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Ramla

Coordinates:31°55′39″N34°51′45″E/ 31.92750°N 34.86250°E/31.92750; 34.86250
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(Redirected fromRamleh)
For other places with similar names, seeRamla (disambiguation).
"Ramleh" redirects here. For the music band, seeRamleh (band).For the location in Egypt, seeMahatet El Raml.
Not to be confused withRamallah.

Ramla
  • רַמְלה‎
  • الرملة
City
Hebrew transcription(s)
•ISO 259Ramla
• Also spelledRamle
Ramleh (unofficial)
Ramla seen from the White Tower with the eastern hills around Modi'in in the background, 2013
Ramla seen from theWhite Towerwith the eastern hills aroundModi'inin the background, 2013
Official logo of Ramla
Emblem of Ramla
Ramla is located in Central Israel
Ramla
Ramla
Location within Israel
Ramla is located in Israel
Ramla
Ramla
Ramla (Israel)
Coordinates:31°55′39″N34°51′45″E/ 31.92750°N 34.86250°E/31.92750; 34.86250
CountryIsrael
DistrictCentral
SubdistrictRamla Subdistrict
Foundedc. 705–715
Government
• MayorMichael Vidal
Area
• Total9,993dunams(9.993 km2or 3.858 sq mi)
Population
(2022)[1]
• Total79,132
• Density7,900/km2(21,000/sq mi)
Websiteramle.org.il

RamlaorRamle(Hebrew:רַמְלָה,Ramlā;Arabic:الرملة,ar-Ramleh)[2]is a city in theCentral DistrictofIsrael.Ramle is one of Israel'smixed cities,with significant numbers of both Jews and Arabs.[3]

The city was founded in the early 8th century CE by theUmayyadcaliphSulayman ibn Abd al-Malikas the capital ofJund Filastin,the district he governed inBilad al-Shambefore becomingcaliphin 715. The city's strategic and economic value derived from its location at the intersection of theVia Maris,connectingCairowithDamascus,and the road connecting theMediterraneanport ofJaffawithJerusalem.[4]It rapidly overshadowed the adjacent city ofLydda,whose inhabitants were relocated to the new city. Not long after its establishment, Ramla developed as the commercial centre ofPalestine,serving as a hub for pottery, dyeing, weaving, and olive oil, and as the home of numerousMuslim scholars.Its prosperity was lauded by geographers in the 10th–11th centuries, when the city was ruled by theFatimidsandSeljuks.

It lost its role as a provincial capital shortly before the arrival of theFirst Crusaders(c. 1099), after which it became the scene ofvarious battlesbetween the Crusaders and Fatimids in the first years of the 12th century. Later that century, it became the centre of alordshipin theKingdom of Jerusalem,aCrusader stateestablished byGodfrey of Bouillon.

Ramla had anArab-majority population before mostwere expelledduring the1948 Arab–Israeli War.[5]The town was subsequently repopulated byJewishimmigrants. Today, Ramla is one of Israel'smixed cities,with a population 76% Jewish and 24% Arab.[1][3]

History

Umayyad period

A colorized skyline of a town with hills on the horizon, white buildings in the background, and a cemetery, olive trees, and dirt paths in the foreground
Ramla (pictured in 1895) was founded by Sulayman at the start of the 8th century and became the capital of his district.

TheUmayyadprince and governor ofPalestine,Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik,founded Ramla as the seat of his administration,[6][7][8]replacingLydda,the Muslims' original provincial capital.[6][7]Sulayman had been appointed governor by his father CaliphAbd al-Malikbefore the end of his reign in 705 and continued in office through the reign of his brother Caliphal-Walid I(r. 705–715), whom he succeeded.[6]He died as caliph in 717. Ramla remained the capital of Palestine through theFatimidperiod (10th–11th centuries).[9]Its role as the principal city and district capital came to an end shortly before the arrival of theFirst Crusadersin 1099.[10]It received its name, the singular form oframl(sand), from the sandy area in which it sat.[11]

Ramla's Pool of Arches, a tourist destination

Sulayman's motives for founding Ramla were personal ambition and practical considerations. The location of Ramla near Lydda, a long-established and prosperous city, was logistically and economically advantageous.[12]The area's economic importance was based on its strategic location at the intersection of the two major roads linkingEgyptwithSyria(the so-called "Via Maris") and linking Jerusalem with the Mediterranean coast.[13]Sulayman established his city in Lydda's vicinity, avoiding Lydda proper. This was likely due to a lack of available space for wide-scale development and agreements dating to theMuslim conquestin the 630s that, at least formally, precluded him from confiscating desirable property within Lydda.[12]

