The History of Sinjil
Circa 1095THE FIRST CRUSADE
Sinjil is thought to have taken its name from the Crusader town of St. Gilles, being the home town of French Count Raymond VI of Toulouse who camped here on the First Crusade, before entering Jerusalem. The same man later built a castle in Sinjil to protect the passage of passing caravans.
Circa 1517THE OTTOMAN ERA
Sinjil was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire. In 1596, it appeared in the tax registers in the Nahiya of Quds, with a population of 55 households, all Muslim. Primary productions were wheat, barley, vineyards, fruit trees, goats and beehives. Sinjil was noted as the historical site of the well of Yusuf.
Circa 1922THE BRITISH MANDATE ERA
In the 1945 BM statistics the population was 1,320 Muslims, and the total land area was 14,186 dunams, according to an official land and population survey. Of this, 4,169 were allocated for plantations and irrigable land, 4,213 for cereals, while 47 dunams were classified as built-up (urban) areas.
Circa 1950THE JORDANIAN ERA
In the wake of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, and after the 1949 Armistice Agreements, Sinjil came under Jordanian rule.
It was annexed by Jordan in 1950.
In 1961, the population of Sinjil was 1,778 people.
Circa 1967POST SIX DAY WAR PERIOD
The population of Sinjil in the 1967 census was 1,823. Under the Oslo Accords of 1995, 13.8% of village land was classified as Area A, 34.7% as Area B, while the remaining 51.5% is Area C. Israel has confiscated 447 dunams of Sinjil land in order to construct the Israeli settlement of Ma'ale Levona.
Circa 2002THE MODERN ERA
Since 2002, Israeli settlers have hampered villagers' access to their traditional lands. In 2009, the Red Cross helped the villagers to overcome the red-tape that blocks their return to their farms. An agreement was reached to allow them to access some of the land, approx. 100 hectares, in July 2012.
Circa 2023TODAY
Sinjil represents the heart and soul of our organization. We take great pride in representing Sinjil in the United States and in telling the story and heritage of our great village. We need your support! Click the button below and fill out the form to join as a member of the ASA.