Kur, Tulkarm


Kur is a Palestinian village in the Tulkarm Governorate in the eastern West Bank, located 19 kilometers South-east of Tulkarm.

Population

According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Kur had a population of approximately 325 inhabitants in mid-year 2006. 7.9% of the population of Kur were refugees in 1997.

Healthcare

The healthcare facilities for Kur are based in Kafr 'Abbush, where the facilities are designated as MOH level 2.

History

Ceramics from the Byzantine era have been found here.

Ottoman era

Kur was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in 1517 with all of Palestine, and in 1596 it appeared in the tax registers as being in the Nahiya of Bani Sa'b of the Liwa of Nablus. It had a population of 32 households and 6 bachelors, all Muslim. The villagers paid a fixed tax-rate of 33,3% on agricultural products, including wheat, barley, summer crops, olive trees, occasional revenues, goats and/or beehives, a press for olive oil or grape syrup, and a customary tax on subjects in Nablus region; a total of 13,166 akçe.
In 1838, Robinson noted Kur as a village in the Beni Sa'ab district, west of Nablus.
In 1882, the PEF's Survey of Western Palestine described it as: "A stone village in a strong position on a ridge, with a steep slope to the east. It is of moderate size, well-built of stone, and supplied by cisterns. Traces of an ancient road exist near it. It is the Kursi, or seat of a famous native family. It is, perhaps, worthy of notice that the name resembles the Corea of Josephus, near which was a fortress called Alexandrium. About a mile north of Kur is Khurbet Iskander ; the position, however, does not seem to agree with the account of Josephus." They further noted: "A ruined watchtower, like the one described at 'Azzun, exists north-east of this place."

British Mandate era

In the 1922 census of Palestine conducted by the British Mandate authorities, Kur had a population of 301, all Muslims, decreasing by the 1931 census when Kur had a population of 280 Muslims, in 58 houses.
In the 1945 statistics Kur had a population of 280 Muslims and a land area of 8,514 dunams, according to an official land and population survey. Of this, 253 dunams were plantations and irrigable land, 1,677 used for cereals, while 17 dunams were built-up land.

Jordanian era

After the 1948 Arab–Israeli War and the 1949 Armistice Agreements, Kur came under Jordanian rule.
The Jordanian census of 1961 found 336 inhabitants in Kur.

Post-1967

Since the Six-Day War in 1967, Kur has been under Israeli occupation.