![Bat Yam Beach, Israel](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Bat_Yam_Beach%2C_Israel.jpg)
Bat Yam ( he, בַּת יָם or
) is a city located on
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
's
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...
coast, on the
Central Coastal Plain just south of
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the ...
. It is part of the
Gush Dan
Gush Dan ( he, גּוּשׁ דָּן, ''lit.'' "Dan bloc") or Tel Aviv metropolitan area ( he, מֶטְרוֹפּוֹלִין תֵּל אָבִיב) is a conurbation in Israel, located along the country's Mediterranean coastline. There is no sing ...
metropolitan area and the
Tel Aviv District
The Tel Aviv District ( he, מָחוֹז תֵּל אָבִיב; ar, منطقة تل أبيب) is the smallest and most densely populated of the six administrative districts of Israel with a population of 1.35 million residents. It is 98.9% Jewi ...
. In 2020, it had a population of 160,000.
History
British Mandate
Bat Yam, originally Bayit VeGan (“House and Garden”), was founded in 1919 by the Bayit VeGan homeowners association, affiliated with the
Mizrachi movement. The association was formed to establish a religious
garden suburb
The garden city movement was a 20th century urban planning movement promoting satellite communities surrounding the central city and separated with greenbelts. These Garden Cities would contain proportionate areas of residences, industry, and ...
in
Jaffa. By March 1920, it had 400 members. In 1921, of land were purchased, of which 1,400 were formally registered by 1923. 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 report in 1927, 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.
In the wake of the 1929 Arab riots, the residents were evacuated by the British army and their homes were 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 140. Local industry began to develop, a movie theatre opened and a hotel was established. The first school, named after
Tachkemoni
Yehuda Alharizi, also Judah ben Solomon Harizi or al-Harizi ( he, יהודה בן שלמה אלחריזי, ''Yehudah ben Shelomo al-Harizi'', ar, يحيا بن سليمان بن شاؤل أبو زكريا الحريزي اليهودي من أه ...
, was founded in 1936. The first headmaster was Haim Baruch Friedman.
In December 1936, Bayit VeGan was declared a
local 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”). By 1945, 2,000 Jews were living in Bat Yam. 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 via
Holon. According to the
Jewish National Fund, the population had risen to 4,000 by 1947.
Following the vote in favor of the
United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine
The United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine was a proposal by the United Nations, which recommended a partition of Mandatory Palestine at the end of the British Mandate. On 29 November 1947, the UN General Assembly adopted the Plan as ...
on November 29, 1947, and the fighting that accompanied the
1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine, violent incidents, including sniping, were reported by the residents of Bat Yam.
State of Israel
After the establishment of the state in 1948, Bat Yam grew dramatically due to mass immigration. It gained city status in 1958.
Demography
A small
Hasidic enclave of
Bobover Hasidim, known as Kiryat Bobov, was established in 1958.
The vast majority of
Israelis of Vietnamese origin live in Bat Yam.
Local government
In the early 2000s, after financial scandals under the leadership of
Yehoshua Sagi
Yehoshua Sagi ( he, יהושע שגיא; 27 September 1933 – 18 February 2021) was an Israeli intelligence officer and politician. He was director of the Military Intelligence Directorate (1979–1983) a Knesset member for Likud (1988–1992) ...
, the city was on the brink of bankruptcy. In 2003, he was replaced by
Shlomo Lahiani
Shlomo Lahiani ( he, שלמה לחיאני, born May 22, 1965) is a business owner and former Israeli politician. He was formerly mayor of Bat Yam.
In 2014, following an investigation, Lahiani pleaded guilty to three counts of breach of public tr ...
, founder of the
Bat Yam Berosh Muram (Bat Yam Heads-Up) party. In 2008, he was re-elected with 86% of the vote. In 2014, Lahiani pleaded guilty to three counts of breach of public trust after being charged with bribery and income tax fraud.
He was replaced by Yossi Bachar.
In 2014, after the Bat Yam municipality petitioned the
Israeli Supreme Court
ar, المحكمة العليا
, image = Emblem of Israel dark blue full.svg
, imagesize = 100px
, caption = Emblem of Israel
, motto =
, established =
, location = Givat Ram, Jerusalem
, coordina ...
, Interior Minister
Gideon Saar
Gideon Moshe Sa'ar ( he, גִּדְעוֹן סַעַר; born 9 December 1966) is an Israeli politician who has served as Minister of Justice since June 2021. Sa'ar was previously a member of the Knesset for the Likud between 2003 and 2014, as De ...
