Kaukab was founded next to the grave of Husam ad-Din Abu al-Hija, one of Saladin's lieutenants, and is holy to the local Muslims. It is thus named Kaukab Abu al-Hija to differentiate it from several other Arab villages with the same name. It is possible to discern the ruins of Byzantine, Roman and Greek settlements on Kaukab's location, and it is also thought to be the location of the town Kokhva, mentioned in the Talmud.
In the British Mandatecensus of 1931, Kaukab had a population of 285 and according to a land and population survey by Sami Hadawi, its population was 490 in 1945. In 1973, this grew to 1,340. Kaukab was declared a local council in 1984.