Governing property, making the modern state - PSI424

Salih Hamdan of family–16 transferred
half of his half-share to his son (cutting
out at least three daughters) and the other
half to his half-brother ‘Abdul-Karim who
had been aged one in 1884 (DLS.AT.Zabt
1323–24, p. 139, nos 252–5). His allocation
of half-share had been above the norm. In
the second case the brother’s name may
have been omitted by mistake, for in a
mutation of 1923 Muhammad Sulaiman
of family-19c was included as a co-sharer
in the original holding of ¾-share, the
reference being to a register of June 1884
different from the one we copied (DLS.
AT.Dabt 1922–24, p. 43, nos 33–6 [September
1923]).
8 DLS.AT.Zabt 1323–24, p. 56,
nos 155–6 [October 1907].
9 See the case of Ahmad Khalifa in
Chapter 12, Figure 12.2.
10 Their children’s birth-dates are as
follows: Ahmad ‘Abdullah (M71–1) 1893;
Khadra ‘Abdullah al-Salih (M55–6, her
father’s name being given like this in the
civil register) 1892; Muhammad ‘Uthman
(M13–1) 1887; Mahra ‘Uthman (M124–3)
1885.
11 Of the remaining 43 joint holdings,
36 were between sets of brothers, one was
between a father and his son – there were
other cases where a father held separately
from his sons – and six were between a
brother and his sister, his father’s sister or
his sister’s children.
12 The tax register of 1895 would
clarify this. Like Kufr ‘Awan, Khanzira
plough land was divided into two blocks
at tapu registration in 1884, as at the
cadastral settlement in 1939. But according
to the 1895 tax register shareholders had
plots in four fields (in the same order), not
two.
13 In terms of the official blocks
of land (haud), one half of the village
(quarters A1–4 and A5–8, totalling 2595⁄6
qirat) was assigned blocks 1 and 5 in
the near lands (68⅓ and 191½ shares
respectively), valued at 12 qurush per qirat,
and block 6 in the far lands, valued at 5.5
275
qurush per qirat. The other half of the
village (quarters B9–12 and B13–16 also
totalling 2595⁄6 qirat) was assigned block 3
in the near lands, valued at 13 qurush per
qirat, and block 4 in the far lands, valued
at 4.5 qurush per qirat. Valuation of the
land was done by a process that is not
transparent in the records. For instance in
block–1 the ratio of area to share varied
from 6.53 dunum per qirat for field 1–02
to 43.28 for field 1–11. How was it decided
that field 1–11, held by a 1½q shareholder
and measuring 64.914 dunums, was the
same value of 18 qurush as field 1–05, also
held by a 1½q shareholder but measuring
13.482 dunums?
14 In terms of shares, Dahun families
had 5⅝ in 1884, Dawaghira 2⅞, Khashashna
5½ and ‘Amaira 7¾.
15 Three sections were officially
recognized in the register of rights (jadwal
al-huquq): [1] al-‘ashira al-Khashashna,
al-firqa Sari al-Ahmad al-‘Ali, numbers
1–55 totalling 1285⁄12 qirat; [2] al-‘ashira
al-‘Amaira, al-firqa Muhammad al-‘Ali al-
‘Ubaid, numbers 56 to 156 totalling 186½
qirat; and [3] al-‘ashira al-Dahun wa-’l-
Dawaghira, al-firqa Muhammad al-Ahmad
al-Muhammad, numbers 158 to 259 totalling
204¾ qirat. Adjustments to shares
were made after claims (iddi‘a’at) had been
judged. Against each name is a note in red
saying who combined with whom in the
allotment of plots – e.g. ‘no. 15 + no. 19
in one strip (maris wahid)’. A final register
( jadwal al-tasjil) lists the holders of each
plot block by block, with the plot’s area
and value.
16 DLS.AT.Zabt 1315–19, p. 39, nos
7–10 [March 1902]; DLS.AT.Zabt 1323–24,
p. 58, nos 181–4 [January 1908], and ibid.
p. 131, nos 147–150 [September 1908].
17 DLS.AT.Zabt 1323–24, p. 115,
nos 83–6 [August 1908]. In 1910 M95
consisted of only Husain and Tanha.
18 DLS.AT.Dabt 1931–32, p. 65,
nos 70–73 [December 1931]. The reference
is to numbers 557 and 558 of Haziran 1300
[June 1884], not to 650 and 651 in DLS.
Notes to chapter 10