“They dwell on the high road from Jaffa to Jerusalem, three hours from the latter, in a position that allows command over the route of travelers and pilgrims […] The village is built in a most appealing and beautiful manner; the cultivation of the surrounding hills is of exceptional quality, surpassing all others along this road, and the place is marked by tranquility and peace.”
(Quoted by Mustafa Abbasi)
This is how James Finn, the British consul in Jerusalem, described the village of Qaryat al-‘Inab, just west of Jerusalem, in the mid-19th century — the seat of the Abu Ghosh clan.
Kiryat Ye’arim – Qaryat al-‘Inab – Abu Ghosh
Abu Ghosh is commonly identified with Kiryat Ye’arim, the biblical city located in the territory of the Tribe of Judah, to which, according to the Bible, the Ark of the Covenant was brought from Beit Shemesh after being captured by the Philistines. During the Roman period, soldiers of the Tenth Legion were stationed there, owing to the site’s strategic control of the road to Jerusalem and the abundance of springs in the area.
Following the Muslim conquest, the village came to be known as Qaryat al-‘Inab, “the village of the grapes,” after the vineyards that surrounded it, though its population remained largely Christian. Only during the Ottoman period did the village become predominantly Muslim, at which point the Abu Ghosh clan took control of its lands.
The family’s status was formalized when Suleiman the Magnificent, the same Ottoman sultan who built Jerusalem’s walls, granted the Abu Ghosh clan a firman, an imperial decree appointing them as guardians of the road to Jerusalem and responsible for the safety of pilgrims traveling to the city. Over time, the village itself came to bear their name: Abu Ghosh.
Guardians of the Road
For centuries, the Abu Ghosh clan derived their livelihood from collecting tolls along the road to Jerusalem. After overcoming the last of their rivals for regional dominance, their control of the route became unquestioned.
Accounts of the village and the family appear in numerous travelogues, particularly those written by Christian and Jewish pilgrims from Europe. By the 19th century, these sources describe a village built entirely of stone houses, dominated by an imposing fortress, the residence of the clan patriarch, which also served defensive purposes. Ottoman records from 1870 list 148 houses in the village, alongside ancient church structures. The homes were clustered together and separated by winding alleyways, with agricultural lands stretching out around the village.
As part of their responsibility for the road, the Abu Ghosh clan provided travelers with a wide range of essential services. These included maintaining the road, removing hazards, marking the route, and ensuring safe passage for wagons and pack animals. Public water fountains were installed in the village, and a khan (hostel) was built where travelers could rest, eat, lodge overnight, and tend to their animals. When needed, the clan also provided armed escorts to protect caravans on their way to Jerusalem. A fleet of carriages stood ready to assist travelers, supplying spare parts, replacing broken-down wagons, and accompanying convoys.
In return for these services, the Abu Ghosh clan collected substantial tolls and taxes, even from those who required no services beyond passage along the road itself.
The Ottoman authorities were careful to maintain good relations with Abu Ghosh, ensuring that their armies could pass safely on the way to Jerusalem. They understood that the clan could, if necessary, mobilize hundreds of fighters, and preferred to have them as allies rather than adversaries. As the Ottoman Empire weakened and European powers increased their presence in Jerusalem and the surrounding region, the clan’s role as guardians of the road diminished. Nevertheless, the village’s strategic location on the main route remained critically important, particularly for Jewish Jerusalem.
Jerusalem as a Metropolis
Agriculture was Abu Ghosh’s second major source of livelihood. The villagers cultivated olives, figs, grapes, vegetables, wheat, and other grains, and also raised livestock. Any surplus not consumed locally was sold in Jerusalem. Elizabeth Finn, the consul’s wife, described the arrival of these goods in the city:
“The vegetables were grown in the valleys around Jerusalem and brought in by women carrying large baskets. Grapes were cultivated on the mountain terraces surrounding the villages and brought to market on donkeys.”
