Ottoman era

Arab chronicler Mujir ad-Din reported that he passed through 'Ajjur on his way from Gaza to Jerusalem in the early sixteenth century, when the village was a part of the Ottoman Empire.^[9] By 1596, 'Ajjur was a part of the nahiya ("subdistrict") of Gaza, part of Sanjak Gaza, with 35 Muslim households; an estimated 193 persons. It paid a fine tax rate of 33,3 % on agricultural products, including wheat, barley, fruit, vineyards, beehives, and goats; a total of 5,500 akçe^[10]

In 1838 Edward Robinson noted the village as being "small", located in the Gaza district. The villagers were Muslim.^[11][12]

In 1863 Victor Guérin estimated the population to be around 800. Guérin further noted that several houses, including that of the local Sheikh, were built partly with ancient stones.^[13] Socin found from an official Ottoman village list from about 1870 that 'Ajjur had 86 houses and a population of 254, though the population count included men, only.^[14] Hartmann found that 'Ajjur had 120 houses.^[15]

In 1882, the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine (SWP) described 'Ajjur as a small village containing olive trees,^[16] with most of its houses clustered together, but some dispersed to the west and south. A private school named Abu Hasan was established in this period.^[3]

In 1896 the population of 'Ajjur was estimated to be about 1,767 persons.^[17]

British Mandate era

In the 1922 census of Palestine conducted by the British Mandate authorities, 'Ajjur had a population of 2,073 inhabitants, all Muslim,^[18] increasing in the 1931 census to 2,917; 4 Christians and the rest Muslims, in a total of 566 residential houses.^[19]

During this period, 'Ajjur became economically active in its vicinity. It held a Friday market or souk that attracted consumers and merchants from nearby towns and villages. A second school was founded in the village in 1934, which served students from nearby villages as well as from 'Ajjur. Like other Arab villages in Palestine at the time, 'Ajjur depended on agriculture, which was the basis of its economy. The main crops were olives and wheat. The second most important economic activity was animal husbandry, in particular, goat herding. Animal ownership was a symbol of social status and pride in the village, and residents gave affectionate names to certain types of animals. Animal herding caused seasonal movement by herders to distant dwellings from the village site, but still in its vicinity such as Khirbet al-Sura and Khirbet al-'Ammuriyya. Shoemaking, carpentry, and tanning were other common occupations in 'Ajjur.^[3]

In the 1945 statistics, 'Ajjur had a population of 3,730; 10 Christians and 3,720 Muslims,^[4] with a total of 58,074 dunams of land.^[5] Of this, 2,428 dunums were irrigated or used for plantations, 25,227 dunams were used for cereals,^[20] while 171 dunams were built-up (urban) areas.^[21]

1948 War and aftermath

On 23 October 1948, the Fourth Battalion of Israel‘s Giv'ati Brigade occupied ‘Ajjur in the northern front of Operation Yoav, unifying Israeli military operations in the southern and western fronts. Most of ‘Ajjur’s inhabitants had fled before this assault—their flight was triggered by an earlier attack, on 23 July-24.^[3]

In 1992, the Palestinian historian Walid Khalidi described the village: “Only three houses remain; two are deserted and one has been turned into a warehouse. One of the deserted houses is a two-story stone structure with a large, triple-arched front porch.”^[3] Petersen, who inspected the place in 1994, noted “a large two-story building with a vaulted arcade on the northern side. The upper part of the building is today used as a house while the lower part appears to be abandoned (although it remains locked). The arcade consists of three cross-vaulted bays resting on two free-standing piers and two engaged piers at either end. On the outer (north) face of each of the two central piers there is a stone carved with two rosettes which appears to be part of a classical entablature. The outer arches are emphasized by a flat hood molding. Each bay is covered with a cross-vault which reaches a height of approximately 4m. [..] The upper floor is reached by an external staircase on the east side leading to a walled terrace above the arcade. [..] The identity or function of this building is not known although its design and orientation indicate that it may be a mosque.”^[22] In 2000, Meron Benvenisti observed that: “Three large, beautiful structures, which were located outside the village amid orchards of fruit trees, have been renovated, and Jewish families live in them. In one, chamber music concerts are held.”^[23]