In a tradition recorded by the historianIbn Fadlallah al-Umari(died 1347), a determined local Christian cleric refused Sulayman's requests for plots in the middle of Lydda. Infuriated, he attempted to have the cleric executed, but his local adviserRaja ibn Haywadissuaded him and instead proposed building a new city at a superior, adjacent site.[14]In choosing the site, Sulayman utilized the strategic advantages of Lydda's vicinity while avoiding the physical constraints of an already-established urban center.[15]HistorianMoshe Sharonholds that Lydda was "too Christian in ethos for the taste of the Umayyad rulers", particularly following theArabization and Islamization reformsinstituted by Abd al-Malik.[16]

According toal-Jahshiyari(died 942), Sulayman sought a lasting reputation as a great builder following the example of his father and al-Walid, the respective founders of theDome of the RockinJerusalemand theGreat Mosque of Damascus.The construction of Ramla was Sulayman's "way to immortality" and "his personal stamp on the landscape of Palestine", according to Luz.[17]

White stone ruins of a building, including arches and columns, in a grassy area with modern, high-rise buildings in the background
Remains of theWhite Mosquein Ramla (pictured in 2014) built by Sulayman and his cousin and successorUmar II

The first structure Sulayman erected in Ramla was his palatial residence,[15]which dually served as the seat of Palestine's administration (diwan). The next structure was the Dar al-Sabbaghin (House of the Dyers). At the center of the new city was acongregational mosque,later known as theWhite Mosque.[18]It was not completed until the reign of Sulayman's successor CaliphUmar II(r. 717–720).[19]The Sulayman's construction works were financially managed by a Christian from Lydda, Bitrik ibn al-Naka.[11]The remains of the White Mosque, dominated by a minaret added at a later date, are visible in the present day. In the courtyard are underground water cisterns from the Umayyad period.[20]From early on, Ramla developed economically as a market town for the surrounding area's agricultural products, and as a center for dyeing, weaving and pottery. It was also home to manyMuslim religious scholars.[21]

Sulayman built an aqueduct in the city called al-Barada, which transported water to Ramla fromTel Gezer,about 10 kilometers (6 mi) to the southeast.[22]Ramla superseded Lydda as the commercial center of Palestine. Many of Lydda's Christian,Samaritanand Jewish inhabitants were moved to the new city.[23]Although the traditional accounts are in agreement that Lydda almost immediately fell into obscurity following the founding of Ramla, narratives vary about the extent of Sulayman's efforts to transfer Lydda's inhabitants to Ramla, some holding that he only demolished a church in Lydda and others that he demolished the city altogether.[7]Al-Ya'qubi(died 839) noted Sulayman razed the houses of Lydda's inhabitants to force their relocation to Ramla and punished those who resisted.[24][25]In the words of al-Jahshiyari, Sulayman "founded the town of al-Ramla and its mosque and thus caused the ruin of Lod [Lydda]".[26]

Abbasid period

TheAbbasidstoppled the Umayyads in 750, confiscating the White Mosque and all other Umayyad properties in Ramla. The Abbasids annually reviewed the high costs of maintaining the Barada canal, though starting under the reign of Caliphal-Mu'tasimit became a regular part of the state's expenditures. In the late 9th century the Muslim inhabitants were composed mainly of Arabs and Persians, while the clients of the Muslims were Samaritans.[11]

The golden age of Ramla under the Umayyads and Abbasids, when the city overtook Jerusalem as a trade center, later gave way to a period of political instability and war beginning in the late 10th century. The Egypt-based Fatimids conquered Ramla in 969 and ten years later the city was destroyed by theJarrahids,a branch of theTayytribe.[27]

Nonetheless, the 10th-century Jerusalemite geographeral-Muqaddasidescribed Ramla as "a fine city, and well built; its water is good and plentiful; it fruits are abundant". He noted that it "combines manifold advantages, situated as it is in the midst of beautiful villages and lordly towns, near to holy places and pleasant hamlets", as well as bountiful fields, walled towns and hospices. The geographer further noted the city's significant commerce and "excellent markets", lauding the quality of its fruits and bread as the best of their kind.[28][29]During this period, Ramla was one of the major centers for the production and export of oil extracted from unripe olives, known asanfa kinon(Greek:ὀμφάκιον, ὀμφάχινον;Latin:omphacium;Arabic:زيت الأنفاق), and used in cuisine and medicine.[30][31]

