Bani Na'im
Bani Na'im (Arabic: بني نعيم, romanized: Banī Naʾīm) is a Palestinian town in the southern West Bank located 8 kilometers (5.0 mi) east of Hebron in the Hebron Governorate of the State of Palestine. It is situated at a higher elevation than most localities in the area, with an altitude of 951 meters (3,120 ft). The town is best known as the burial place of Lot, a fact already mentioned around 400 CE, when it was known as 'Caphar Barucha'. Following the Muslim conquest, its name was eventually Arabicized as Kafr al-Burayk. The tomb of Lot was turned into a mosque during Islamic rule and remained so under Crusader rule. Later, the Arab tribe of Bani Nu'aym settled there, giving the town its current name, Bani Na'im, first used by Muslim scholar Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulsi in 1690.
Bani Na'im | |
|---|---|
Municipality type A (City) | |
| Arabic transcription(s) | |
| • Arabic | بني نعيم |
| • Latin | Kafr Barik (official) Bani Nu'aym (unofficial) |
Bani Na'im Location of Bani Na'im within Palestine | |
| Coordinates: 31°30′58″N 35°09′51″E | |
| Palestine grid | 165/102 |
| State | State of Palestine |
| Governorate | Hebron |
| Government | |
| • Type | City |
| • Head of Municipality | Issa Hassan al-Khdour |
| Population (2017) | |
| • Total | 24,628 |
| Name meaning | Tribe of Na'im (or Nu'aym) |
| Website | Bani Na'im Municipality |
During the late 1930s, the population took part in the Arab Revolt against the British Mandate. Following the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, the town came under Jordanian rule. Since the 1967 Six-Day War, Bani Na'im has been occupied by Israel; since 1995, it has been governed by the Palestinian National Authority (PNA). In 2017 the town had a population of 24,628.