Hatzerim חֲצֵרִים حتسريم | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Etymology: Farmyards | |
  Hatzerim  Hatzerim | |
| Coordinates:31°14′25″N34°42′51″E / 31.24028°N 34.71417°E /31.24028; 34.71417 | |
| Country | Israel |
| District | Southern |
| Council | Bnei Shimon |
| Affiliation | Kibbutz Movement |
| Founded | October 1946 |
| Founded by | Israeli Scouts |
| Population (2022)[1] | 864 |
| Website | www.hatzerim.org.il |
Hatzerim (Hebrew:חֲצֵרִים,lit. Farmyards) is akibbutz located 8 kilometers west ofBeersheba in theNegev desert inIsrael. It is named after the Bible (Deuteronomy 2:23),[2] mentioning a site nearby: "the Avvites who lived in farmyards as far as Gaza". It belongs to theBnei Shimon Regional Council. In 2022 it had a population of 864.
The community was established in October 1946 by a young group ofscouts who were then later joined by Polish-Jewish refugees from theSoviet Union; they reached Israel viaIran with thePolish Army, referred to as "The Children of Tehran" ("Dzieci Teheranu" in Polish). They then learned agriculture and military training becoming part of theHaganah ground forces.[3]
In the 1960s, theHatzerim Airbase was built nearby. Hatzerim is now a well developed kibbutz (one of Israel's richest) due to the profits from Netafim. The kibbutz has amenities such as a library, swimming pool, dentist and a zoo.
Hatzerim was one of the first kibbutzim (pl.) to break the mould from traditional agriculture and start a business.Netafim is the kibbutz business that started in 1965, that designs, manufactures and distributes irrigation systems. The business is also run with two other kibbutzim,Magal andYiftach. There are also factories around the world, California, USA, South Africa, Western Australia and more. Netafim soon became a world leader in their field as amultinational corporation that grosses over $300 million a year.Hatzerim also producesjojoba oil. There are fields all around the kibbutz.[4]
Authority control databases: National |
|---|