Shavei Tzion ( he, שָׁבֵי צִיּוֹן, ''lit.'' Returnees to Zion) is a moshav shitufi in northern

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 ...

. Located between

Acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...

and

Nahariya Nahariya ( he, נַהֲרִיָּה, ar, نهاريا) is the northernmost coastal city in Israel. In it had a population of . Etymology Nahariya takes its name from the stream of Ga'aton (river is ''nahar'' in Hebrew), which bisects it. Hist ...

and covering 2,000

dunam A dunam ( Ottoman Turkish, Arabic: ; tr, dönüm; he, דונם), also known as a donum or dunum and as the old, Turkish, or Ottoman stremma, was the Ottoman unit of area equivalent to the Greek stremma or English acre, representing the amount ...

s, it falls under the jurisdiction of

Mateh Asher Regional Council The Mateh Asher Regional Council ( he, מועצה אזורית מטה אשר, ''Mo'atza Azorit Mateh Asher'') is a regional council in the western Galilee of northern Israel. It is named after the Tribe of Asher which had been allotted the region ...

. In it had a population of .

History

The village was established on 13 April 1938 as part of the tower and stockade settlement scheme. Its founders,

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

from Rexingen in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, arrived during the

Fifth Aliyah The Fifth Aliyah ( he, העלייה החמישית, ''HaAliyah HaHamishit'') refers to the fifth wave of the Jewish immigration to Palestine from Europe and Asia between the years 1929 and 1939, with the arrival of 225,000 to 300,000 Jews. The Fi ...

fleeing from Nazi persecution. The village's construction was financed by Arthur Loewengart, a former resident of Rexingen and wealthy leather manufacturer who immigrated to the United States in 1937. Shavei Tzion is considered one of the most beautiful towns in the Galilee due to its proximity to the

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 ea ...

. Seven of the Acre Prison break fighters who were killed during the operation are buried in the local cemetery. A memorial was erected on the beach in 1999, commemorating the death of 12 IDF naval commandos who fell during an ill-fated mission into Lebanon on 5 September 1997. It is composed of a dozen sandstone slabs leaning on each another, and a separate block carrying the names of the casualties – including a young officer from Shavei Tzion. The wreck of an old ship of the

Israeli Navy The Israeli Navy ( he, חיל הים הישראלי, ''Ḥeil HaYam HaYisraeli'' (English: The Israeli Sea Corps); ar, البحرية الإسرائيلية) is the naval warfare service arm of the Israel Defense Forces, operating primarily in ...

, Kidon, which had been sunk just offshore as a tourist attraction for scuba divers, has also become a memorial site in recent years after a 2016 remembrance day ceremony organized by a local dive club, at which a memorial of Israeli flags and 12 chairs representing each of the 12 soldiers who died during the operation was set up on the wreck. File:שבי ציון - מראה שבי ציון,צילום אויר-JNF035094.jpeg, Shavei Tzion 1939 File:שבי ציון - המשתלה-JNF034600.jpeg, Shavei Tzion 1939 File:שבי ציון - מראה בחגיגת יובל החמישה-JNF021128.jpeg, Shavei Tzion 1943

Archaeology

2016 WLM - OVEDC - PEKIIN - ELEF MILIM 192

In 1955, remains of a Byzantine church were found along the beach path that leads from

to Tyre and was dated to the 4th century. The excavations were led by

Moshe Prausnitz Moshe (Max) W. Prausnitz (Hebrew: משה פראוסניץ; December 22, 1922 – July 1, 1998) was an Israeli archaeologist who specialized in the prehistory field. Biography Prausnitz was born in Berlin, Germany in 1922. He moved to Mandatory ...

and the findings included

Mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

floors and walls as well as remains of an Artesian aquifer.

Twin towns

Shavei Tzion has a friendship relationship with: *

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...

, Germany

Gallery

File:Shavei_Tzion_cemetery.jpg, Tombstone of Acre Prison break fighters File:IDF Marine Commando Disaster Memorial-5.JPG, IDF Marine Commando Disaster Memorial File:Shaveziyyon1.jpg, Synagogue File:Loewengart Hall Shavei Tzion.jpg, Beit Loewengart Community Hall

Notable residents

Daliah Lavi Daliah Lavi (born Daliah Lewinbuk or Levenbuch, he, דליה לביא ; 12 October 1942 – 3 May 2017) was an Israeli actress, singer, and model. Biography Daliah Lewinbuk (or Levenbuch) was born in Shavei Tzion, British Mandate of Palestine ...

References

External links

Shave Zion Archive
Younes & Soraya Nasarian Library, University of Haifa.

Ynet

Ynet {{Authority control Moshavim Populated places established in 1938 Agricultural Union Populated places in Northern District (Israel) 1938 establishments in Mandatory Palestine German-Jewish culture in Israel