(Quoted by Joseph Glass)
During the British Mandate period, the village transitioned from traditional to modern agriculture, and its residents increasingly found employment in construction, finance, and the liberal professions—primarily in Jerusalem. By the end of the Mandate, Abu Ghosh had become more urban than agricultural in character. Its daily connection with Jerusalem effectively made it part of the city’s metropolitan area. Decades later, when researchers at the Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research mapped the boundaries of Jerusalem’s metropolitan region and its commuter flows, Abu Ghosh’s inclusion within the metropolitan core was self-evident.
Choosing a Side
Abu Ghosh’s strategic location, fertile lands, and biblical associations made the village and its surroundings a focus of sustained interest. European powers entering the region toward the end of the Ottoman period were drawn to its Christian significance and the remains of Byzantine churches. In light of the biblical tradition linking Kiryat Ye’arim with the Ark of the Covenant, the Church of Our Lady of the Ark of the Covenant was built on the site.
At the same time, institutions of the Jewish Yishuv sought to acquire land around Abu Ghosh in order to create a continuous chain of Jewish settlement connecting the coastal plain to Jerusalem. As early as World War I, residents of Abu Ghosh sold approximately 3,000 dunams of land to the Palestine Land Development Company. During the British Mandate, land purchases increased significantly, both by the Jewish National Fund and by private Jewish entrepreneurs. Communities such as Ma’ale HaHamisha, Neve Ilan, and Kiryat Ye’arim (Telz-Stone) were established on these lands.
These transactions were conducted openly. The Abu Ghosh clan clearly understood that Jewish land purchases were part of a broader Zionist political effort to establish a Jewish state. Selling land was part of a bold and strategic decision made by Sa’id Abu Ghosh, the clan’s leader during the Mandate period. Sa’id chose to support the Zionist cause, believing that British rule posed the primary threat to the country’s inhabitants. He therefore aligned the village with the Zionists in their struggle against what he viewed as a foreign imperial presence.
This stance led Abu Ghosh to forge close ties with members of the Jewish underground movements, particularly Lehi, whom villagers regarded as the most determined fighters against British rule.
During Israel’s War of Independence, Abu Ghosh became a rare point of respite along the besieged supply route to Jerusalem. As convoys were repeatedly attacked in the Sha’ar HaGai (Bab al-Wad) area by neighboring Arab forces, the village’s position proved critical. For this alone, the State of Israel owes the residents of Abu Ghosh enduring gratitude.
Among Jews
During the War of Independence, the village was captured by Haganah forces. The destruction caused by the fighting led, both directly and indirectly, to widespread abandonment of homes. The Abu Ghosh clan was dispossessed of its lands and forced to leave the village.
Former members of the Lehi underground, together with activists from nearby kibbutzim and Jewish settlements, subsequently launched a campaign to enable the return of Abu Ghosh’s residents following the establishment of the state. Their efforts succeeded: all displaced residents were eventually permitted to return to their homes. Not all members of the Abu Ghosh clan, however, returned to the village that bore their name, and many dispersed throughout Israel and abroad.
Over the decades, a growing disparity emerged between the resources invested by the state in Abu Ghosh and those allocated to neighboring Jewish communities. The village did not receive adequate planning or infrastructure development and lagged behind in these areas. Nevertheless, it consistently remained a popular tourist destination. In the early 1990s, the Ministry of Tourism and the Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research sought to address this gap by advancing a master plan for tourism development in Abu Ghosh. The plan aimed to build on the village’s many strengths, invest in it properly, and transform it into a genuine tourism jewel.
Today, the Abu Ghosh clan no longer governs the village, but its name continues to commemorate their legacy. Abu Ghosh is now among Israel’s most visited destinations. Home to approximately 8,000 residents, the vast majority Muslim, it also draws Christian pilgrims to its churches and Jewish visitors seeking its renowned hummus, leisure and cultural offerings, sweeping views, and neighborly relations that, more often than not, live up to their reputation.
The materials featured in this article are preserved in the archives of the Jerusalem Institute for Policy Research and are accessible through Archive Network Israel, thanks to the collaborative efforts of the archive, the Ministry of Heritage, and the National Library of Israel.
