The Kibbutz of Israel are communal settlements on the territory of Israel with established rules of life and life, in which workers are engaged in joint cultivation of land, agriculture or production. The history, features of life, the current state of the kibbutz movement will interest tourists and returnees coming to the country.
Historical and economic background
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a wave of emigrants from Eastern Europe surged into Palestine, which was associated with the revolutionary events in the Russian Empire and a wave of Jewish pogroms. The most famous of them happened in Chisinau in 1903.
The formation of the first cooperative communities began in the late 19th century. and was associated with the resettlement of people in Palestine.
In the period of the second allia (waves of settlement), which fell on the period 1904-1914, 40 thousand Jews settled in Palestine. Most of them were considered orthodox, who did not share the ideas of Zionism, i.e., the unification and revival of the people in their historical homeland in Eretz Israel. Many had socialist views that combined with the ideals of biblical prophets. During this period, workers and political organizations were created.
After a period of Turkish rule, a new society that was emerging began to be built using the ideology of the returnees who had arrived. One of the scholars who preached a new trend was A. Gordon, who considered the communities and agricultural labor in them as the basis for the future revival of the people of Israel.
History of creation
Due to the high degree of unemployment and difficult living conditions, workers began to unite in communities in which it was possible to live in the allotted territory and work together. The first experimental "quartz" (group) - the settlement "Degania" (Dgania) - arose in 1909 for the development of local production on lands specially bought by Zionist society.
Living conditions in Israeli kibbutz in the early years were difficult: people had to live in tents or wooden huts, their food was scarce, their life was not good, they were harassing diseases (malaria, etc.) and the hostile attitude of their neighbors. However, the determination and solidarity of the community members helped to overcome all the difficulties of climate, nature and politics.
The main features of the kibbutz became a collective form of work and general living conditions. The distribution of income was equalized and gave each employee the opportunity to live comfortably.
Community Policy and Education
The ideally communal settlement was connected with the Zionist movement, which preached a “national revival” through social transformations. They concerned not only changes in social relations, but also in the behavior of each person.
Degania not only laid the foundation for the kibbutz movement, but also became the stronghold of the formation of HaShomer, the organization of Jewish self-defense, which was created specifically to protect all settlements from hostile Arabs and Bedouins.
The basic laws and ideas of the community were investigated by one of the members of Degania, O. Lebl, back in the 1920s and still retain their significance. In these years, the Hebrew language also spread, books and newspapers were published on it. The second alley ended by the start of World War I.
Kibbutz laws
The main ideological inspirers of the creation of communities were I. Trumpeldor and Manya Shokhat, who considered such a movement to be an answer to all the economic and political problems that developed due to the lack of land in the country suitable for settlement.
Life in Israel's kibbutzim follows certain rules, in compliance with established laws:
- collective work for the benefit of the community in order to intensify and increase production;
- principles of self-government in the distribution of work and time;
- equal living conditions for all (communism);
- the rights of all residents are equal;
- each member of the community is responsible to others;
- all areas of the economy and community life are subject to a clear discipline;
- every kibbutz worker is free in his religious, political and party beliefs;
- women have the right to discover new areas of work;
- children are brought up and eat in the community until adulthood;
- older workers have old-age security;
- when doing homework (washing, cooking, cleaning, etc.), women and men are endowed with equal rights;
- Each member of the kibbutz can participate in solving production problems and improving their skills.
The first repatriates and members of the kibbutzim were considered pioneers of the national movement of immigrants, which set the goal of equality and social justice. The purchase of land for the organization of cooperative partnerships was carried out with the assistance of the Jewish Colonization Society and the Jewish National Fund.
Kibbutz movement development
To facilitate mass immigration and secure a Jewish majority in the state of Palestine, the Israeli trade union organization Histadrut was involved, to which the kibbutzim became subordinate. Gradually, the movement grew, production expanded, their economic base became larger and more powerful.
At the end of World War I, the number of agricultural communes in Palestine reached 8 with a total population of 250-300. In 1920, the power of the British Empire was established in the country, and the next stage of the construction of the kibbutz of Israel began (photo below). Migrants, members of the Halutian movements arrived in large numbers from Poland and Russia. They were actively involved in the organization of new settlements and workers' communes with an agricultural direction of labor. The largest of them is Gdud ha-Avoda.
In the early 1920s, both large and small kibbutzim were founded, their total number reached 176 with a population of about 47.5 thousand people: Bet-Alpha and Geva (1921), Dgania-Bet (1920), Ein Harod and Yagur, Hetsi-Ba (1922) and others.
Until 1937, there was a wave of arriving Jews who escaped Nazi persecution, and then immigration was banned until 1948. Over the years, the number of Kibbutz population grew to 84 thousand.
