Deir Razih

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Village in West Bank, Palestine

title: "Deir Razih" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["villages-in-the-west-bank"] description: "Village in West Bank, Palestine" topic_path: "general/villages-in-the-west-bank" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deir_Razih" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Village in West Bank, Palestine ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox settlement"]

FieldValue
nameDeir Razih
translit_lang1Arabic
translit_lang1_typeArabic
translit_lang1_infoدير رازح
translit_lang1_type1Latin
translit_lang1_info1Khirbet Deir Razih (official)
Dayr Razih (unofficial)
typeLocal Development Committee
pushpin_mapPalestine
pushpin_map_captionLocation of Deir Razih within Palestine
coordinates
grid_namePalestine grid
grid_position154/096
subdivision_typeState
subdivision_nameState of Palestine
subdivision_type1Governorate
subdivision_name1Hebron
established_titleFounded
government_typeLocal Development Committee
unit_prefdunam
area_footnotes
area_total_km24.6
area_total_dunam4600
population_footnotes
population_total294
population_as_of2017
population_density_km2auto
blank_name_sec1Name meaning
blank_info_sec1"the ruin of the monastery of the man of Rai"
::

| name = Deir Razih | translit_lang1 = Arabic | translit_lang1_type = Arabic | translit_lang1_info = دير رازح | translit_lang1_type1 = Latin | translit_lang1_info1 = Khirbet Deir Razih (official) Dayr Razih (unofficial) | type = Local Development Committee | image_skyline = | image_caption = | pushpin_map = Palestine | pushpin_map_caption = Location of Deir Razih within Palestine | image_map = | map_caption = | coordinates = | grid_name = Palestine grid | grid_position = 154/096 | subdivision_type = State | subdivision_name = State of Palestine | subdivision_type1 = Governorate | subdivision_name1 = Hebron | established_title = Founded | established_date = | government_footnotes = | government_type = Local Development Committee | leader_title = | leader_name = | unit_pref = dunam | area_footnotes = | area_total_km2 = 4.6 | area_total_dunam = 4600 | elevation_footnotes = | elevation_m = | elevation_min_m = | elevation_max_m = | population_footnotes = | population_total = 294 | population_as_of = 2017 | population_note = | population_density_km2 = auto | blank_name_sec1 = Name meaning | blank_info_sec1 = "the ruin of the monastery of the man of Rai" | website = | footnotes =

Deir Razih () is a Palestinian village in the southern West Bank located about 11 km southwest of Hebron, in the Hebron Governorate. Administratively it is a Local Development Committee and relies mainly on nearby Dura for services. Its jurisdiction covers about 4.6 km2 (4,600 dunams), of which roughly 220 dunams are built-up and about 2,033 dunams are agricultural lands, according to ARIJ’s village profile. The village had a population of 294 in the 2017 PCBS census. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Deir_Razih,village_core.jpg" caption="Deir Razih, village core"] ::

Geography

Deir Razih lies on low hilltops south of Dura. Nearby localities include Tarrama to the north and Karma to the south. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/Deir_Razih,_native_cultural_landscape.jpg" caption="Deir Razih, native cultural landscape"] ::

Toponymy

The name Deir (دير) denotes a monastery. E. H. Palmer rendered the place as “the ruin of the monastery of the man of Rai,” linking Razih to “Rai/Rey.”

Archaeology

Byzantine-period sherds have been recorded at the site. The Survey of Western Palestine noted walls, cisterns, caves and rock-cut tombs east of the ruin, consistent with a small rural site with funerary installations.

History

Ottoman era

In 1863 Victor Guérin described Dayr Râzeh as a ruin, with one larger building over an underground magazine (possible storage or cistern). The PEF surveyors later catalogued structural remains and rock-cut features.

British Mandate era

In the 1931 census of Palestine the hamlet Kh. Dair Razih was counted under Dura.

Jordanian era

After the 1949 Armistice Agreements, the site came under Jordanian rule. The 1961 Jordanian census recorded 130 inhabitants in Deir Razih.

Since 1967

Following the Six-Day War in 1967, Deir Razih has been under Israeli military occupation.

  • In summer 2007, ARIJ documented an incident in which settlers from nearby Otniel—accompanied by soldiers and a bulldozer—entered village lands, uprooted roughly 150 olive, almond and pine trees, and set fires affecting crops and pasture; fire brigades from Dura and as-Samu' extinguished the blaze.

Administration and land

Deir Razih is administered by a local project/development committee. Under the Oslo II Accord framework, West Bank lands around Palestinian villages are divided among Areas A/B/C; Area C covers about 60% of the West Bank and remains under full Israeli control for planning and land administration. ARIJ reports the village has a total area of 4,600 dunams, including 220 dunams of built-up lands and about 2,033 dunams of agriculture.

