Sarafand al-Amar
| Sarafand al-Amar | |
|---|---|
 Sarafand al-Amar
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| Arabic | صرفند العمار |
| Name meaning | from a personal name |
| Also spelled | Sarafand al-Kubra |
| Subdistrict | Ramle |
| Coordinates | 31°57′34″N 34°50′58″E / 31.95944°N 34.84944°ECoordinates: 31°57′34″N 34°50′58″E / 31.95944°N 34.84944°E |
| Palestine grid | 136/151 |
| Population | 1,950 (1945) |
| Area | 13,267 dunams 13.3 km² |
| Date of depopulation | Not known |
| Current localities | Zerifin and Nir Zevi |
Sarafand al-Amar (Arabic: صرفند العمار) was a Palestinian Arab village situated on the coastal plain of Palestine, about 5 kilometers (3.1 mi) northwest of Ramla. It had a population of 1,950 in 1945 and a land area of 13,267 dunams. It was depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.
Sarafand al-Amar was also known as Sarafand al-Kubra ("the larger Sarafand") to distinguish it from its nearby sister village, Sarafand al-Sughra ("the smaller Sarafand"). In 1596, Sarafand al-Kubra was under the administration of the nahiya ("subdistrict") of Ramla, part of the Liwa of Gaza in the Ottoman tax records. It had a population of 358. They paid taxes on wheat, barley, sesame, fruit, orchards, beehives, and goats.
The Egyptian Sufi traveler Mustafa al-Dumyuti al-Luqaymi (d. 1764) reported visiting the shrine of Luqman (Luke) in Sarafand.
In 1838, Edward Robinson reported that there were two villages by the name of Sarafand in the area, one of which was inhabited by Muslims and the other ruined. Thus, it may be that Sarafand al-Kubra became also known as "Sarafand al-Amar" from the Arabic 'amara meaning "to build up; populate". Both the Sarafand villages belonged to the District of Ibn Humar.
In 1863 Victor Guérin found here cut stones belonging to some old buildings, and two cisterns, apparently ancient. He thought the site was probably that of an old city called Sariphaia, mentioned as having been the seat of a bishop, one of its bishops took part in the Council of Jerusalem of the year 636.
An Ottoman village list of about 1870 indicated 60 houses and a population of 205 in Sarfend el Ammar, though the population count included only men.
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