Merhav Am ( he, מֶרְחַב עַם, ''lit.'' Nation's Expanse) is a religious community settlement in southern Israel. Located in the Negev desert between Yeruham and the

kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

of Sde Boker, it falls under the jurisdiction of Ramat HaNegev Regional Council. In it had a population of .

History

Merhav Am was founded by the Or Movement on 1 November 2001 and had a population of around 30 families by November 2006, many living in caravans. The original name was intended to be Halukim due to its proximity to the Halukim Hills (the nearest road junction is called the ''Halukim Junction''). However, after around a year it was renamed Merhav Am, inspired by the wide open area in which it was to be built, as well as in honour of Rehavam Ze'evi, a former Minister who was assassinated in 2001: In Hebrew ''Merhav'' (מרחב - MRHV) means "wide open spaces" whilst ''Rehavam'' is spelt using the last three letters of the word plus two more (רחבעם - RHVAM). Combining the two gives Merhav Am (MRHV+AM).

References

External links

Official website
{{Ramat Negev Regional Council Religious Israeli communities Community settlements Populated places in Southern District (Israel) Populated places established in 2001 2001 establishments in Israel