Conversely, the city's disadvantages included the severe muddiness of the place during the rainy winter season and its hard, sandy grounds due to its distance from natural water sources. The limited drinking water gathered in the city's cisterns were generally inaccessible to the poorer inhabitants.[11]

By 1011–1012, the Jarrahids controlled all of Palestine, except for the coastal towns, and captured Ramla from its Fatimid garrison, making it their capital. The city and the surrounding places were plundered by the Bedouin, impoverishing much of the population. The Jarrahids brought theAlidemir of Mecca,al-Hasan ibn Ja'far,to act as caliph in defiance of the Fatimids.[32]The development was short-lived, as the Jarrahids abandoned al-Hasan after Fatimid bribes, and the caliphal claimant left the city for Mecca.[33]A Fatimid army led byAli ibn Ja'far ibn Fallahwrested control of Ramla from the Jarrahids, who continued to dominate the surrounding countryside.[34]The following decade was marked by peace, but, in 1024, the Jarrahids renewed their rebellion. The Fatimid generalAnushtakin al-Dizbarisecured Ramla for a few months, but the Jarrahids overran the city that year, killing and harassing several inhabitants and seizing much of the population's wealth. They appointed their own governor, Nasr Allah ibn Nizal. In the following year, al-Dizbari drove the Jarrahids out of Ramla, but was recalled to Egypt in 1026. In 1029, he returned and routed the Jarrahids and their Bedouin allies.[35]

Persian geographerNasir-i-Khusrauvisited the city in 1047, remarking:

Ramla is a great city, with strong walls built of stone, mortared, of great height and thickness, with iron gates opening therein. From the town to the sea-coast is a distance of three leagues. The inhabitants get their water from the rainfall, and in each house is a tank for storing the same, in order that there may always be a supply. In the middle of the Friday Mosque [White Mosque], also, is a large tank: and from it, when it is filled with water, anyone who wishes may take. The area of the mosque measures two hundred paces (Gam) by three hundred. Over one of its porches (suffah) is an inscription stating that on the 15th ofMuharram,of the year 425 (=10th of December, 1033 CE), there came anearthquake[36]of great violence, which threw down a large number of buildings, but that no single person sustained an injury. In the city of Ramla there is marble in plenty, and most of the buildings and private houses are of this material; and, further, the surface thereof they do most beautifully sculpture and ornament. They cut the marble here with a toothless saw, which is worked with 'Mekka sand'. They saw the marble in length, as is the case with wood, to form the columns; not in across; they also cut it into slabs. The marbles that I saw here were of all colours, some variegated, some green, red, black and white. There is, too, at Ramla, a particular kind of fig, and this they export to all the countries round. This city Ramla, throughout Syria and the West, is known under the name of Filastin.[37][38]

Crusader period

Main article:Lordship of Ramla

The armies of the First Crusade took the hastily evacuated town without a fight. In the early years of the CrusaderKingdom of Jerusalemthough, control over this strategic location led to three consecutivebattlesbetween the Crusaders and Egyptian armies fromAscalon,a Fatimid-held town along the southern coast of Palestine. As Crusader rule stabilized, Ramla became the seat of aseigneuryin the Kingdom of Jerusalem, theLordship of Ramlawithin theCounty of Jaffa and Ascalon.It was a city of some economic significance and an important way station for pilgrims travelling to Jerusalem. The Crusaders identified it with the biblicalRamathaimand called itArimathea.[39][40]

Ramla, 1487, byConrad Grünenberg
"Rama" scene byCornelis de Bruijn,published in 1698
Ramleh, byFélix Bonfils,pre-1885

Around 1163, the rabbi and travellerBenjamin of Tudela,who also mistook it for a more ancient city, visited "Rama,or Ramleh, where there are remains of the walls from the days of our ancestors, for thus it was found written upon the stones. About 300 Jews dwell there. It was formerly a very great city; at a distance of two miles (3 km) there is a large Jewish cemetery. "[41]

Late medieval period

In the 1480s, in the lateMamlukera,Felix Fabrivisited Ramla and described (among other things) thehammamthere; "built in a wonderous and clever fashion".[42]

