Khirba

Khirba (خرب) or khirbat is an Arabic word meaning "ruin". It is often spelled khirbeh or khirbet.

In Palestine, and mainly in specific dry areas such as that of Hebron, khirbeh mostly refers to a secondary or satellite village on the outskirts of an agricultural village, while it can also hold many other different meanings such as abandoned village, uncultivated land or land unsuited for cultivation, or a ruin.<ref name="kramer" /. The Palestinian pastoralist in the South Hebron region use the word in the sense of "small village," and attach it to the name of the sites where they live.Khirba in the sense of a satellite village was an area used intermittently during the year, primarily during the plowing or harvest seasons. Thus in the Hebron area of Palestine, Arabic khirba is a word not synonymous with the similar-sounding Hebrew khurbah/khurbat, meaning "ruin". In fact, the term refers to land that was uncultivated or unfit for cultivation, and thus of low value.

History in Palestine