Ruth Kark (; born 1941) is an Israeli historical geographer and professor of geography at the

Hebrew University of Jerusalem The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...

. Professor Kark is a well-known researcher and expert in the field of the historical geography of Palestine and Israel. Kark is the 2025

Israel Prize The Israel Prize (; ''pras israél'') is an award bestowed by the State of Israel, and regarded as the state's highest cultural honor. History Prior to the Israel Prize, the most significant award in the arts was the Dizengoff Prize and in Israel ...

latureate in the field of geographical research and knowledge of the Land of Israel.

Biography

Early life and education

Ruth Kark (née Kleiner) was born in

Herzliya Herzliya ( ; , / ) is an affluent List of Israeli cities, city in the Israeli coastal plain, central coast of Israel, at the northern part of the Tel Aviv District, known for its robust start-up and entrepreneurial culture. In it had a populatio ...

in 1941 to Shoshana Moczan and Avraham Kleiner. Kark completed her B.A. at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in 1964, was awarded an M.A. in 1972 and earned her doctorate in 1977, becoming the first female Israeli geographer with a PhD and a pioneer of historical geography research in Palestine and the Land of Israel. *

Personal life

Ruth Kark was married to Jeremy David Kark, with whom she has three children.

Academic career

Kark has written and edited 30 books and published over 250 peer-reviewed articles on the history and

historical geography Historical geography is the branch of geography that studies the ways in which geographic phenomena have changed over time. In its modern form, it is a synthesizing discipline which shares both topical and methodological similarities with histor ...

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

and the

Land of Israel The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine. The definition ...

. Kark is noted for her work on historical settlement in the

in the 19th century and the early 20th century, development of old and new cities in the region (including Jerusalem, Jaffa, and others), missions to the

Holy Land The term "Holy Land" is used to collectively denote areas of the Southern Levant that hold great significance in the Abrahamic religions, primarily because of their association with people and events featured in the Bible. It is traditionall ...

, land purchase in the region, and more. Additionally, she has published works about women and minorities, Sepharadic entrepreneurs, and land ownership in both traditional and modern cultures in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

. Kark has often been brought into court hearings in Israel as an expert on land dispute (such as among different churches), and as an academic with a reputation in the field of pre-State land ownership in Israel.

Awards and recognition

Professor Kark has received numerous scholarships and awards. These include the Jerusalem Bank award, a

Fulbright scholarship The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people ...

(USA-Israel), and various others. In 2009, Kark and co-author Joseph Glass won an award for their research on the development of banking in Ottoman Palestine. In 2013, Kark was awarded the Yakir Yerushalayim prize (the Jerusalem Award) for her contributions to the city of

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 ...

. In 2014, she received the Herzl prize for her research on the settlement in the land of Israel, and in 2016 she was awarded a recognition of excellence award from the Israeli Geographical Society. In 2025, Kark was awarded the prestigious

in the field of geographical research and knowledge of the Land of Israel. The prize committee praised Kark's "comprehensive, original, and unique contribution". Kark is the first female geographer to be awarded the prize in the area of Geography. Kark has also been commended on her dedication to uncovering and highlighting the role of women in settlement and society in the region. This includes her work on Jewish, Christian, Arab Muslim and Bedouin women and their contributions.

Published works

Books

* Kark, R., ''Frontier Jewish Settlement in the Negev, 1880–1948.'' Tel Aviv: Ha-Kibbutz Ha-Muchad Publishers, 1974 (Hebrew). * Kark, R., ''Neighborhoods in Jerusalem—Building in New Jerusalem and Neighborhoods By-Laws.'' Jerusalem: Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi Publications, 1978 (Hebrew). * Kark, R., ''Jaffa—A City in Evolution, 1799–1917.'' Jerusalem: Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi, 1984 (Hebrew). * Kark, R., ''Jerusalem Neighborhoods, Planning and By-Laws (1855–1930)''. Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1991. * Glass J. B. and Kark, R., ''Sephardi Entrepreneurs in Eretz Israel—The Amzalak Family, 1816–1918.'' Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1991. * Kark, R., ''American Consuls in the Holy Land 1832–1914.'' Detroit: Wayne State University Press; Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1994. * Kark, R. and Oren-Nordheim M., ''Jerusalem and Its Environs—Quarters, Neighborhoods and Villages 1800–1948''. Jerusalem: Academon Publishing House, 1995 (Hebrew). * Dudman, H. and Kark, R., ''The American Colony, Scenes from a Jerusalem Saga.'' Jerusalem: Carta, 1998. * Kark-Kleiner, R., ''The Pioneering Observation Posts in the Negev.'' Jerusalem: Ariel Publishing, Jerusalem, 2002 (Hebrew). * Kark, R. and Glass, J. B., ''Seven Generations in Jerusalem:'' ''The Valero Family, 1800-1948.'' Gefen Publishing House, Jerusalem and New York, 2005 (Hebrew). * Perry, N. and Kark, R., ''Ethnographic Museums in Israel,'' Jerusalem: Ariel Publishing, Jerusalem, 2014 (Hebrew) and English, Israel Academic Press (2017). * Galilee, E. and Kark, R., ''The Valley of Yizrael/Marj Ibn Amarat the end of the Ottoman Period,'' Hebrew & English, Israel Academic Press, New York, 2017. * Galilee, E. and Kark, R., ''Transformation of the Jezreel Valley: Marj Ibn 'Amer in the late Ottoman Period'', Israel Academic Press, 2018. * Slae, B. and Kark, R., ''Jerusalem’s Jewish Quarter: Heritage and Post War Restoration,'' Israel Academic Press and Amazon, New York, 2018 (English) + Bar Ilan University Press, Ramat Gan, 2023 (Hebrew). * Amit Cohen, I. and Kark, R., ''Yehoshua Hankin: Two Loves.'' Tel Aviv: Milo, 1996, (Hebrew) + Israel Academic Press, 2023 (English). * Kark, R., ''The Bedouins and The Negev: Nomadism and Land Ownership Perspectives, 1800-1967'', Israel Academic Press, New York, 2025 (English).

Edited books

* Ben-Arieh, Y. and Kark, R., eds. ''Israel Studies in Historical Geography.'' A Book Series. Jerusalem: Magnes Press (five volumes, 1989–1997; four of the volumes in press). * Kark, R., ed. ''The Land that Became Israel. Studies in Historical Geography.'' Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1989. 362 pp. * Kark, R., ed. ''Redemption of the Land of Eretz-Israel: Ideology and Practice''. Jerusalem: Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi Publications, 1990. 320 pp. (in Hebrew). * Kark, R., ed. ''Land and Settlement in Eretz Israel 1830–1990. Selected Papers by Prof. Ruth Kark.'' Jerusalem: The Land-Use Research Institute, 1995. 200 pp. (in Hebrew and English). * Shilo, M., Kark, R. and Hasan-Rokem, G., eds., ''Jewish Women in the Yishuv and Zionism: A Gender Perspective'', Jerusalem: Yad Izhak Ben-Zvi Press, 2001, 463 pp. (Hebrew). * Kark, R., Shilo, M. and Hasan-Rokem, G., ''Jewish Women in Pre-State Israel: Life History, Politics and Culture'', Waltham, MA.: Brandeis University Press and Hanover, NH and London: University Press of New England (updated English version, 2008).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kark, Ruth Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni Academic staff of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem Israeli historians Jewish historians Historians of the Middle East Historians of Israel Living people 1941 births Hebrew University Secondary School alumni