Abu Tor

Geography

Abu Tor is bounded by the Valley of Hinnom on the north, by the Valley of Azal (Wadi Yasul/Nahal Azal) on the south, Hebron Road and the old Jerusalem Railway Station to the west, and the Sherover Promenade, Armon HaNetziv and Peace Forest to the south. The official Hebrew name of the neighborhood is Givat Hananya ("Hananya's Hill").

Etymology

According to a traditional story, during the Ayyubid period after Saladin captured Jerusalem in 1187, the area of Abu Tor was assigned by Al-Aziz Uthman to an officer in Saladin's army. His name was Sheikh Shehab ed Din, but he was called "Sheikh Ahmed et Toreh" (Sheikh Ahmed of the bull) or "Abu Tor" (the man with the bull, or the father of the bull) as he was said to have accompanied Saladin riding on a bull.

Location

The hill on which Abu Tor stands was called "Jebel Deir Abu Tor" (mountain of the monastery of Abu Tor), or the "Hill of Evil Counsel", referring to a legend that it was the site of the house of Caiaphas, where Judas plotted to betray Jesus.

History

Late Ottoman period

Abu Tor was developed as a residential quarter in the late 19th century by Muslim and Christian Arabs from Jerusalem. A Jewish neighborhood called Beit Yosef was established in 1888.

British Mandate

Abu Tor was incorporated into the Jerusalem municipal district during the British Mandate period.

Israel

From the establishment of Israel in 1948 until 1967, the border between Israel and Jordan ran through Abu Tor. The first four roads beyond Hebron Road were Israeli and the remaining roads were Jordanian.

Demography

Abu Tor is one of the few Jerusalem neighborhoods with a mixed Arab and Jewish population. Due to its mixed population, many journalists, diplomats and United Nations employees choose to live there. While the Jewish section of Abu Tor is predominantly secular, the neighborhood has two synagogues - Har Refaim Synagogue for Ashkenazi Jews on Nachshon Street, and Shalom V'Achva Synagogue for Sephardi Jews. Abu Tor had a population of 15,500 in 2010.

Urban development

A large multiplex cinema, the Sherover complex, is located in Abu Tor. The center, just off Hebron Road, houses seven movie theaters, coffee shops and restaurants, an auditorium, a library, classrooms and art galleries. The complex, which began operating in 2015, also screens films on the Sabbath.

References

Bibliography

• (p. 432)
• (p. 100)

References

1. [https://www.haaretz.com/news/features/east-jerusalem-the-capital-of-dropouts-1.462828 East Jerusalem, the capital of dropouts] Haaretz. 5 September 2012
2. Warren and Conder (1884), p. [https://archive.org/stream/surveyofwesternp00warruoft#page/397/mode/1up 397]
3. "About Abu Tor - Har Refaim Synagogue, Abu Tor, Jerusalem".
4. Zecharia Kallai, [https://books.google.com/books?id=Q8U9Gv7ibJ8C&pg=PA160 ''Studies in Historical Geography and Biblical Historiography'']
5. [[Mujir ed-Din. Moudjir ed-dyn]] (1876), p. [https://archive.org/stream/histoiredejrus00ulayuoft#page/290/mode/1up 290], orig. page 488, cited in Canaan (1927), p. [https://archive.org/stream/MohammedanSaintsAndSanctuariesInPalestine/Mohammedan%20saints%20and%20sanctuaries%20in%20Palestine#page/n294/mode/1up 286]
6. Ruth Kark and Shimon Landman. (1980). "The establishment of Muslim neighbourhoods in Jerusalem, outside the old city, during the late Ottoman period". Palestine Exploration Quarterly.
7. Palmer (1881), p. [https://archive.org/stream/surveyofwesternp00conduoft#page/318/mode/1up 318]
8. link. (2015-04-18)
9. A. Arnon. (1992). "The Quarters of Jerusalem in the Ottoman Period". Middle Eastern Studies.
10. Ruth Kark and Michal Oren-Nordheim. (1996). "Colonial cities in Palestine? Jerusalem under the British Mandate". Israel Affairs.
11. "Neighbors if not friends".
12. (June 1, 2002). "Jerusalem: A City and Its Future". Syracuse University Press.
13. "NJ.com: Special Projects".
14. "Har Refaim Synagogue - בית כנסת הר רפאים".
15. "The first page in the facts".
16. [https://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/the-rising-star-at-jerusalem-city-hall-1.449266 The rising star at Jerusalem City Hall], [[Haaretz]]
17. [https://web.archive.org/web/20160410064315/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-141825888.html In calm J'lem neighborhood of Abu Tor, big construction project angers residents], ''[[The Jerusalem Post]]''
18. "Yes Planet makes Jerusalem big-screen debut".