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 by
Gilad Erdan
Gilad Menashe Erdan ( he, גִּלְעָד מְנַשֶּׁה אֶרְדָן, ; born 30 September 1970) is an Israeli politician and diplomat serving as Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations since 2020.
Erdan previously serv ...
, 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.
Council heads and mayors
Urban development
![PiBatJam060](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/PiBatJam060.jpg)
In 2016, the municipality approved an
urban renewal
Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...
plan in the Ramat Hanasi neighborhood, adding 950 high-end apartments.
According to Bat Yam mayor
Tzvika Brot
Tzvika Brot (; born May 5, 1980) is the mayor of Bat Yam, Israel. He is a strategic advisor and former senior correspondent for Army Radio and Yedioth Ahronoth.
Biography
Tzvika Brot was born and raised in Bat Yam, the youngest son of Tova and Da ...
, the city is looking for creative solutions to rebuild the city and preserve its economic independence. 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.
According to a report in
Ynet
Ynet (stylized as ynet) is one of the major Israeli news and general-content websites, and is the online outlet for the '' Yedioth Ahronot'' newspaper. However, most of Ynet's content is original work, published exclusively on the website and wri ...
, 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.
Health care
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 the
Israeli Ministry of Health
The Ministry of Health ( he, מִשְׂרַד הַבְּרִיאוּת, translit. ''Misrad HaBri'ut'') is a ministry in the Israeli government, responsible for formulating health policies. The ministry plans, supervises, licenses, and coordinat ...
. The hospital, named for
Judah 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.
Education
![TzvikaBrot-school](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/TzvikaBrot-school.jpg)
In 2008, the Weitzman-Albert Education Initiative headed by Jane Gershon, wife of fashion shoe designer
Stuart 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.
In 2017, the percentage of high school students eligible for a
bagrut
Te'udat Bagrut (, ''lit.'' "maturity certificate", Arabic: شهادة بجروت) is a certificate that attests that a student has successfully passed Israel's high school matriculation examination. Bagrut is a prerequisite for higher education ...
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 the
Donald J. Trump Foundation and
Alliance Israélite Universelle
The Alliance Israélite Universelle (AIU; he, כל ישראל חברים; ) is a Paris-based international Jewish organization founded in 1860 with the purpose of safeguarding human rights for Jews around the world. It promotes the ideals of Jew ...
to encourage excellence in math.
Art and culture
![PiBatJam003](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8b/PiBatJam003.jpg)
In the heart of Bat Yam is a three-museum complex known as MoBY. 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. The Bat Yam Heritage Museum is adjacent to the municipal library,
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.
The Ryback House showcases the work of
Issachar Ber Ryback. The Yiddish writer
Sholom Asch
Sholem Asch ( yi, שלום אַש, pl, Szalom Asz; 1 November 1880 – 10 July 1957), also written Shalom Ash, was a Polish-Jewish novelist, dramatist, and essayist in the Yiddish language who settled in the United States.
Life and work
Asch ...
, who lived in Bat Yam in his later years, willed his home to the Bat Yam municipality, which turned it into museum.
In 2008 the
Bat-Yam International Biennale of Landscape Urbanism Bat Yam International Biennale of Landscape Urbanism, "Urban Action," is a design project in Bat Yam, Israel dedicated to examining and re-designing city landscapes and lifestyles. History
The first Biennale, was "Hosting," held in 2008. This event ...
, 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, which featured site-specific installations from designers and architects from around the world.
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 veteran
Haaretz correspondent Avirama Golan.
The city has two shopping malls, Kanyon Bat Yam, which opened in 1993, and Kanyon Bat Yamon.
Archaeology
In September 2011, an iron anchor dating to the Byzantine period was discovered off the coast of Bat Yam. According to the
Israel Antiquities Authority
The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA, he, רשות העתיקות ; ar, داﺌرة الآثار, before 1990, the Israel Department of Antiquities) is an independent Israeli governmental authority responsible for enforcing the 1978 Law of ...
, 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.
Architecture
Bat Yam’s old city hall, designed by Israeli architect
Zvi Hecker
Zvi Hecker ( he, צבי הקר; born 31 May 1931) is a Polish-born Israeli architect. His work is known for its emphasis on geometry and asymmetry.
