Haifa

:For the Lebanese singer, see Haifa Wehbe.

History

The name Haifa is derived from the Levantine Arabic word الحيفة al-Ḥayfah meaning 'nearby', derived from the Crusaders name for Haifa -- Cayphas (they also used the name Sycaminon which means Wild Strawberry). Under Roman rule it was known by Efa. During the Islamic period, Acre dominated the coastal area, and Haifa was a minor porthttp://www.palestineremembered.com/Haifa/Haifa/index.html. Haifa is first mentioned in written records around 3rd century CE, as a small town near Shikmona, the main town in the area at that time. It had been under Byzantine rule until the 7th century, when it was conquered first by the Persians, then by the Arabs. In 1100, it was conquered again by the crusaders, after a fierce battle with its Jewish inhabitants. It then became part of the Principality of Galilee. The town was taken again by the Muslim Mameluks in 1265, and was ruined and mostly abandoned until the 17th century.

Related Topics:
Levantine Arabic - Acre - 3rd century - Shikmona - Byzantine - 7th century - Persians - Arabs - 1100 - Crusaders - Principality of Galilee - Mameluks - 1265 - 17th century

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In 1761 Daher El-Omar, Bedouin ruler of Acre and Galilee, destroyed and rebuilt the town in a new location, surrounding it with a thin wall. This event is marked by many as the beginning of the town's modern era. After El-Omar's death in 1775, the town remained mostly under Ottoman rule until 1918, except for two brief periods: in 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte conquered Haifa as part of his brief and failed campaign to conquer Palestine and Syria, but withdrew the same year; and between 1831 and 1840, the town had been under the rule of the Egyptian viceroy Mehemet Ali, after having been conquered by his son Ibrahim Pasha. In the years following the Egyptian occupation, the town saw rise in traffic, population and importance, while Acre was declining due to the damages it suffered in a succession of battles and wars. The town saw another surge of development with the arrival of members of the Temple Society in 1868, who settled in Haifa and built their sturdy houses in the town's "German colony". The Templars greatly contributed to the town's commerce and industry, and played an important role in its stride towards modernization.

Related Topics:
1761 - Daher El-Omar - Bedouin - Acre - Galilee - 1775 - Ottoman - 1918 - 1799 - Napoleon Bonaparte - Palestine - Syria - 1831 - 1840 - Mehemet Ali - Ibrahim Pasha - Temple Society - 1868

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At the beginning of the 20th century, Haifa had emerged as an industrial port city and growing population center. At that time Haifa district was home to approximately 20,000 inhabitants, comprised of 82% Muslim Arab, 14% Christian Arabs, and 4% Jewish residents. Jewish population increased steadily with immigration primarily from Europe, so that by 1945 the population had shifted to 38% Muslim, 13% Christian and 47% Jewish. Haifa is located in the northernmost reach of the Coastal Plain designated as Jewish territory in the 1947 UN Partition Plan dividing mandatory Palestine. As the major industrial and oil-refinary port in the British mandate of Palestine, Jewish forces deemed control of Haifa a critical objective in the ensuing 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It was captured on April 23rd, 1948 by a force of 5,000 Israeli soldiers led by the Carmeli Brigade whose attack was met by a defending force of 350-500http://www.palestineremembered.com/Haifa/Haifa/index.html. The campaign resulted in Israeli control over the area and the flight of about 60,000 Palestinian Arabs from Haifa District.

Related Topics:
1947 UN Partition Plan - British mandate of Palestine - 1948 Arab-Israeli War - April 23 - 1948 - Palestinian

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Today, Haifa is a thriving and diverse cultural and ethnic center, home to Jews, Arabs, Ahmedis, Bahá'í and Druze, and marked for its relatively high level of coexistence.

Related Topics:
Ahmedi - Bahá'í - Druze

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