Isfiya
Isfiya
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| Hebrew transcription(s) | ||
| • ISO 259 | ʕisp̄íyaˀ | |
View of the village
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 Isfiya
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| Coordinates: 32°43′10″N 35°03′48″E / 32.71944°N 35.06333°ECoordinates: 32°43′10″N 35°03′48″E / 32.71944°N 35.06333°E | ||
| District | Haifa | |
| Government | ||
| • Type | Local council | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 15,561 dunams (15.561 km2 or 6.008 sq mi) | |
| Population (2015) | ||
| • Total | 11,785 | |
| Name meaning | The devious (road) | |
Isfiya (Arabic: عسفيا, Hebrew: עִסְפִיָא), also known as Ussefiya or Usifiyeh, is an Arab Druze village and local council in northern Israel. Located on Mount Carmel, it is part of Haifa District. In 2015 its population was 10,543. In 2003, the local council was merged with nearby Daliyat al-Karmel to form Carmel City. However, the new city was dissolved in 2008 and the two villages resumed their independent status.
Isfiya was built on the ruins of a Byzantine settlement. Crusader remnants have been found in the village. In 1930, remains of a 5th-century Jewish town, Husifah, were unearthed in Isfiya. Among the finds are a synagogue with a mosaic floor bearing Jewish symbols and the inscription "Peace upon Israel." A cache of 4,500 gold coins were found dating from the Roman period. A building, dating from the second–fourth centuries CE have been excavated, together with ceramics and coins dating from the period.
Isfiya was mentioned as part of the domain of the Sultan during the hudna between the Crusaders based in Acre and the Mamluk sultan al-Mansur (Qalawun) declared in 1283.
The Druze came to the village in the early eighteenth century. The inhabitants made their living from olive oil, honey and grapes.
Isfiya was one of only two villages remaining on Mount Carmel after the expulsion of Ibrahim Pasha in 1841. Seventeen other villages disappeared. The village's survival was attributed partly to "the exceptional valour" of the inhabitants, partly to buying protection from a local chief, Aqil Agha.
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