In the early days of the Ottoman period, in 1548, a census was taken recording 528 Muslim families and 82 Christian families living in Ramla.[43][44][45]

On2 March 1799,Napoleon Bonaparteoccupied Ramla during his unsuccessful bid to conquer Palestine, using the Franciscan hospice as his headquarters.[46]The village appeared as 'Ramleh' on the map ofPierre Jacotincompiled during this campaign.[47]

In 1838,Edward Robinsonfound Ramleh to be a town of about 3000 inhabitants, surrounded by olive-groves and vegetables. It had few streets, and the houses were made of stone and were well-built. There were several mosques in the town.[48]

In 1863,Victor Guérinnoted that the Latin (Catholic) population was reduced to two priests and 50 parishioners.[49]In 1869, the population was given as 3,460; 3000 Muslims, 400 Greek Orthodox and 60 Catholics.[50]

In 1882, thePalestine Exploration Fund'sSurvey of Western Palestinenoted that there was a bazaar in the town, "but its prosperity has much decayed, and many of the houses are falling into ruins, including theSerai."[51]Expansion began only at the end of the 19th century.[52]

In 1889, 31 Jewish worker families settled in the town, which had no Jewish population at the time.[53]

British Mandate period

Ramla from the air in 1932
Ramla 1941 1:20,000
Ramla 1945 1:250,000

In the1922 census of Palestineconducted by theBritish Mandate authorities,'Ramleh' had a population of 7,312 (5,837Muslims,1,440 Christians and 35 Jews).[54]The Christians were further noted by denomination: 1,226Orthodox,2Syriac Orthodox(Jacobites), 150Roman Catholics,8Melkite Catholics,4Maronite,15Armenian,2Abyssinian Churchand 36Anglicans.[55]

Less than a decade later, the population had increased nearly 25%; the1931 censusrecorded 10,347 people (8,157 Muslims, 2,194 Christians, five Jews, and twoDruze), in a total of 2,339 houses.[56]

Ramla was connected to wired electricity (supplied by the Zionist-ownedPalestine Electric Company) towards the end of the 1920s. Economist Basim Faris noted this fact as proof of Ramla's higher standard of living than neighbouring Lydda. In Ramla, he wrote, "economic demands triumph over nationalism" while Lydda, "which is ten minutes' walk from Ramleh, is still averse to such a convenience as electric current, and so is not as yet served; perhaps the low standard of living of the poor population prevents the use of the service at the present rates, which cannot compete with petroleum for lighting".[57]

Sheikh Mustafa Khairiwas mayor of Ramla from 1920 to 1947.[58]

The 1938 village statistics list the population ( "Ramle, Er" ) as 11,950.[59]

The 1945/46 survey gives 'Ramle' a population of 15,160 (11,900 Muslims and 3,260 Christians).[60]

1947–48 war

Main article:1948 Palestinian expulsion from Lydda and Ramle
Ramleh from air, 1948
Arab Palestinian residents of Ramleh being expelled by the Israeli army in July 1948

Ramla was part of the territory allotted to a proposed Arab state under the1947 UN Partition Plan.[61]However, Ramla's geographic location and its strategic position on the main supply route to Jerusalem made it a point of contention during the1947–1948 civil war,followed by the internationalised1948 Arab–Israeli War.A bomb by the Jewish militia groupIrgunwent off in the Ramla market on 18 February, killing 7 residents and injuring 45.[62][63]

After a number of unsuccessful raids on Ramla, the Israeli army launchedOperation Dani.Ramla was captured on 12 July 1948, a few days after the capture of Lydda. The Arab resistance surrendered on July 12,[64]and most of the remaining inhabitants wereexpelled.[65]A disputed claim, advanced by scholars includingIlan Pappé,characterizes this asethnic cleansing.[66]By November 1949, there were about 2,000 Arabs in Ramla and Lod.[67]

State of Israel

Ramla became a mixed Jewish–Arab town within the state of Israel. Arab homes of those who left in Ramla were given by theIsraeli governmentto Jews, first Holocaust refugees from Europe and then immigrants from Arab and Muslim countries.[68]In February 1949, the Jewish population was over 6,000. Ramla remained economically depressed over the next two decades, although the population steadily mounted, reaching 34,000 by 1972.[68]

A 2013 Israeli police report documented that the Central District ranks fourth among Israel's seven districts in terms of drug-related arrests.[69]Today, five ofIsrael's prisonsare located in Ramla, including the maximum-securityAyalon Prisonand the country's only women's prison, calledNeve Tirza.[70]In 2015, Ramla had one of Israel's highest crime rates.[71]

