Aboud

Aboud (Arabic: عابود, romanized: ʿĀbūd) is a Palestinian village in the Ramallah and al-Bireh Governorate of the State of Palestine, in the central West Bank, northwest of Ramallah and 30 kilometers north of Jerusalem. Nearby towns include al-Lubban to the northeast and Bani Zeid to the northwest. Aboud is believed to be the site of a Jewish settlement before the Bar Kokhba revolt. During the Byzantine period, Aboud likely housed a significant Christian community, with the early architectural elements of St. Mary Church indicating construction from that era. Despite Arabization during the early Muslim period, the community retained the Aramaic language for ceremonial and liturgical purposes. During the Crusades, Aboud was known as Casale Santa Maria, primarily inhabited by local Orthodox Christians with a minority of Crusader settlers. Ottoman records indicate a predominant Syrian Christian majority in the sixteenth century, a status that endured into the nineteenth century. According to the 2017 census conducted by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, the village had a population of 2,153. The majority of the village's citizens are Christians, most of whom are Greek Orthodox. Near the village are numerous natural springs, which are sources for the Yarkon River.