Manger Square (; ) is a city square in the center of

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

. It takes its name from the manger where Jesus is said to have been born which, according to Christian tradition, took place at the Grotto of the Nativity, enshrined since the fourth century in the

Church of the Nativity The Church of the Nativity, or Basilica of the Nativity, is a basilica located in Bethlehem, West Bank, Palestine. The grotto holds a prominent religious significance to Christianity, Christians of various denominations as the Nativity of Jesus, ...

. A particular building set in Manger Square is the Mosque of Omar, the Old City's only mosque, and the Palestinian Peace Center. The streets that lead to the square are related to the Christian faith, such as Star Street and Nativity Street. In 1998–1999, the square was renovated to relieve the traffic congestion and currently is, to a large degree, pedestrian only. It is mainly a meeting place for locals and for the town's many pilgrims. There are rows of ''

celtis australis ''Celtis australis'', the European nettle tree, European hackberry, Mediterranean hackberry, lote tree, southern nettle tree, or honeyberry, is a deciduous tree native to Southern Europe, North Africa, and Asia Minor. The tree was introduced to E ...

'' trees that provide shade to its people, with benches and fountains made of yellowish-white local

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

known as Naqab marble.

Christmas celebrations

Manger Square is a focal point for all of the Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem, with a giant Christmas tree crowning the square. It is the traditional spot where locals and pilgrims sing Christmas carols before the midnight mass at the Church of the Nativity. The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem and the Armenian Apostolic Church follow the

Julian Calendar The Julian calendar is a solar calendar of 365 days in every year with an additional leap day every fourth year (without exception). The Julian calendar is still used as a religious calendar in parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church and in parts ...

liturgically, whereas the Roman Catholic Church follows the modern

Gregorian Calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It went into effect in October 1582 following the papal bull issued by Pope Gregory XIII, which introduced it as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian cale ...

. Thus Christmas Eve services for the Eastern and Western confessions are held on different days. The Roman Catholic Church celebrates the Nativity on 25 December; the Orthodox celebrations are on 7 January.

Venue for sports and cultural activities

On 21 April 2013, Manger Square was the starting and finishing line of Palestine Marathon.

Church of the Nativity siege

In May 2002, during an

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

raid on the square a part of

Operation Defensive Shield Operation Defensive Shield ( ) was a 2002 Israeli military operation in the Israeli-occupied West Bank during the Second Intifada. Lasting for just over a month, it was the largest combat operation in the territory since the 1967 Arab–Israe ...

, a number of locals (some of whom were armed) and peace activists took refuge in the

. It became the site of a five-week stand-off. The number of people inside was estimated between 120 and 240. It was alleged by Palestinians that several Palestinians inside the church compound were shot dead by Israeli snipers during the siege. The siege ended with an agreement for 13 militants to be sent via

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

to various European countries and another 26 to be sent to Gaza. The rest were set free. The IDF stated that 40 explosive devices were found and removed from the compound after the standoff was concluded.Gunmen exit Church of Nativity
CBC, 10 May 2002

Gallery

File:Manger Square from above.jpg File:Manger Square.jpg File:MangerSquare.jpg

References

{{coord, 31, 42, 16, N, 35, 12, 23, E, region:PS_type:landmark_source:dewiki, display=title Bethlehem Squares in Palestine