Landmarks

White Tower

TheWhite Mosque,built in the 13th century
Main article:White Mosque, Ramla

TheTower of Ramla,also known as the White Tower, was built in the 13th century. It served as the minaret of the White Mosque (al-Masjid al-Abyad) erected by Caliph Suleiman in the 8th century, of which only remnants are to be seen today.[72]The tower is six stories high, with a spiral staircase of 119 steps.[73]

Ramla's Pool of Arches

Pool of Arches

The Pool of Arches, also known as St. Helen's Pool and Bīr al-Anezīya, is an underground water cistern built during the reign of the Abbasid caliphHaroun al-Rashidin 789CE(in the Early Muslim period) to provide Ramla with a steady supply of water.[74]Use of the cistern was apparently discontinued at the beginning of the tenth century (the beginning of theFatimidperiod), possibly due to the fact that the mainaqueductto the city went out of use at that time.[75]

Great Mosque

The Crusaders built a cathedral in the first half on the 12th century, converted into a mosque when theMamluksconquered Ramla in the second half of the 13th century, when they added a round minaret, an entrance from the north, and amihrab.TheGreat Mosqueof Ramla, also known as the El-Omari Mosque, it is in architectural terms Israel's largest and best-preserved Crusader church.[76]

Franciscan church and hospice

The Hospice of StNicodemusandSt Joseph of Arimatheaon Ramla's main boulevard, Herzl Street, is easily recognized by its clock-faced, square tower. It belongs to theFranciscanchurch.Napoleonused the hospice as his headquarters during his Palestine campaign in 1799.

Further information:St. Nicodemus and St. Joseph of Arimathea Church

Ramla Museum

The Ramla Museum is housed in the former municipal headquarters of the British Mandatory authorities. The building, from 1922, incorporates elements of Arab architecture such as arched windows and patterned tiled floors. After 1948, it was the central district office of theIsraeli Ministry of Finance.In 2001, the building became a museum documenting the history of Ramla.

British Commonwealth War Cemetery

TheCommonwealth War Cemeteryis the largest of its kind in Israel, holding graves of soldiers fallen during both World Wars and the British Mandate period.[77]

Archaeology

Identification

A tradition reported byIshtori Haparchi(1280–1355) and other early Jewish writers is that Ramla was the biblicalGathof thePhilistines.[78][79]Initial archaeological claims seemed to indicate that Ramla was not built on the site of an ancient city,[80]although in recent years the ruins of an older city were uncovered to the south of Ramla.[81]Earlier,Benjamin Mazarhad proposed that ancient Gath lay at the site of Ras Abu Hamid east of Ramla.[82]Avi-Yonah,however, considered that to be a different Gath, usually now called Gath-Gittaim.[83]This view is also supported by other scholars, those holding that there was, both, a Gath (believed to beTell es-Safi) andGath-rimmonorGittaim(in or near Ramla).[84][85]

Excavation history

Archaeological excavations in Ramla conducted in 1992–1995 unearthed the remains of a dyeing industry (Dar al-Sabbaghin,House of the Dyers) near the White Mosque; hydraulic installations such as pools, subterranean reservoirs and cisterns; and abundant ceramic finds that include glass, coins and jar handles stamped with Arabic inscriptions.[86]Excavations in Ramla continued into 2010, led by Eli Haddad, Orit Segal, Vered Eshed, and Ron Toueg, on behalf of theIsrael Antiquities Authority(IAA).[87]

In January 2021, archaeologists from theHebrew University of JerusalemandHaifa Universityannounced the discovery of six engravings on 120,000-year-oldaurochsbone near the city of Ramla in the open-air Middle Paleolithic site of Nesher Ramla. According to archaeologist Yossi Zaidner, this finding was definitely the oldest in theLevant.Three-dimensional imaging and microscopic analysis were used to examine the bone. The six lines ranged in length from 38 to 42 millimeters.[88][89][90]

Geology

Earthquakes

The city has historically suffered severe damage from several major earthquakes, including the1033 Jordan Rift Valley earthquake,1068 Near East earthquake,smaller earthquakes in 1070 and 1546, and the1927 Jericho earthquake.[91]

