32°01′N34°45′E / 32.017°N 34.750°E /32.017; 34.750
Bat Yam בת ים | |
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 View of Bat Yam | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Interactive map of Bat Yam | |
| Country |  Israel |
| District |  Tel Aviv |
| Founded | 1926 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–council |
| • Body | Municipality of Bat Yam |
| • Mayor | Tzvika Brot(Likud) |
| Area | |
• Total | 8,160dunams (8.16 km2; 3.15 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 37 m (121 ft) |
| Population (2023)[1] | |
• Total | 131,099 |
| • Density | 16,100/km2 (41,600/sq mi) |
| Ethnicity | |
| • Jews and others | 99.1% |
| • Arabs | 0.9% |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (IST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (IDT) |
| Name meaning | Daughter of the sea |
| Website | bat-yam.muni.il |
Bat Yam (Hebrew:בת ים(audio)ⓘ) is a city in theTel Aviv District ofIsrael, on theCentral Coastal Plain just south ofTel Aviv. It is part of theGush Dan metropolitan area. In 2023, it had a population of 131,099.[1]
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1948 | 2,300 | — |
| 1955 | 16,000 | +595.7% |
| 1961 | 31,700 | +98.1% |
| 1972 | 100,100 | +215.8% |
| 1983 | 128,700 | +28.6% |
| 1995 | 138,500 | +7.6% |
| 2008 | 130,300 | −5.9% |
| 2010 | 130,400 | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 128,200 | −1.7% |
| 2022 | 128,465 | +0.2% |
| Source: CBS[2][3] | ||
Bat Yam, originally Bayit VeGan ("House and Garden"),[4] was founded in 1919 by the Bayit VeGan homeowners association, affiliated with theMizrachi movement. The association was formed to establish a religiousgarden suburb inJaffa. By March 1920, it had 400 members. In 1921, 1,500 dunams (370 acres) of land were purchased, of which 1,400 were formally registered by 1923.[citation needed] In September 1924, an urban blueprint was approved by the association. In early 1926, the plots were divided up and a lottery was held to determine who would build first. By October 1926, roads and water supply were complete. Six families settled on the land in cabins. According to a 1927 report, ten houses were under construction. A synagogue was dedicated in October 1928. By then there were 13 families living in Bat Yam and a total of 20 houses.[citation needed]
In the wake of the1929 Arab riots, the residents were evacuated by theBritish army and their homes turned into barracks. The soldiers left at the end of 1931. In 1932, the residents began to return and were joined by others. In November 1933, 85 families were living in the neighborhood. By early 1936, there were 300 homes and a population of 1400. Local industry began to develop, a movie theatre opened, and a hotel was established. The first school, named afterTachkemoni, was founded in 1936. The first headmaster was Haim Baruch Friedman.[5]
In December 1936, Bayit VeGan was declared alocal council. It encompassed 3,500 dunams, 370 dunams of which were Arab-owned. In December 1937, the name was formally changed to Bat Yam (literally "daughter of the sea").[6] By 1945, 2,000 Jews were living in Bat Yam.[7] In 1936–1939, the town was cut off from Tel Aviv because the road ran through Jaffa, leading to the construction of a new road viaHolon. According to theJewish National Fund, the population had risen to 4,000 by 1947.[8]
Following the vote in favor of theUnited Nations Partition Plan for Palestine on November 29, 1947, and the fighting that accompanied thecivil war in British Mandate, violent incidents, including sniping, were reported by the residents of Bat Yam.[8][9]
After theindependence of Israel in 1948, Bat Yam grew dramatically due to massimmigration. It gained city status in 1958.[10]
On June 15, 2025, anIranian missile strike devastated a residential area in Bat Yam, killing at least nine people, including two children aged 8 and 10, injuring nearly 200, and leaving several still missing beneath the rubble.[11]
A smallHasidic enclave ofBobover Hasidim, known as Kiryat Bobov, was established in 1958.[12]
The vast majority ofIsraelis of Vietnamese origin live in Bat Yam.[13]
Since the wave ofimmigration of Jews from the former Soviet Union began in the 1970s, many Russian speakers settled in Bat Yam and continue to live there.
