Baka (, lit. "Valley";
) is a neighborhood in southern
Jerusalem
Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
. The official name is Geulim, which is mainly used on road signs.
Geography
The neighborhood is somewhat trapezoidal, sandwiched between
Derech Hevron on the east at 760 meters above sea level and sloping downward toward Derech HaRakevet and
General Pierre Koenig Street on the western side at 740 meters. The old
Jerusalem Railway Station occupies the north-eastern point with
Rivka Street forming the southern base. Baka is bounded by
Abu Tor to the northeast,
Talpiot to the east, Talpiot Industrial Zone to the south,
Mekor Chaim to the west, and the
Greek Colony
Greek colonisation refers to the expansion of Archaic Greeks, particularly during the 8th–6th centuries BC, across the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea.
The Archaic expansion differed from the Iron Age migrations of the Greek Dark Ages ...
and
German Colony to the northwest. The north-south Derech Beit Lehem serves as the major commercial artery within the neighborhood.
History
Baka was established in the late 19th century after the completion of the Jerusalem Railway Station. The station created the nucleus of a commercial center that eventually attracted mostly wealthy Muslim, Christian, and Armenian families from the Old City, who built mansions there in the 1920s. The neighborhood had an
agricultural
Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...
character until the 1950s.

During the
1948 Arab-Israeli War
Events January
* January 1
** The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is inaugurated.
** The current Constitutions of Constitution of Italy, Italy and of Constitution of New Jersey, New Jersey (both later subject to amendment) ...
, the neighborhood was left on the Israeli (western) side of the dividing line between
West Jerusalem
West Jerusalem or Western Jerusalem (, ; , ) refers to the section of Jerusalem that was controlled by Israel at the end of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. As the city was divided by the Green Line (Israel's erstwhile border, established by ...
and
East Jerusalem
East Jerusalem (, ; , ) is the portion of Jerusalem that was Jordanian annexation of the West Bank, held by Jordan after the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, as opposed to West Jerusalem, which was held by Israel. Captured and occupied in 1967, th ...
. Its population changed, as was the case with many neighborhoods on both sides of the dividing line.
After 1948, many streets in Baka were renamed for the
Twelve Tribes of Israel
The Twelve Tribes of Israel ( , ) are described in the Hebrew Bible as being the descendants of Jacob, a Patriarchs (Bible), Hebrew patriarch who was a son of Isaac and thereby a grandson of Abraham. Jacob, later known as Israel (name), Israel, ...
: Judah, Issachar, Levi, Zevulun, Reuven, Shimon, Gad, Ephraim, Menashe, Benjamin, Dan, Asher and Naphtali.
Baka today
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Baka experienced a significant change as middle class professionals began to move in. Many of the palatial homes were renovated, while some of the larger mansions from the Mandate period were subdivided into luxury apartments. Demographically, the neighborhood contains a mix of religious and secular Jews and is popular among English and French-speaking immigrants. The main commercial street, Derech Beit Lehem, is lined with shops, designer stores, coffee houses, restaurants and more.
Schools and public institutions

Schools in Baka include Oranim, Efrata, Geulim A, and
Pelech, a religious high school for girls.
Ulpan Etzion, Israel's first Hebrew-language school, was established in Baka in 1949. The
ulpan, directed by Mordechai Kamerat, was used as a model for Hebrew language teaching all over Israel. In 2008, the school vacated its college-style dormitories, communal rooms and gardens after the lease expired with the
Carmelite Church that owned the property.
Recreation and parks

The
Train Track Park (''Park HaMesila''), the longest bike path in Jerusalem and one of the major recreation areas in the city, runs along Derech HaRekevet on the western edge of Baka.
All Out Adventure: Romantic railway route
/ref>
Gallery
File:BakahJerusalemFeb252023 01.jpg, Baka East to Beit Lehem Road
File:BakahJerusalemFeb252023 03.jpg, Baka West to Beit Lehem Road
References
{{Authority control
Neighbourhoods of Jerusalem
19th-century establishments in the Ottoman Empire
Populated places established in the 19th century