Biography
Zvi Hecker was born as Tadeusz Hecker in Kraków, Poland. He grew up in Poland and S ...
in the 1960s, is a modernist building of reinforced concrete in the shape of an inverted ziggurat. The design was chosen in a competition in 1959 which drew entries from the leading architectural firms in Israel.
Beaches
![Bat Yam boardwalk](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Bat_Yam_boardwalk.jpg)
The location of Bat Yam on the Mediterranean makes it popular with beach-goers. Bat Yam has a 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's
Al Gal
Al Gal is a beach area located on the west coast of Israel near the city of Bat Yam. It is an exposed beach break and reef break that has fairly consistent surf, specially during the months of summer when most of the surf comes in the form of win ...
beach is a popular
surfing spot with fairly consistent surf conditions, especially during the summer months. Both Al Gal and Hagolshim are straight, exposed dune-backed beaches.
Transportation
Two stations opened in the city in 2011 as part of the new Tel Aviv – Rishon LeZion West line:
Bat Yam-Yoseftal Railway Station
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bir ...
and
Bat Yam-Komemiyut Railway Station
Bats are mammals of the Order (biology), order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in fli ...
.
Bat Yam will be served by several new stations on both the
Red Line of the Tel Aviv Light Rail and the
Metro 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 the
Ofnidan bike path network.
Sports
The city's major football (soccer) club,
Beitar Tel Aviv Bat Yam, currently plays in
Liga Leumit
Liga Leumit ( he, ליגה לאומית, lit. ''National League'') is the second division of the Israeli Football League, and below its Premier League.
Structure
There are 16 clubs in the league. At the end of each season, the two lowest-place ...
, the second level of
Israeli football.
International relations
Bat Yam is
twinned with:
*
Antalya
la, Attalensis grc, Ἀτταλειώτης
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code = 07xxx
, area_code = (+90) 242
, registration_plate = 07
, blank_name = Licence plate
...
, Turkey
*
Edirne
Edirne (, ), formerly known as Adrianople or Hadrianopolis ( Greek: Άδριανούπολις), is a city in Turkey, in the northwestern part of the province of Edirne in Eastern Thrace. Situated from the Greek and from the Bulgarian borders ...
, Turkey
*
Aurich (district)
Aurich is a district (''Landkreis'') in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the North Sea, the districts of Wittmund and Leer, and the city of Emden.
History
The history of the district is linked with the hi ...
, Germany
*
Kostroma
Kostroma ( rus, Кострома́, p=kəstrɐˈma) is a historic types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russia, Golden Ring of Russian cities, it is lo ...
, Russia
*
Kragujevac, Serbia
*
Kutno
Kutno is a city located in central Poland with 42,704 inhabitants (2021) and an area of . Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship since 1999, previously it was part of Płock Voivodeship (1975–1998) and it is now the capital of Kutno County.
Dur ...
, Poland
*
Livorno, Italy
*
Neukölln (Berlin), Germany
*
Valparaíso
Valparaíso (; ) is a major city, seaport, naval base, and educational centre in the commune of Valparaíso, Chile. "Greater Valparaíso" is the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Valparaíso is located about northwest of Santiago ...
, Chile
*
Villeurbanne
Villeurbanne (; frp, Velorbana) is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France.
It is situated northeast of Lyon, with which it forms the heart of the second-largest metropolitan area in France after ...
, France
*
Vinnytsia
Vinnytsia ( ; uk, Вінниця, ; yi, װיניצע) is a city in west-central Ukraine, located on the banks of the Southern Bug.
It is the administrative center of Vinnytsia Oblast and the largest city in the historic region of Podillia. ...
, Ukraine
*
Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
, United States
Notable people
![David D'or](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/David_D%27or.jpg)
*
Shay Abutbul
Shay Abutbul ( he, שי אבוטבול; born 16 January 1983) is an Israeli former football player.
Career
Shay Abutbul began his career in the youth ranks of top Israeli side Hapoel Tel Aviv. After impressing with the youth side, Shay was call ...
(born 1983), soccer player
*
Michael Barkai
Michael (Yomi) Barkai ( he, מיכאל ברקאי; January 26, 1935 – May 28, 1999) was the Commander of the Israeli Navy, a recipient of the Medal of Distinguished Service for his command of the missile ships during the Yom Kippur War.
Biograp ...
(1935–1999), Commander of the Israeli Navy
*
Miri Ben-Ari
Miri Ben-Ari ( he, מירי בן-ארי; born December 4, 1978) is an American–Israeli musician, producer, and humanitarian, known as "the hip-hop violinist".
