A mukhtar (Arabic: مختار, romanized: mukhtār, lit. 'chosen one';[1] Greek: μουχτάρης) is a village chief in the Levant: "an old institution that goes back to the time of the Ottoman rule".[1] According to Amir S. Cheshin, Bill Hutman and Avi Melamed, the mukhtar "for centuries were the central figures".[2] They "were not restricted to Muslim communities"; even "Christian and Jewish communities in the Arab world also had mukhtars."[2]
Mukhtars are headmen or clan elders. They traditionally linked villagers with the state bureaucracy. Some of the mukhtar’s duties included registering life events (births, marriages, etc.) and notarizing documents.[3] Quoting Tore Björgo: "The mukhtar was, among other things, responsible for collecting taxes and ensuring that law and order was prevailing in his village".[4]
Gaza
editBritish rulers in Palestine before Israel's establishment in 1948 depended on mukhtars to rule. In Gaza, there are still dozens of families that function as powerful clans. These families derive their influence from overseeing businesses and have the allegiance of hundreds to thousands of relatives. The leader of each family is known as a mukhtar.[5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Amara, Muhammad (1999). Politics and Sociolinguistic Reflexes: Palestinian Border Villages. John Benjamins. p. 251. ISBN 90-272-4128-7.
- ^ a b Cheshin, Amir S.; Hutman, Bill; Melamed, Avi (2009). Separate and Unequal. Harvard University Press. p. 73. ISBN 978-0-674-02952-1.
- ^ "Inside Gaza: The Challenges of Clans and Families" (PDF). International Crisis Group. 20 December 2007.
- ^ Björgo, Tore (1987). Conspiracy Rhetoric in Arab Politics: The Palestinian Case. p. 46.
- ^ Al-Mughrabi, Nidal; Rose, Emily; Spetalnick, Matt (July 3, 2024). "Insight: Israel's next headache: who will run post-war Gaza?". Reuters.
External links
edit
The dictionary definition of mukhtar at Wiktionary
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