TRENDS IN THE URBANIZATION OF ARAB SETTLEMENTS IN GALILEE

Abstract

This paper deals with the processes and forms of urbanization taking place in Arab settlements located in the center of mountainous Galilee. The 23 settlements for the purpose of this study have a total population of 150,000, and constitute a dominant majority in the population of the subregion. In contrast with previous studies on the urbanization of Arab villages in Israel, the present research does not treat the general phenomenon of urbanization, or how it characterizes one or another village or random sample of villages. Rather, this paper focuses on a number of Arab villages that are territorially linked. Thus, the urbanization of one village is influenced by the pace of urbanization in a neighboring village or a number of nearby villages. The phenomenon of urbanization of the individual village is reflected in the perspective of a region that is undergoing processes of urbanization and modernization. An analysis of the total complex of geographical, social, and political factors and their relative impact on urbanization processes in Galilee reveals distinctive forms of urbanization in villages with similar attributes. Features such as the religious composition of the village, its size, and distance from major roads and from the Haifa metropolitan area have both a direct and indirect impact on the threshold and type of urban functions.