Districts of Mandatory Palestine

Districts of Mandatory Palestine
CategoryDistrict
LocationMandatory Palestine
Created
  • 1922
Abolished
  • 1948
Number6 (as of 1945)
Government
  • District Commissioner
Subdivisions
  • Sub-district, division

The districts and sub-districts of Mandatory Palestine formed the first and second levels of administrative division and existed through the whole era of Mandatory Palestine, namely from 1920 to 1948. The number and territorial extent of the districts varied over time, as did their subdivision into sub-districts.

In Arabic, a district was known as a minṭaqah (منطقة, plural manaṭiq مناطق), while in Hebrew it was known as a mahoz (מחוז, plural mehozot מחוזות).

Each district had an administration headed by a district governor, a role renamed as district commissioner in 1925.[1] Sub-districts were managed by an assistant district commissioner. They were aided by a district officer, who was typically either Jewish or Arab, based on the ethnic make-up of the sub-district.

By the end of the mandate period, Palestine was divided into 6 districts and 16 subdistricts.[2]

  1. ^ Peel Commission report, p. 159
  2. ^ Essaid, Aida (4 December 2013). Zionism and Land Tenure in Mandate Palestine. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-134-65368-3.