Rare cave ecosystem

Main article:Ayalon Cave

In May 2006, a naturally sealed-off underground space now known asAyyalon Cavewas discovered near Ramla, outsideMoshavYad Rambam.The cave sustains an unusual type of ecosystem, based on bacteria that create all the energy they need chemically, from the sulfur compounds they find in the water, with no light or organic food coming in from the surface. A bulldozer working in the Nesher cement quarry on the outskirts of Ramla accidentally broke into the cavern. The finds have been attributed to the cave's isolation, which led to the evolution of a wholefood chainof specially developed organisms, including several previously unknown species ofinvertebrates.With several large halls on different levels, it measures 2,700 metres (8,900 ft) long, making it the third-largestlimestonecavein Israel.[92]

One of the finds was an eyeless scorpion, given the nameAkrav israchananihonouring the researchers who identified it, Israel Naaman and Hanan Dimentman. All ten specimen of the blind scorpion found in the cave had been dead for several years, possibly because recent overpumping of the groundwater has led the underground lake to shrink, and with it the food supply to dwindle. Seven more species oftroglobitecrustaceansandspringtailswere discovered in "Noah's Ark Cave", as the cave has been dubbed by journalists, several of them unknown to science.[93]

Demographics

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
194515,300—
197234,000+3.00%
200162,000+2.09%
200463,462+0.78%
200965,800+0.73%
201472,293+1.90%

According to theIsrael Central Bureau of Statistics(CBS), a total of 63,462 people were living in Ramla at the end of 2004. In 2001, the ethnic makeup of the city was 80% Jewish, 20% Arab (16% Muslim Arabs and 4%Christian Arabs).[94]Ramla is the center ofKaraite Judaismin Israel.[95]

Most Jews fromKarachi,Pakistan,have migrated to Israel and have resettled in Ramle, where they have built a synagogue named Magen Shalome, after theMagain Shalome Synagoguefrom Karachi.[96]

Economy

According to CBS data, there were 21,000 salaried workers and 1,700 self-employed persons in Ramla in 2000. The mean monthly wage for a salaried worker wasNIS4,300, with a real increase of 4.4% over the course of 2000. Salaried males had a mean monthly wage of NIS 5,200, with a real increase of 3.3%, compared to NIS 3,300 for women, with a real increase of 6.3%. The average income for self-employed persons was NIS 4,900. A total of 1,100 persons received unemployment benefits, and 5,600 received income supplements.

Nesher Israel Cement Enterprises, Israel's sole producer of cement, maintains its flagship factory in Ramla.[97]Archaeological excavations on the grounds of the Nesher quarry have discovered the remains of a large Second Temple Jewish town and the Christian Byzantine settlement established over it. Over fifty underground hiding complexes were found in the area, some used for storage and others believed to be hiding places for humans with access to water.[98]

Infrastructure

Transportation

Original Ramla station building,c. 1930

Ramla Railway Stationprovides an hourly service on theIsrael RailwaysTel Aviv–Jerusalem line.The station is located in north east side of the city and originally opened in April 1891, making it the oldest active railway station in Israel.[99]It was most recently reopened on April 12, 2003 after having been rebuilt in a new location closer to the town's center.

Education

According to CBS, there are 31 schools and 12,000 students in the city. These include 22 elementary schools with a student population of 7,700 and nine high schools with a population of 3,800. In 2001, 47% of Ramla's 12th grade students graduated with abagrutmatriculation certificate. Many of the Jewish schools are run by Jewish orthodox organisations.

The Arabs, both Muslims and Christian, increasingly depend on their own private schools and not Israeli governmental schools. There are currently two Christian schools, such as Terra Santa School, the Greek Orthodox School, and there is one Islamic school in preparations.

TheOwpen Housein Ramla is a preschool and daycare center for Arab and Jewish children. In the afternoons, Open House runs extracurricular coexistence programs for Jewish, Christian, and Muslim children.[100]

Notable people

Moni Moshonov

Alphabetical list by surname where extant. Traditional, pre-modern Arab names byism(given name).