Economy

Agriculture is the primary livelihood, with rainfed field crops and permanent tree crops (notably olives and almonds). Many public services (schools, clinics, markets) are accessed in nearby Dura.

Demographics

In the 1997 PCBS census, Deir Razih had 236 residents, including 11.9% Palestinian refugees. PCBS mid-year projections estimated 328 inhabitants in 2006, the 2007 census counted 268, and the 2017 census recorded 294 residents.

Extended families in the village include the Amru, Abu Arqub, and Hija, alongside al-Azazmeh Bedouin households.

Israeli Settlement

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/The_illegal_Israeli_outpost_of_Aphika_in_Deir_Razih,_looking_south.jpg" caption="The Israeli outpost of Aphika in Deir Razih, looking south"] ::

In 2024 an Israeli outpost known as Apheka (also called Otniel Farm or Neveh Otniel) was established on lands of Deir Razih, near Highway 60 and close to Adoraim. The outpost was initially referred to as Otniel Farm. On 26 May 2025, the Israeli Security Cabinet voted to legalize the site as a new settlement, alongside 21 other outposts, as part of a broader government plan to expand settlements in the West Bank. At the time of its approval, the outpost consisted of at least three caravans, a shipping container, a seating area and a guard post, with water supplied by tankers rather than piped infrastructure. As of August 2025, two families resided in the outpost.

According to a strategic settler commentator in the national-religious outlet HaKol HaYehudi, the outpost “Apheka (Deir Razih)”—situated on a ridge above Highway 60 between Otniel and Beit Hagai—is presented as strengthening control of the Beersheba–Hebron axis and helping to stitch together nearby "recognized" and "newly recognized" settlements (including Adoraim) into a continuous Jewish buffer along the corridor. A contemporaneous report in Makor Rishon likewise described cabinet approval for 22 settlements as part of a broader effort to expand Jewish settlement across the West Bank.

References

Bibliography

References

  1. (2009). "Deir Razih Village Profile". Applied Research Institute–Jerusalem (ARIJ).
  2. (February 2018). "Preliminary Results of the Population, Housing and Establishments Census, 2017". [[State of Palestine]].
  3. From [[Rey, Iran]], according to Palmer, 1881, p. [https://archive.org/stream/surveyofwesternp00conduoft#page/398/mode/1up 398]
  4. "Tarrama".
  5. "Karma Village Profile". ARIJ.
  6. Palmer, 1881, p. [https://archive.org/details/surveyofwesternp00conduoft/page/398/mode/1up 398].
  7. Dauphin, 1998, p. 963.
  8. Conder & Kitchener, 1883, SWP III, p. [https://archive.org/details/surveyofwesternp03conduoft/page/353/mode/1up 353].
  9. Guérin, 1869, pp. [https://archive.org/stream/descriptiongogr06gugoog#page/n222/mode/1up 209–210].
  10. Conder & Kitchener, 1883, p. [https://archive.org/details/surveyofwesternp03conduoft/page/353/mode/1up 353].
  11. Mills, 1932, p. [https://archive.org/details/CensusOfPalestine1931.PopulationOfVillagesTownsAndAdministrativeAreas 32].
  12. Government of Jordan, Department of Statistics, 1964, p. [http://users.cecs.anu.edu.au/~bdm/yabber/census/JordanCensusPages/JordanCensus1961-p22.pdf 22].
  13. (1 April 2008). "Background to Deir Razih". Applied Research Institute–Jerusalem (ARIJ).
  14. (March 2023). "Area C is Everything". Norwegian Refugee Council.
  15. "Deir Razih".
  16. "Palestinian Population by Locality and Refugee Status (1997)". PCBS.
  17. "Projected Mid-Year Population for Hebron Governorate by Locality 2004–2006". PCBS.
  18. (2009). "Population, Housing and Establishment Census 2007: Final Results". PCBS.
  19. "The Farms".
  20. "Otniel Farm". Peace Now.
  21. Dahan, Ran. (20 May 2025). "The sun rises over the new settlement Neveh Otniel, officially “Apheka Deir Razih”".
  22. Zeit, Avigail. (17 May 2025). "Strengthening the settlement bloc: government approves 22 new settlements". Makor Rishon.
  23. "Why these? Strategic review of the new settlement plan". HaKol HaYehudi.
  24. Dahan, Ran. (20 May 2025). "The sun rises over the new settlement Neveh Otniel, officially “Apheka Deir Razih”".
  25. Dahan, Ran. (20 May 2025). "The sun rises over the new settlement Neveh Otniel, officially “Apheka Deir Razih”".
  26. Giladi, Chaim. (3 June 2025). "Why these? A strategic review of the new settlement plan".
  27. Zeit, Avigail. (17 May 2025). "Strengthening the settlement continuum: the government approved establishing 22 new settlements". Makor Rishon.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::

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