Battir
| Battir | |
|---|---|
| Other transcription(s) | |
| • Arabic | بتير |
| • Also spelled | Bateer (official) |
Battir
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 Battir
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| Coordinates: 31°43′29″N 35°08′12″E / 31.72472°N 35.13667°ECoordinates: 31°43′29″N 35°08′12″E / 31.72472°N 35.13667°E | |
| Palestine grid | 163/126 |
| Governorate | Bethlehem |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipality |
| • Head of Municipality | Akram Bader |
| Area | |
| • Jurisdiction | 7,419 dunams (7.4 km2 or 2.9 sq mi) |
| Population (2007) | |
| • Jurisdiction | 3,967 |
| Name meaning | Bether |
| Official name | Palestine: Land of Olives and Vines — Cultural Landscape of Southern Jerusalem, Battir |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | iv, v |
| Designated | 2014 (38th session) |
| Reference no. | 1492 |
| State Party |
 Palestine
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| Region | Arab States |
| Endangered | Since 2014 |
Battir (Arabic: بتير) is a Palestinian village in the West Bank, 6.4 km west of Bethlehem, and southwest of Jerusalem.
Ancient Betar, whose name Battir preserves, was a second-century Jewish village and fortress, the site of the final battle of the Bar Kokhba revolt. It was inhabited during the Byzantine and Islamic periods, and in the Ottoman and British Mandate censuses its population was recorded as primarily Muslim. Battir is situated just above the route of the Jaffa–Jerusalem railway, which served as the armistice line between Israel and Jordan from 1949 until the Six-Day War, when it was captured by Israel. In former times, the city lay along the route from Jerusalem to Bayt Jibrin. In 2007, Battir had a population of about 4,000 and was under the control of the Palestinian National Authority.
Battir has been identified as the site of ancient Betar (also called Beiter). The modern Palestinian village is built around the ancient site Khirbet el-Yahud (Arabic, meaning "ruin of the Jews" ) and "is unanimously identified with Betar, the last stronghold of the Second Revolt against the Romans, where its leader, Bar-Kokhba, found his death in 135 CE." "A modern agricultural terrace follows the line of the ancient fortification wall". There is a tradition that the village is also the site of the tomb of the Tannaic sage Eleazar of Modi'im.
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