Life and career
Ben-Ari was born in Tel Aviv District, Israel. She grew up playing ...
(born 1978),
hip hop violinist
*
Moshe Biton
Moshe Biton (born 18 November 1982) is an Israeli footballer.
External links
*
1982 births
Living people
Israeli footballers
Maccabi Petah Tikva F.C. players
Beitar Jerusalem F.C. players
Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv F.C. players
Maccabi Tel Aviv F ...
, soccer player
*
Vered "Vardush" Buskila (born 1983), Olympic sailor
*
Tomer Chencinski
Tomer Chencinski ( he, תומר חנצ'ינסקי; born December 1, 1984) is an Israeli-Canadian soccer player who plays the position of goalkeeper. He played college soccer at Robert Morris University, where in 2004 he ranked 16th in the nati ...
(born 1984), Israeli–Canadian soccer player
*
Eli Cohen
Eliyahu Ben-Shaul Cohen ( he, אֱלִיָּהוּ בֵּן שָׁאוּל כֹּהֵן, ar, إيلياهو بن شاؤول كوهين; 6 December 1924 – 18 May 1965), commonly known as Eli Cohen, was an Egyptian-born Israel ...
(1924–1965), Israeli spy
*
Meir Dagan
Aluf (Major General) Meir Dagan ( he, מאיר דגן; 30 January 1945 – 17 March 2016) was an Israel Defense Forces Major General (reserve) and Director of the Mossad.
Personal life and education
Meir Huberman (later Dagan) was born on a ...
(born 1945), Director of the
Mossad
*
David D'Or
David D'Or ( he, דוד ד'אור; born David Nehaisi on October 2, 1965) is an Israeli singer, composer, and songwriter. A countertenor with a vocal range of more than four octaves, he is a three-time winner of the Israeli "Singer of the Year" a ...
(born 1965), singer, composer, and songwriter
*
Elana Eden
Elana Eden ( he, אילנה עדן; born Elana Lani Cooper, 1 May 1940) is an Israeli actress of film, television, and stage, best known for her film debut as the title role in 20th Century Fox's biblical epic '' The Story of Ruth'' (1960).
Early ...
(born 1940), actress
*
Sharon Farber, composer
*
Haim Gozali, mixed martial arts fighter
*
Matt Haimovitz
Matt Haimovitz (born December 3, 1970) is a cellist based in the United States and Canada. Born in Israel, he grew up in the US from the age of five. He plays mainly a cello made by Matteo Goffriller in 1710.
Family, musical education and ea ...
(born 1970), US cellist
*
Henryk Hechtkopf (1910–2004), illustrator
*
Rita Katz
Rita may refer to:
People
* Rita (given name)
* Rita (Indian singer) (born 1984)
* Rita (Israeli singer) (born 1962)
* Rita (Japanese singer)
* Eliza Humphreys (1850–1938), wrote under the pseudonym Rita
Places
* Djarrit, also known as Rita, ...
(born 1963), terrorism analyst
*
Gili Landau
Gili Landau ( he, גילי לנדאו; born 7 May 1958) is an Israeli former footballer and currently a manager, coaching the Israel women's national football team.
Early life
Landau was born in Bat Yam, Israel.
He played soccer as a str ...
(born 1958), footballer and manager
*
Achinoam Nini
Achinoam Nini ( he, אחינועם ניני, Aẖinóʿam Nini; born ), also known professionally as Noa (), is an Israeli singer-songwriter, percussionist, poet, composer, and human rights activist working internationally. She is accompanied by ...
(born 1969), singer
*
Peter Roth (born 1974), pop singer and composer
*
Gal Shish
Gal Shish ( he, גל שיש; born 28 January 1989) is an Israeli former professional footballer.
He is of a Tunisian-Jewish descent.
Career
At international level, Shish was capped at levels from under-17 to under-21.
On 16 August 2012, Shi ...
(born 1989), soccer player
*
Itzik Zohar
Itzik Zohar ( he, איציק זוהר; born October 31, 1970) is an Israeli former international footballer and television sports personality. Born in Bat Yam, Israel to a family of North African extraction, he holds the distinction of scoring the ...
(born 1970), soccer player
References
External links
Official websiteReconstructing urban image through cultural flagship events: The case of Bat-Yam
{{Authority control
1926 establishments in Mandatory Palestine
1929 Palestine riots
Cities in Tel Aviv District
Jewish villages in Mandatory Palestine
Populated coastal places in Israel
Populated places established in 1926