The Yehuda Abarbanel Mental Health Center is a psychiatric hospital founded in 1944 by the British Mandate authorities. Since the establishment of the state, it had been administered by theIsraeli Ministry of Health. The hospital, named forJudah Abravanel, a Portuguese rabbi, Jewish philosopher and physician in the Middle Ages, provides hospitalization and ambulatory services to residents of Tel Aviv, Jaffa, Holon and Bat Yam coping with mental illness.[14]
In 2008, the Weitzman-Albert Education Initiative headed by Jane Gershon, wife of fashion shoe designerStuart Weitzman invested over $2 million in Bat Yam's Harel Elementary School, which received a top Education Ministry award for academic achievement and immigrant integration.[15]
In 2017, the percentage of high school students eligible for abagrut matriculation certificate reached 86.3%, compared to the 68.2% national average. The number of high school students doing a five-point exam in mathematics is also on the rise thanks to a program inaugurated in 2015 in cooperation with theDonald J. Trump Foundation andAlliance Israélite Universelle to encourage excellence in math.[16]
Named afterYosef Sprinzak, and one of the oldest in Bat Yam, with most of its houses built in the fifties and sixties.
A religious-traditional neighborhood. The Defenders' Square, the main commercial center of the neighborhood and the city, is in its northwest.
An ultra-orthodox-Chassidic neighborhood of theBobover Hasidism, led by Rabbi Meizlish, brother-in-law of the Rebbe of Bobov. In the neighborhood there is a synagogue, a Talmud Torah, a small yeshiva, and a large yeshiva all in one building as well as Bat Yam's largestmikveh.
Mainly home toOrot HaTorah Congregation, a religious Zionist community led by Rabbi David Chai HaCohen, among the neighborhood's institutions of the Orot HaTorah Congregation: the synagogue, the high yeshiva "Yishiva Nativot Yisrael", and Talmud Torah Orot HaTorah.
Home to theChabad community, which has five synagogues, a centralChabad house, a boys' kindergarten, a girls' kindergarten, Talmud Torah, a seminary for women and girls, and aMikveh.
A monument in the memory of the defenders of the city who fell in battle. Located at the entrance to Bat Yam from Tel Aviv. In theWar of Independence, there was a defense post in this place called "Hashdera" or "King George's Position" (the previous name of the Independence Boulevard).
The museum is located in the municipal library building. The museum has photographs, documents and various exhibits on the history of Bat Yam in the years 1926–1948, including a detailed description of the city's standing in the War of Independence.
A popular beach, surrounded by a breakwater, suitable for all ages. The beach is very active and sports activities are held there in the early morning hours. In the summer season there are summer events such as street stalls, clowns and shows. The tiny island ofAdam's Rock is located here.
TheBat Yam City Hall was designed by the architectsZvi Hecker,Eldar Sharon andAlfred Neumann.[17] When it was built between 1960 and 1963, the building stood alone in the heart of the dunes and was exposed to the coastline of Bat Yam. The building of reinforced concrete was designed in the form of an inverted ziggurat, inBrutalist architecture style.[18] The design was chosen in a competition in 1959 which drew entries from the leading architectural firms in Israel.[19]
In the early 2000s, after financial scandals under the leadership ofYehoshua Sagi, the city was on the brink of bankruptcy. In 2003, he was replaced byShlomo Lahiani, founder of the Bat Yam Berosh Muram (Bat Yam Heads-Up) party. In 2008, he was re-elected with 86% of the vote.[20] In 2014, Lahiani pleaded guilty to three counts of breach of public trust after being charged with bribery and income tax fraud.[21]He was replaced by Yossi Bachar.[22]
In 2014, after the Bat Yam municipality petitioned theIsraeli Supreme Court, Interior MinisterGideon Saar appointed a steering committee to explore the possibility of incorporating the city as part of Tel Aviv-Yafo as a way of reviving its stagnant economy. Later that year, when Gideon Sa’ar was replaced byGilad Erdan, a decision was reached to transfer funding to Bat Yam directly from the state budget. The plan for unification was postponed until the next municipal elections in 2023. In 2019, Bat Yam's current mayor, Tzvika Brot, said he opposed the union with Tel Aviv.[23]
| Type | Name | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Head of council | Ben-Zion Mintz | 1936–37 |
| Head of council | Ben Zion Yisrael [he] | 1937–39 |
| Head of council | Yisrael Rabinovich-Teomim [he] | 1939–43 |
| Head of council | Eliav Levai [he] | 1943–50 |
| Head of council | David Ben Ari | 1950–58 |
| Mayor | David Ben Ari | 1958–63 |
