Khirba (also hirba) is an Arabic term that refers to a secondary or satellite village on the outskirts of an agricultural village.[1] The khirba was used intermittently during the year, primarily during the plowing or harvest seasons.[2]
The term is often misunderstood: It is commonly believed to indicate a "ruin" or "abandoned village." In fact, the term refers to land that was uncultivated or unfit for cultivation, and thus of low value.[3]
Hamlets known as khirba became widespread in Palestine in the early 20th century. They consisted of a few huts on outlying agricultural land that were inhabited on a seasonal basis. A "mother" village in the hills might have a "daughter" village in the plains.[4] From the 1920s onward, many of them developed into independent villages. In cases where the khirba was established very close to the main village, the khirba sometimes became a neighborhood within the village.[5]
As a defense against Bedouin raids, many villagers in Ottoman Palestine built homes in the central hills and descended to the plains seasonally to sow crops and harvest them.[6] The satellite villages they used at these times began to grow as the population drifted westward.[7]