Gar'in (, ''lit.'' kernel) is a Hebrew term used for groups of people who moved together to

Ottoman Palestine The region of Palestine (region), Palestine is part of the wider region of the Levant, which represents the land bridge between Africa and Eurasia.Steiner & Killebrew, p9: "The general limits ..., as defined here, begin at the Plain of ' ...

, British Palestine, and since 1948,

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

.Joel Beinin The Dispersion of Egyptian Jewry- 2005 9774248902 "arrived in Israel while the military situation was unsettled, the members would be immediately drafted into the army and that military service might undermine the social cohesiveness of the gar 'in and disperse the members before they settled ..."

Background

Since the beginning of the 20th century, groups of people (usually circles of young friends) moved to

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

/Israel together. The term "gar'in" originally referred to these groups who came from all across the world. Immigrating in a group provided the support necessary for survival. Many of these groups founded their own

kibbutz A kibbutz ( / , ; : kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1910, was Degania Alef, Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economi ...

im. The phenomenon of these groups has been ongoing since before Israel was established in 1948. A variation of the original Gar'in groups still exist today. Whilst it is rare for gar'in to move to Israel together and form a community, the groups provide support for people interested in moving to Israel. They also provide forums for social-networking, information gathering, and encouragement. The pre-military program Garin Tzabar facilitates and encourages the immigration of young Jews to Israel and supports them throughout their military service by placing them on Kibbutzim around the country. More recently, ad-hoc groups unhappy about the socio-political and demographic evolution of the country are getting organised in order to move out of Israel, while preserving aspects of their lifestyle and a sense of community in their new places of settlement abroad.

References

Aliyah Society of Israel Yishuv Words and phrases in Modern Hebrew {{hebrew-lang-stub