,143

Beitin (Arabic: بيتين‎ Bitīn) is a Palestinian town in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate in the central West Bank, located 5 kilometers (3.1 mi) northeast of Ramallah along the Ramallah-Nablus road. It is surrounded by the Palestinian towns of Dura al-Qar' and Ein Yabrud to the north, Rammun to the east, Deir Dibwan to the southeast and the city of al-Bireh to the southwest. The Israeli settlement of Beit El is situated northwest of the town. There are several springs around Beitin which is locally known for its olive, almond, fig and plum groves.

History

Human settlement at the site of Beitin dates back to the Chalcolithic period. Archaeological excavations in 1950 uncovered flint tools, pottery and animal bones from that time. In the Early Bronze Age (around 3200 BCE) normally nomadic populations settled in the area. Canaanite tombs, houses and olive presses were discovered to the north and southeast of the village. In addition, the remains of a Canaanite temple were also excavated by archaeologists. In the Middle Bronze Age (around 1750 BCE) its status was elevated from a village to a fortified Canaanite town which was believed to be named Luz at the time. Two city gates dating to this period have been excavated, one being in the northeast and the other in the northwest of the wall. A second temple was built in Luz during this period, but was destroyed as a result of an earthquake.

Beitin has been identified as the biblical Bethel. According to tradition, Jacob encountered God in Luz and renamed the town Bethel or "house of God." However, based on a reading of Josephus, where he writes vayetsai mebeit-el luzah ("from Bethel to Luz,") Luz and Bethel may have been two different places. During Israelite rule, Bethel first belonged to the Tribe of Benjamin, but was later conquered by the Tribe of Ephraim. Saint Jerome said it "lay twelve Roman miles from Jerusalem, on the right or east of the road leading to Neapolis."

In Byzantine times, Bethel held annual festivals on October 18. The population was Eastern Orthodox Christian and monks from the Sinai Peninsula, particularly Zosimas of Palestine, were known to have visited the town. The church fell into ruin after the Islamic Rashidun army conquered the area, but was rebuilt by the Crusaders in the 12th-century. After the Crusaders were defeated by the Ayyubid forces of Saladin in 1187, the church was destroyed and the village was abandoned.

In the early 19th-century, Bedouins from Jordan migrated to the site, inhabited it, and built a mosque near the church's old site. The region had been part of the Ottoman Empire since 1517 and after Beitin was reestablished, the town came under the administration of the Mutasarrif ("Governorate") of Jerusalem.

On December 19, 2011 Beitin was raided by Israeli settlers in an alleged price tag attack. Five Palestinian-owned cars were burnt, the fires also inflicting damage on nearby building fronts. Israeli security forces dispersed the settlers, but made no arrests although they launched an investigation of the incident.

Landmarks

The ruins of the Byzantine church are known in Arabic as "al-Muqater" or "Khirbet al-Kenise" ("Ruins of the Church.") There is another ruin called "al-Burj Beitin" ("the Tower of Beitin") or simply al-Burj in the western part of the town. It is believed to have been constructed on the site where Abraham built an altar. According to biblical scholar Edward Robinson who visited Palestine in the 19th-century, al-Burj Beitin consisted of dilapidated stones that used to form part of a fortress and a Greek church. Al-Burj was used as a watch tower by the Crusaders.

Demographics

In a 1922 British Mandate census, Beitin had a population of 446, rising to 566 in 1931. In a 1945 land and population survey by Sami Hadawi, Beitin had 690 inhabitants. In 1997, Palestinian refugees accounted for exactly 30% of the population which was 1,510 at the time.

According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), Beitin had a population of over 3,050 inhabitants in 2006. In 2007, a PCBS census recorded a population of 2,143 (1,128 men and 1,015 women.) There were 717 homes in the village and the average household size consisted of 4.9 family members.