Merhav Am ( he, מֶרְחַב עַם, ''lit.'' Nation's Expanse) is a religious
community settlement
A community settlement ( he, יישוב קהילתי, ''Yishuv Kehilati'') is a type of village in Israel and the West Bank. While in an ordinary town anyone may buy property, in a community settlement the village's residents are organized in ...
in southern Israel. Located in the
Negev
The Negev or Negeb (; he, הַנֶּגֶב, hanNegév; ar, ٱلنَّقَب, an-Naqab) is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its sout ...
desert between
Yeruham
Yeruham ( he, יְרוֹחַם, ''Yeroham'') is a town ( local council) in the Southern District of Israel, in the Negev desert. It covers 38,584 dunams (~38.6 km²), and had a population of in . It is named after the Biblical Jeroham.
Un ...
and the
kibbutz of
Sde Boker
Sde Boker ( he, שְׂדֵה בּוֹקֵר, lit. ''Herding Field'') is a kibbutz in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Best known as the retirement home of Israel's first Prime Minister, David Ben-Gurion, it falls under the jurisdiction of Ram ...
, it falls under the jurisdiction of
Ramat HaNegev Regional Council
Ramat HaNegev Regional Council ( he, מועצה אזורית רמת הנגב, ''Mo'atza Azorit Ramat HaNegev'', ''lit.'' Negev Heights Regional Council) is a regional council in the Negev desert in Israel. With around 8,000 residents spread across ...
. 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
Rehavam Ze'evi ( he, רחבעם זאבי ; 20 June 1926 – 17 October 2001) was an Israeli general and politician who founded the right-wing nationalist Moledet party, mainly advocating population transfer.
He was assassinated by Hamdi Quran ...
, 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