Tzora ( he, צָרְעָה) is a

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 ...

in central Israel. Located about 20 km from Jerusalem, near the city of

Beit Shemesh Beit Shemesh ( he, בֵּית שֶׁמֶשׁ ) is a city located approximately west of Jerusalem in Israel's Jerusalem District, with a population of in . History Tel Beit Shemesh The small archaeological tell northeast of the modern city wa ...

, it falls under the jurisdiction of

Mateh Yehuda Regional Council Mateh Yehuda Regional Council ( he, מועצה אזורית מטה יהודה, ''Mo'atza Azorit Mateh Yehuda'', ar, مجلس إقليمي ماتيه يهودا ) is a regional council in the Jerusalem District of Israel. In 2008 it was home to 3 ...

. In it had a population of . TzoraTeperbergFeb282022

Etymology

The kibbutz is named for the biblical village of Tzora, which may have been a Canaanite town. The name was taken from the

Biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

Book of Judges (13:25): "And the spirit of the Lord began to move him ( Samson) at times in the camp of Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol." The kibbutz's name is also similar to, and is related to that of the nearby and depopulated Palestinian village of Sar'a.

History

Biblical era

Tzora is located about 2 km south-west of Tel Tzora, which is where the Palestinian village of Sar'a stood until it was depopulated during the 1948 war. Tel Tzora is the likely location of the biblical village of Zorah.

Second Temple era

A ritual bath dating back to the

Second Temple Period The Second Temple period in Jewish history lasted approximately 600 years (516 BCE - 70 CE), during which the Second Temple existed. It started with the return to Zion and the construction of the Second Temple, while it ended with the First Jewis ...

was discovered near Tzora kibbutz during an archaeological excavation conducted by the Israel Antiquities Authority in 2011.

Modern era

The kibbutz was founded in December 1948 by former

Palmach The Palmach (Hebrew: , acronym for , ''Plugot Maḥatz'', "Strike Companies") was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv (Jewish community) during the period of the British Mandate for Palestine. The Palmach ...

members. It is located on the land of the depopulated Palestinian village of

Dayr Aban Dayr Aban (also spelled Deir Aban; ar, دير آبان) was a Palestinian Arab village in the Jerusalem Subdistrict, located on the lower slope of a high ridge that formed the western slope of a mountain, to the east of Beit Shemesh. It was for ...

. In the 1980s a ham radio club operated under the call 4Z4YJ. In the early 2000s, Tzora underwent a privatization of its communal living structure, with a community tax levied on income and the residual retained as income by members. In April 2008, the kibbutz was fully privatized.

Economy

One of the main branches of the kibbutz economy was Tzora Furniture Ltd., which began in 1957 as a metal factory. At first, the company produced bicycles, but in 1974 it began to manufacture office chairs, before moving on to a full range of office furniture. However, the factory burned down in July 2007. In 1993, Tzora opened the first kibbutz winery, Tzora Vineyards, which produces 80,000 bottles of wine a year, of which 15,000 are exported. Tzora is also home to the

Teperberg Winery Teperberg 1870 Winery ( he, יקב טפרברג 1870) is a winery near kibbutz Tzora in the foothills of the Judean hills, Israel. Founded in 1870 it is Israel's oldest winery, as well as its fourth largest. History Originally called Efrat, the wi ...

. Tzora operates a dairy in partnership with

Tzova Tzova ( he, צוֹבָה), also Palmach Tzova ( he, פלמ"ח צובה) or Tzuba is a kibbutz in central Israel. Located in the Judean Hills, on the western outskirts of Jerusalem, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Coun ...

and

Netiv HaLamed-Heh Netiv HaLamed-Heh ( he, נְתִיב הַל"ה, ''lit.'' Path of the 35) is a kibbutz in central Israel. Located in the Valley of Elah, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In it had a population of . History Netiv ...

. Tzora Active Systems produce advanced lightweight wheelchairs.

Notable people

* Samson *

Moshe Harif Moshe "Moussa" Harif ( he, משה "מוסה" חריף; 2 June 1933 – 16 January 1982) was an Israeli politician and kibbutz activist. Biography Born in Sosnowiec, Poland in 1933, to a Jewish family. Harif immigrated to Mandatory Palestine the ...

Yair Tzaban Yair Tzaban ( he, יאיר צבן, born 23 August 1930) is an Israeli politician, academic and social activist. Biography Tzaban was born in Jerusalem in 1930. During the 1948 Palestine War he fought in the Palmach. He was among the founders o ...

Gallery

File:Zor'a ii.jpg, View of fledgling kibbutz from the road to Jerusalem File:Zor'a iii.jpg, Construction of first cabins, 1948 File:Zor'a iv.jpg, First buildings, 1948 File:Zor'a i.jpg, Kibbutz goat herd in its early days File:Sur'ah 005.jpg, Kibbutz Tzora seen from Tzora Forest File:Sur'ah 009.jpg, Kibbutz Tzora

References

External links

Official website (Hebrew)
* Wikipedia (Hebrew) {{Mateh Yehuda Regional Council Ancient Jewish settlements of Judaea Kibbutzim Kibbutz Movement Populated places established in 1948 Populated places in Jerusalem District 1948 establishments in Israel Zorah