"Home," "Colony," "Vilayet": Frames of reference for the study of land in mandate Palestine

Abstract

The major piece of land legislation in mandate Palestine was the 1928 land settlement ordinance which launched a cadastral survey to secure government-issued title deeds. Despite its huge significance for the land’s inhabitants, the subject remains largely neglected. Most authors adopt the narrow view that land registration is best understood in terms of the British promise to facilitate a Jewish national home. This paper puts forth a critique of many of the assumptions that privilege such an approach, and concludes that more weight should be given to the legacy of Ottoman administration, as interpreted and implemented by colonial rulers.