Editing Hamama (section)

== Etymology ==

Hamama's earliest recorded name is ''Peleia,'' dating to the Roman period. It translates as "dove", and when the [[Arab]]s conquered it through the [[Rashidun Caliphate]] in the seventh century, the town received its [[Arabic language|Arabic]] name ''Hamama'' meaning "dove", reflecting its Byzantine roots.

Underlying Hamama's Late [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] and [[Mandatory Palestine|British Mandate]] [[toponymy]], is a limited stratum of pre-Ottoman village names. To this pre-existing stratum, residents added new place names referring in cases to [[Family|families]] living in or around the [[village]]. The great importance of [[land]] as the main means of [[Production (economics)|production]] in Hamama’s [[agrarian society]], is reflected by many place names relating to the [[soil]] and its characteristics.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Marom |first=Roy |title=Arabic Toponymy around Ashkelon: The Village of Hamama as a Case Study |url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0h50791z |access-date=2024-04-23 |website=escholarship.org}}</ref>