Al-Masara

Local Development Committee in Bethlehem, State of Palestine

31°39′17″N 35°10′48″E / 31.65472°N 35.18000°E / 31.65472; 35.18000StateState of PalestineGovernorateBethlehemFounded1930Government

• TypeLocal Development Committee • Head of MunicipalityMahmoud AlaeddinArea

• Total973 dunams (1.0 km² or 0.4 sq mi)Population

(2017)^[1]

• Total1,085 • Density1,100/km² (2,800/sq mi)Name meaning"the press"

Al-Masara (Arabic: المعصرة, pronounced al-Ma'sara; translation: "the press") is a Palestinian village in the central West Bank, 6.2 km southwest of Bethlehem, part of the Bethlehem Governorate. It is surrounded by a number of smaller Palestinian villages, including Khallet al-Haddad to the east.^[2] The population was 1,085 in the 2017 census by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS).^[1]

History

Name. Archaeology

Its name, which translates as "the press", derives from the Byzantine Empire-era olive press still located in al-Ma'sara.^[2] In 1883 the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine (SWP) noted "heaps of stones and cisterns" at Khurbet Marsia.^[3]

Establishment (1930)

The modern town was founded in 1930 by members of the Arab al-Zawahra and at-Ta'mirah tribes.^[2]

Post-1967

After the Six-Day War in 1967, Al-Masara has been under Israeli occupation.

Institutions

A seven-member local development committee was established by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) to administer the village, most which is located in Area B giving the PNA jurisdiction over al-Ma'sara's civil affairs.^[2] The head of the committee is Mahmoud Alaeddin.^[4]

There is one mosque, al-Ma'sara Mosque, and a primary and secondary school in the village.^[2]

Economy

Agriculture accounts for 70% of al-Ma'sara's economic activity, while the civil sector makes up 16%. The total land area is 973 dunams, of which 42 dunams are designated built-up. Most of the remainder is arable land, 505 dunams of which are cultivated.^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b Preliminary Results of the Population, Housing and Establishments Census, 2017 (PDF). Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) (Report). State of Palestine. February 2018. pp. 64–82. Retrieved 2023-10-24.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Al-Ma'sara Village Profile. Applied Research Institute-Jerusalem (ARIJ). 2010.
^ Conder and Kitchener, 1883, SWP III, p. 359
^ Masara Profile. Jerusalem Media and Communications Center (JMCC). 2007-02-09.

Bibliography

Conder, C.R.; Kitchener, H.H. (1883). The Survey of Western Palestine: Memoirs of the Topography, Orography, Hydrography, and Archaeology. Vol. 3. London: Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund.
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. 400)