| Mayor | Menachem Rothschild | 1963–73 |
| Mayor | Yitzhak Walker | 1973–77 |
| Mayor | David Mesika | 1977–78 |
| Mayor | Menachem Rothschild [he] | 1978–83 |
| Mayor | Ehud Kinamon | 1983–93 |
| Mayor | Yehoshua Sagi | 1993–2003 |
| Mayor | Shlomo Lahiani | 2003–14 |
| Mayor | Yossi Bachar | 2014–18 |
| Mayor | Tzvika Brot | 2018–date |
| Source:Bat Yam's mayors on the official city websiteArchived 2019-04-27 at theWayback Machine | ||
In 2016, the municipality approved anurban renewal plan in the Ramat HaNasi neighborhood, adding 950 high-end apartments.[24] According toIsrael Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), residents of Bat Yam have the lowest income among the largest cities in Israel.[25]
According to Bat Yam mayor Tzvika Brot, the city is looking for creative solutions to rebuild the city and preserve its economic independence.[26] The city has six beaches and a 3.2 kilometer (2 mile) long promenade along the Mediterranean coast that connects to the Tel Aviv boardwalk.[27]
According to a report inYnet, Bat Yam has become a countrywide leader in urban renewal. Many of the city's older buildings are undergoing construction to strengthen their foundations, add floors and improve their appearance, and dozens of parks are being beautified and made accessible to visitors with disabilities.[28]
In the heart of Bat Yam is a three-museum complex known as MoBY.[29] The main building, David Ben-Ari Museum for Contemporary art was established in 1961. The Rybak House and the Sholem Asch Museum house MoBY's permanent collections and offer educational programs.[30] The Bat Yam Heritage Museum is adjacent to the municipal library. The city has two shopping malls, Bat Yam Mall, which opened in 1993, and Bat Yamon Mall.
The Bat Yam amphitheatre, also built in the 1960s near the beach, is a venue for concerts and public events. The International Street Theater Festival, the largest open-space performance art celebration in Israel, is an annual summer event in Bat Yam.[31]
The Ryback House showcases the work ofIssachar Ber Ryback. The Yiddish writerSholom Asch, who lived in Bat Yam in his later years, willed his home to the Bat Yam municipality, which turned it into museum.[32]
In 2008 theBat-Yam International Biennale of Landscape Urbanism, which is devoted to re-examining urban spaces through art and architecture, was held in Bat Yam. In 2010, the second Biennale, "Timing" took place,[33] which featured site-specific installations from designers and architects from around the world.[34]
The Center for Urbanism and Mediterranean Culture is a research institute devoted to the creation of a new discourse in Israeli urban space. The head of the center is veteranHaaretz correspondentAvirama Golan.[35]
The location of Bat Yam on the Mediterranean makes it popular with beach-goers. Bat Yam has a 3.2 km (2 mi) long promenade along the ocean lined with pubs and restaurants. The city has six beaches, one of which is protected by a breakwater.
Bat Yam'sAl Gal beach is a popularsurfing spot with fairly consistent surf conditions, especially during the summer months.[36] Both Al Gal and Hagolshim are straight, exposed dune-backed beaches.[37]
In September 2025, Bat Yam named a section of its lower seaside boardwalk theTrump Promenade (Hebrew:טיילת טראמפ, also referred to asטיילת הנשיא). A cornerstone-laying ceremony was held on 10 September 2025, attended by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, and Bat Yam Mayor Tzvika Brot.[38][39][40]
Municipal and local media report that the designation applies to the “lower promenade” betweenNordau Street andTayo Beach and followed approval by the city's naming committee and council.[41][42]
The city's major football (soccer) club,Beitar Tel Aviv Bat Yam, currently plays inLiga Leumit, the second level ofIsraeli football.
In September 2011, an iron anchor dating to the Byzantine period was discovered off the coast of Bat Yam. According to theIsrael Antiquities Authority, it was likely that of a boat that sank in a storm about 1,700 years ago and may be proof of an unknown ancient harbor on the coast.[43]
Two railway stations opened in the city in 2011 as part of the new Tel Aviv–Rishon LeZion West line:Bat Yam–Yoseftal railway station andBat Yam–Komemiyut railway station.[44]Bat Yam is served by theRed Line of theTel Aviv Light Rail since August 18, 2023,[45] and is planned to be served by theMetro line M3. The city will be the terminus for both lines and the lines will meet at the new Yoseftal Station.
The city will be served by the Ayalon Route of theOfnidan bike path network.[46]
Bat Yam istwinned with:
Edirne, Turkey
Aurich, Germany
Kostroma, Russia
Kragujevac, Serbia
Kutno, Poland
Livorno, ItalyNeukölln, Germany
Valparaíso, Chile
Villeurbanne, France
Vinnytsia, Ukraine
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