Twin towns—sister cities

Ramla istwinnedwith:

See also

References

  1. ^ab"Regional Statistics".Israel Central Bureau of Statistics.Retrieved21 March2024.
  2. ^Also Ramlah, Remle and historically sometimes Rama.
  3. ^ab"עיריית רמלה – אתר האינטרנט".Ramla.muni.il.RetrievedMay 6,2009.
  4. ^University of HaifaArchived2016-03-03 at theWayback MachineExcavation in Marcus Street, Ramala; Reports and studies of the Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies and Excavations, Haifa 2007
  5. ^Pilger, 2011, p.194
  6. ^abcEisener 1997,p. 821.
  7. ^abcBacharach 1996,p. 35.
  8. ^Luz 1997,p. 52.
  9. ^Taxel 2013,p. 161.
  10. ^Le Strange, 1890, page?
  11. ^abcdHonigmann 1987,p. 1116.
  12. ^abLuz 1997,pp. 52–53.
  13. ^Le Strange, 1890, page?;Encyclopedia of Islam,article "al-Ramla".
  14. ^Luz 1997,p. 48.
  15. ^abLuz 1997,p. 53.
  16. ^Sharon 1986,p. 799.
  17. ^Luz 1997,pp. 47, 53–54.
  18. ^Luz 1997,pp. 37–38, 41–43.
  19. ^Bacharach 1996,pp. 27, 35–36.
  20. ^Encyclopedia of Islam,article "al-Ramla"; Myriam Rosen-Ayalon, The first century of Ramla,Arabica,vol 43, 1996, pp. 250–263.
  21. ^Luz 1997,pp. 43–45.
  22. ^Luz 1997,pp. 38–39.
  23. ^Luz 1997,pp. 42–43.
  24. ^Gordon et al. 2018,p. 1005.
  25. ^Sharon 1986,p. 800.
  26. ^Luz 1997,p. 47.
  27. ^Petersen 2005,pp. 345–346.
  28. ^Mukaddasi, 1886, p.32
  29. ^Le Strange, 1890, p.304
  30. ^Muqaddasi(1906), p. 181
  31. ^Amar,et al.(2004), p. 78. Cf.Babylonian Talmud,Menahot86a, where it says that the olives used to produce the oil had not reached one-third of its natural stage of ripeness, and that it was used principally as adepilatoryand to flavor meat.
  32. ^Gil 1997,pp. 381–382.
  33. ^Kennedy 2016,p. 286.
  34. ^Gil 1997,p. 384.
  35. ^Gil 1997,pp. 388–391, 396–397.
  36. ^Le Strange adds: "This earthquake is mentioned by the Arab annalists, who state that a third of Ramla was thrown down, the mosque in particular being left a mere heap of ruins. Footnote, p.21
  37. ^Nasir-i-Khusrau, 1997, pp.21-22
  38. ^Le Strange adds: "Ramlah was the Arab capital of the province Filastin (Palestine), and as such was often referred to under the name of its province. The same applied to Sham (Damascusor Syria), Misr (Cairoor Egypt), and other places. Major Fuller begins his translation (J. R. A. S. vol VI, N.S., p. 142) at this point. Footnote, p.22
  39. ^Encyclopedia of Islam,article "al-Ramla".
  40. ^Pringle, 1998, p.181
  41. ^Marcus Nathan Adler (1907).The Itinerary of Benjamin of Tudela.London: Oxford University Press. pp. 26–27.Adler notes that earlier translations wrote "3" rather than "300", but he considers that incorrect.
  42. ^Fabri, 1896, p.256
  43. ^Cohen and Lewis, 1978, pp. 135-144
  44. ^From the sources listed above: no Jews in 1525, 1538, 1548, 1592; two in 1852
  45. ^Petersen, 2005, p.95
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    • Morris 2008, p. 408:"although an atmosphere of what would later be called ethnic cleansing prevailed during critical months, transfer never became a general or declared Zionist policy. Thus, by war's end, even though much of the country had been 'cleansed' of Arabs, other parts of the country—notably central Galilee—were left with substantial Muslim Arab populations, and towns in the heart of the Jewish coastal strip, Haifa and Jaffa, were left with an Arab minority."
    • Spangler 2015, p. 156:"During theNakba,the 1947 [sic] displacement of Palestinians, Rabin had been second in command over Operation Dani, the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian towns of towns of Lydda and Ramle. "
    • Schwartzwald 2012, p. 63:"The facts do not bear out this contention [of ethnic cleansing]. To be sure, some refugees were forced to flee: fifty thousand were expelled from the strategically located towns of Lydda and Ramle... But these were the exceptions, not the rule, and ethnic cleansing had nothing to do with it."
    • Golani and Manna 2011, p. 107[permanent dead link]:"The expulsion of some 50,000 Palestinians from their homes... was one of the most visible atrocities stemming from Israel's policy of ethnic cleansing."
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Bibliography

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