Migrations and Settlement of Various Ethnic Groups in the Nineteenth Century

This chapter examines the migrations of various ethnic groups that settled in Palestine during the nineteenth century, their size, the causes, geographical distribution, and their socio-economic status. It discusses the Egyptian migration and its demographic impacts. The major series of Egyptian migration waves are associated with the time of Muhammad Ali's Syrian campaign. The demographic impacts of Egyptian rule in Palestine occurred thus during the period that preceded it (1829), during the period of its administrative control (1832-1839), and during its termination phase (1840-41). The Egyptian military campaign started with Muhammad Ali's demand from Abdallah Pasha, the ruler of Palestine and Syria, to repatriate all the fallaheen, who had sought refuge from the burden of forced labor in his Nile Delta development project. The Circassian diaspora included the Danube area and other locations, where Circassians acquired a reputation for their military expertise.