State of Palestine Village Histories

Village histories may record prominent families or tribes and family trees for them.

Webinar

 * Tracing Your Ancestry and Connecting with Your Heritage from the Palestinian Diaspora

Publications
Palestinian Village Histories: Geographies of the Displaced by ROCHELLE A. DAVIS. SERIES: STANFORD STUDIES IN MIDDLE EASTERN AND ISLAMIC SOCIETIES AND CULTURES WorldCat
 * Throughout modern-day Israel, over four hundred Palestinian villages were depopulated in the 1947-1949 war. With houses mostly destroyed, mosques and churches put to other uses, and cemeteries plowed under, Palestinian communities were left geographically dispossessed. Palestinians have since carried their village names, memories, and possessions with them into the diaspora, transforming their lost past into local histories in the form of "village memorial books". Numbering more than 100 volumes in print, these books recount family histories, cultural traditions, and the details of village life, revealing Palestinian history through the eyes of Palestinians.
 * Through a close examination of these books and other commemorative activities, Palestinian Village Histories reveals how history is written, recorded, and contested, as well as the roles that Palestinian conceptions of their past play in contemporary life. Moving beyond the grand narratives of 20th century political struggles, this book analyzes individual and collective historical accounts of everyday life in pre-1948 Palestinian villages as composed today from the perspectives of these long-term refugees.

Websites
RIWAQ Center for Architectural Conversation Website
 * Focuses on the documentation and restoration of architectural heritage in the West Bank, Jerusalem, and Gaza. Three volumes including maps, detailed histories, and photos of 420 villages across 16 districts.

Palestinian Museum Digital Archive Website Explore the Archive (Search engines in English and Arabic) Instructions start at 15:36 minutes
 * Supportive documents may include family trees, lists of family names, diaries, marriage contracts, deeds for land sales, newspaper articles, and family photos.

Birzeit University Digital Palestinian Archive Website Browse Family Documents
 * An open archive documenting the history and lives of Palestinians from the Ottoman times to the present through written and audiovisual materials.