Shahar, Israel

Coordinates: 31°37′7″N 34°43′27″E / 31.61861°N 34.72417°E / 31.61861; 34.72417
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Shahar
שַׁחַר
شاحر
Hebrew transcription(s)
 • unofficialShachar
Etymology: Dawn
Shahar is located in Ashkelon region of Israel
Shahar
Shahar
Shahar is located in Israel
Shahar
Shahar
Coordinates: 31°37′7″N 34°43′27″E / 31.61861°N 34.72417°E / 31.61861; 34.72417
Country Israel
DistrictSouthern
CouncilLakhish
AffiliationMoshavim Movement
Founded1955
Founded byNorth African Jewish refugees and Indian-Jewish immigrants
Population
 (2022)[1]
881

Shahar (Hebrew: שַׁחַר, lit. Dawn) is a moshav in south-central Israel. Located about three kilometres west of Kiryat Gat and one kilometre east of Nir Hen, it falls under the jurisdiction of Lakhish Regional Council. In 2022 it had a population of 881.[1]

History[edit]

The moshav was founded in 1955 as part of the program to populate the area with Jewish refugees from North Africa and Jewish immigrants from India on the lands of the depopulated Palestinian village of al-Faluja.[2] Its name symbolizes the dawn of Zionist settlement in Hevel Lakhish.

The main industry that they developed was growing flowers for export, an enterprise which, despite the harsh desert climate, grew and prospered. One of Shahar's leading businessmen, Eliahu Bezalel, won the Kaplan Prize in 1994 and then the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (an award for Non-Resident Indians), in recognition of these achievements.[3]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Regional Statistics". Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  2. ^ All that remains : the Palestinian villages occupied and depopulated by Israel in 1948. Khalidi, Walid. Washington, D.C.: Institute for Palestine Studies. 1992. ISBN 0-88728-224-5. OCLC 25632612.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  3. ^ "Roses in the Desert", a chapter within The Last Jews of Kerala by Edna Fernanades, Porobelo Books, 2008