Ein Kinya – Druze Faith Tradition, Churches and Spring

Ein Kinya brings together three distinct themes: the Druze faith tradition, St. George’s Church and Ein Riḥan Spring at the northern edge of the village. This gives you a choice of religious heritage, architectural history and landscape when planning your trip. If you’re looking for hotels for a stay in Ein Kinya, you can first decide which focus best suits the purpose of your trip.

Faith History and Church Architecture

At the center of Ein Kinya is Sit Sha‘awany, a complex of buildings sacred to the Druze faith. The tomb of Sitt Sha'wana is also in the village, near the Druze prayer house (Khilwa). Both places reflect the religious significance of the area. If you plan to visit Sit Sha‘awany or the tomb, check in advance whether a visit is possible.

St. George’s Church (Mar Jeris), built in 1925, offers another perspective on the village’s history. For travelers interested in religious architecture, Mar Jeris provides a historical reference point, while Sit Sha‘awany highlights the village’s religious character.

Ein Riḥan Spring

Ein Riḥan is at the northern edge of the village. Beside the spring are a small poplar grove and a grassy area. The spring thus adds a landscape feature alongside the village’s religious and historical themes. These offer different options for your trip: you can focus on the history of the churches and faith, or choose the spring and its surroundings as a focus in their own right.

Archaeological Sites in the Wider North District Destination

The archaeological theme in the wider North District destination includes Tel Hazor and Tel Megiddo. In the wider North District destination, Tel Hazor is a biblical tell with significant remains of a city associated with the Bible; visits focus on the upper city. Finds at Tel Hazor in the wider North District destination include Solomon’s Gate, with six chambers and two towers dating to the 10th century BCE, as well as an excavated shaft 45 meters deep. In the water system at Tel Hazor in the wider North District destination, steps three meters wide are cut into the walls of the vertical shaft. Tel Hazor’s underground water-collection system in the wider North District destination is an ingenious, geographically adapted engineering feat designed to store water. In the wider North District destination, the Canaanite palace at Tel Hazor was used by the kings of Hazor in the 14th and 13th centuries BCE; Tel Hazor’s Late Bronze Age palace in the wider North District destination is considered the most elaborate in Israel and one of the most important in the Levant.

In the wider North District destination, Tel Megiddo is also a biblical tell and preserves significant remains of a city associated with the Bible; it is one of three tells closely linked to events in the Bible. The Early Bronze Age temple complex at Tel Megiddo in the wider North District destination is exceptional for the number of its temples, the continuity of cultic activity and the documented ritual practices. Tel Megiddo’s orthogonal city plan in the wider North District destination dates to the Iron Age and has few parallels in the Levant. The contrast between the sites in the wider North District destination can be summed up as follows: at Tel Hazor, the focus is on the gate, palace and water system; Tel Megiddo stands out for its temple complex and city plan.

Discover more destinations: Hadera, Hazon, Ma'ale Gamla, Menara, Kalia Beach, Nir Akiva, Mizra‘, Beit Hanania.

For the wider travel overview: Israel.