Israeli Facts
Population
The population of Israel presently numbers 7,282,000. At the establishment of the State, the population of Israel was only
806,000.
Approximately 5,499,000 residents are Jews, making up 75.5%
of the entire population.
The Arab population numbers approximately 1,461,000, and
comprises 20.1% of the entire
population of Israel.
Other ethnic groups number 311,000, or 4.4% of the population.
As of today, approximately 69% of the total Jewish population
consists of native born “sabras”
as opposed to only 35% in
1948.
During the past year 156,400 babies were born, approximately
18,000 immigrants came to
Israel, and Israel’s population
increased by approximately
130,000 residents, an increase
of 1.8%. Most of the growth
(88.8%) stemmed from natural
population growth.
As a result of population growth, the population density in the
country has increased from 43
people per square kilometer in
1948 to 310 per square kilometer
in 2006. The area with the
greatest population density is
the Tel Aviv region (with approximately
7,000 people per
square kilometer) and the most
sparsely populated area is the
southern region (72 people per
square kilometer).
In 2006, Israel’s population was more evenly distributed than in
1948. In 1948, the populations
in the southern and northern
regions were 19% of the total
population, and until 2006 their
portion increased to 31% of the
total population.
The portion of the
population in the Tel Aviv region
and the center decreased during
that time from 71% to 53%.
In 1948 there was only one city in Israel with more than 100,000
residents – Tel Aviv Yaffo (population
248,000) – while in 2006
there were 14 cities of that size.
Education Level
The level of education of the Israeli population has risen continuously.
The amount of adults
who were totally uneducated
has decreased from 16% in 1961
to 3% in 2007, and the amount
of people who have completed
13 years of education or more
increased from 9% to 42%.
In 1948, 208 people received academic degrees at the Hebrew
University and the Technion. In
2006, close to 53,000 people
received academic degrees from
62 academic institutions.
The Economy
During the years 1950-2007 the gross national product in Israel
increased at a consistent average
rate of 5%-6% per year.
The
product per capita increased by
an average of 3% each year, and
in 2007 the product per capita
was six times that of 1950.
Foreign Trade
Between the years 1950-2007 the portion of imported consumer
goods decreased from 26% to
13%.
During the 1970s export to
Europe made up 70% of all
Israeli exports due to the large
portion of agricultural exports
within the general exported
products. In 2007, exports to Europe
only made up 36% of total
Israeli exports, while exports to
America and Asia has increased
continuously from 25% to 68%
and from 1% to 18%, respectively.
Industry
Many industries were established from 1948 until the mid 1960s.
In 1950, there were 20,000 industries,
out of which 14% were
defined as large industries (over 10
employees). In 1965, the number
rose to 25,000, of which 15% were
defined as large industries.
During the years 1960-2007
industrial production increased
by an annual average of 5.7%,
while working hours for industrial
labor increased by an annual
average of 2%.
In 1950, Israeli exports totaled $35 million, of which 49% was
agricultural export, 25% diamonds,
and approximately 26%
industrial export including food
products, textiles, and clothing. In
2007, exports totaled $46 billion,
out of which 3% was agricultural
produce, 47% was industrial export
and 23% was polished and
unpolished diamonds.
Agriculture
From the beginning of the 1950s until the end of the 1980s, 60%
of all agricultural areas were devoted
to field crops. From 1990
this area decreased to 50%.
The area of vegetable cultivation increased drastically during
the first four years of the State
from 70,000 to 300,000 dunam
(1 dunam = 4 acres). Between
1954 and 1988 the area increased
from 300,000 to 400,000 dunam.
From 1989 to 2005 it increased
by 60% and reached 650,000
dunam.
In 2006, the amount of vegetables that were exported reached
a peak of 260,000 tons. The
export of flowers, which began
on a small level in the 1950s,
increased from the end of the
1980s and reached its peak of
224,000 tons in 1988.
Tourism
Since the establishment of the State, 57 million tourists have
visited Israel. Tourism increased
from an annual average of 47,000
in the 1950s to 2.7 million in
2000.
Following the start of the second intifada in 2001, tourism declined
to a low point of 900,000
in 2002. Since then there has
been a rise in tourism, and in
2007 the number of tourists
reached 2.3 million.
The information above is published
by the National Bureau of
Statistics.
Israel@60 statistics
Provided by Jewish National Fund
North Naples
from
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What is a Kibbutz?
A kibbutz is an Israeli commune, or intentional community.
According to the Encyclopedia Judaica, a kibbutz is: "…a voluntary collective community, mainly agricultural, in which there is no private wealth and which is responsible for all the needs of its members and their families."
Another definition is: "…an organization for settlement which maintains a collective society of members organized on the basis of general ownership of possessions. Its aims are self-labor, equality, and cooperation in all areas of production, consumption, and education."
The definition of the word Kibbutz comes from the root "Kvutza", or in English: "group". Its meaning is to bring a lot of people to the same place. A Kibbutz is a place in which the community decided to live in equality, meaning everyone has the same things, and gives their Maximum Effort to the Kibbutz.
The first kibbutz was founded during the Second Aliyah, the second wave of Jewish immigration to Palestine, in 1909, and kibbutzim remain a viable Israeli institution today. Though kibbutzim have undergone many transformations over the years and have never accounted for more than seven percent of the Israeli population, the kibbutz has immense cultural significance.
The first kibbutz, "Degania," was founded by Joseph Baratz and eleven other members, including two women, with the goal of bringing Jewish Zionist ideals to Israel.
Zionists, who became active in late 19th century Russia as a result of anti-Semitic persecution, sought a homeland in Palestine in which Jews would work the land. After the First Aliyah in the 1880s, Jewish immigrants in Palestine had begun hiring Arabs to work their farms. Baratz opposed this practice and started the first kibbutz as a result.
In the early days, kibbutzim held fast to socialist ideals. There was no private property, not even tools or clothing, all work was shared, and land was owned communally. The bulk of the work was agricultural.
Over time, it became clear that agricultural work was not enough to sustain the institution of the kibbutz. Kibbutzim began to industrialize, with a large surge in that direction during the 1960s. Some kibbutzim focused on military efforts. Today, some kibbutzim have even turned to the tourism industry. The kibbutz has a long history of political and cultural contributions to Israel as well. A disproportionate amount of Israeli government and military leaders, artists, and intellectuals have come from kibbutzim.
The kibbutz system has met with controversy over the years. Some groups have been criticized for elitism, while others have been accused of straying from their ideals. Nevertheless, Israeli culture would not be the same without the kibbutz. It is a specifically Israeli institution that has made invaluable contributions to the nation's political, economic, and intellectual life.
In our store you can find a series of magnets and posters with the focus of "Come to the Kibbutz" "Leave the City and come to the countryside to work the land".
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