Governing property, making the modern state - PSI424

Part three | 10
Figure 10.2 Kufr `Awan, households of family-2 in 1910
the village through marriage, first to a daughter of Muqbil (family-18) then to
a sister or half-sister of ‘Ali ‘Ubaid. His holding of three olive trees (763) was
on the land of Muqbil’s sons (623), indicating that he had no ancestral holding
of olives but that the trees came through his first wife. Perhaps he was tied to
‘Ali ‘Ubaid through bride-service. Neither family was short of sons. In any case
‘Ali ‘Ubaid was more successful than Mahmud ‘Abid, and their unequal shares
reflected their relative standing.
At least one other partnership involved people who were either already affinally
related or soon to become so. Holding 636 of half a share in plough land was
held by ‘Abdul-Rahman, one of the five sons of sheikh Ahmad (family-3), and his
wife’s brother Ahmad Ya‘qub (family-2) (Figure 10.2). Ahmad’s brother Husain
was not named as a co-sharer either in plough land or in Ahmad’s house, but
together they held an olive grove with two registered plantings (771 and 772)
each with the same number of trees. Husain’s son Mahmud married a daughter
of ‘Abdul-Rahman by an earlier marriage, Falha, while ‘Abdul-Rahman married
Husain’s sister Fatima in what may have been an exchange marriage. 9 In 1884
‘Abdul-Rahman still had a share with his brothers in gardens and an olive grove
as well as a family house, though he also had a house of his own. But he had no
sons. Ahmad Ya‘qub’s son Raja’, on the other hand, was only three years old at the
time. Perhaps it was to combine their labour that they went into partnership.
Other partnerships between non-agnates in 1884 were temporary alliances
between households or individuals with insufficient labour or other resources to
make up a viable cultivating unit. For instance ‘Abdullah Salih and ‘Uthman Shihab
held half a share in plough land jointly (families 21 and 22). At the time of tapu
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