Identified as the ancient town of Yizre'el (Jezreel), it was known as Zir'in during Islamic rule, and was near the site of the Battle of Ain Jalut, in which the Mamluks halted Mongol expansion southward.

Derived from a common Canaanite root meaning to "sow", Yizre'el translates in Hebrew as "God give seed" and its Arabic name "Zir'in" has a similar connotation.

[4] Zir'in is identified with the Canaanite[3] and Israelite town of Yizre'el (or Jezreel) mentioned in the Bible, when it was a major royal fortress of the Kingdom of Israel.

A village of 4 Muslim households, it paid a fixed tax rate of 25% on wheat, barley, beehives, and goats; a total of 5,000 akçe.

[10] In the 17th and 18th centuries the village was most likely under the control of the Turabay, an Arab tribe that ruled part of northern Palestine on behalf of the Ottomans at the time.

[22] Prior to the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, in March 1948, Zir'in's defenders, the Arab Liberation Army (ALA), reported that the Haganah had attempted several times to capture the village, but their assaults were suspended for ten days after heavy losses.

[3] On April 19, Zir'in was briefly captured, and most of the village houses were ordered destroyed, while the remainder were to be used to accommodate Jewish troops.

The fear of Iraqi forces from Gesher in the east and Jenin in the south to form a "spearhead" and capture the Baysan and Jezreel valleys convinced the Jews to take Zir'in.

[26] A representative for the Palestine Antiquities Museum (PAM), Mr Husseini, visited Zir'in in 1941, and noted: "S-E. of Church in a lane a part of a wall about 8m.

"[27] Denys Pringle believes the vaults are part of the destroyed Crusader castle,[4] but according to Petersen, they could equally well be from the Mamluk time.

[27] Situated on a plateau off the Mount Gilboa, Zir'in was not much higher than the surrounding Jezreel Valley at its southern and western sides, with an average elevation of 100 meters (330 ft) above sea level.

[3] Nearby localities included Nuris to the southeast, Sandala to the south, Zububa to the southwest, Sulam to the north, and Qumya to the northeast.