The creation of the state of Israel, the decline of the kibbutz movement
The Second World War dealt a crushing blow to representatives of Jewish nationality, most of whom were destroyed in concentration camps. The next wave of repatriates already consisted of arriving from Africa, Asia and those who were able to survive the Holocaust in Europe. Part of the youth came from the American continent.
After 1948, the construction of a kibbutzim began to gradually slow down. By 1989, a maximum of 270 settlements was reached, and then their number began to decrease. After 2001, it stopped and remained at 267 due to a decrease in interest in the movement.
Modern kibbutzim in Israel: living conditions
Living in modern communities is very different from the harsh conditions in which pioneers lived. Now kibbutzim are highly developed enterprises whose members work in many areas of agriculture and production. Thanks to the work of previous generations, the badlands have become blooming parks and gardens.
Each family lives in a separate house, where there is furniture and everything necessary for life. Each member of the community can get a job in a kibbutz in Israel at a local enterprise or in agriculture, and can also go to work in another city, but the payment is transferred to the community account. People then receive part of the money earned in cash for purchases abroad.
There is a synagogue on the territory of every kibbutz, however its visit is voluntary. In religious communities, the rules are more strict, holidays are held in accordance with old traditions.
Kibbutz workers are provided with medical care and an old-age pension. The younger generation is provided with the opportunity to get free secondary and higher education to a bachelor's degree at the expense of the commune. Also, all members of the commune, if necessary, have the opportunity to receive medical treatment or study abroad.
Community classification and layout
Since 2005, Israeli kibbutzim began to be conditionally divided into 3 types:
- communal with a traditional form of housekeeping;
- updated, having partial socialization: land or houses are privately owned and can be inherited;
- urban kibbutzim.
Also, many communities differ in strict compliance with religious rules. New communes appeared, the purpose of which is to receive and serve tourists and vacationers.
Each Israeli kibbutz has its own special layout of the territory, the type of settlement and the architecture of the structures. Judging by the reviews of tourists, in appearance it resembles the plans of a hotel or a boarding house, which consist of several parts:
- a public zone in the center, which has a dining room, a cinema hall, a library, a swimming pool, etc.,
- the territory of the park, consisting of planting trees, lawns and flower beds;
- living area with green landings, usually from 1-2-story houses;
- outbuildings;
- fields, gardens, ponds and other agricultural zones.
The nature in Israeli kibbutzim, the architecture of buildings and urban planning are an example for building a new ideal society on the principles of collectivism.
Community List
Although the kibbutz movement is currently in crisis, many communities have been able to make great strides in financial activity. Therefore, every tourist or repatriate who is going to visit the country or come to live in it will be interested to learn about the richest kibbutzim in Israel, the list of which is given below:
- Sdot Yam (capital of 3.4 billion shekels) - owns shares in the production of marble slabs;
- Hatzerim (NIS 1.25 billion) - the country's water industry base, also owns shares in the Netafim plant for the production of drip irrigation systems;
- Maagan Michael (835 million NIS) is a center of water technologies, has a Palsan plant;
- Yotvata - 700 million shekels;
- Jezreel (NIS 480 million);
- Ramat Yochanan (250) et al.
Many kibbutzim of the southern region of Israel are created on almost lifeless lands of the Negev desert. However, thanks to the hard work and enthusiasm of workers, using advanced technologies, these territories have now become prosperous and have farms with millions of turnover.
The main strategy of their activity is to increase crop yields, and all expenses for irrigation and electricity are reduced due to alternative methods. It successfully grows strawberries, citrus fruits, dates, bananas and other fruits, as well as flowers.
The program "First home in the homeland"
Israeli kibbutzis actively participate in a program that helps returnees arriving in the country. Funding for arriving migrants is provided by the state.
All returnees have the opportunity to live in the territory of the selected settlement for 6-12 months. Almost half of them remain in the kibbutz for another year, renting apartments and paying for services.
For participants of the First Home Home program:
- settlement in houses where there is everything necessary for life: furniture, kitchen appliances, housing costs are 1-1.8 thousand shekels and is subsidized by the state;
- Hebrew training for 5 months. elementary course in ulpan;
- children are arranged, depending on age, in local nurseries, kindergartens and schools, where there are also circles and sections, participation in which is paid by the kibbutzim;
- use of the pool for free;
- in every kibbutz in Israel there are nurses and family doctors for repatriates, specialists conduct admission to the city clinic, and the first 6 months. medical care is provided free of charge;
- on the territory of all communities there are shops where you can buy groceries, and some also have dining rooms where everyone can eat (breakfast and lunch) for a small price;
- excursions, lectures, cultural and holiday events;
- the repatriates carry out employment on their own, the coordinators and workers of the kibbutz assist in finding a job.
Many repatriates have already taken advantage of the First Home Home program, some of them have remained to live in a kibbutz, others have left for the country.
