Ein Hashofet
Encyclopedia
Ein HaShofet is a kibbutz
in northern Israel
in the Hills of Ephraim
. Located in the Ramat Menashe region around 30 km from the city of Haifa
, close to Yokneam, it falls under the jurisdiction of Megiddo Regional Council
. In 2008 it had a population of 759.
immigrants in 1937. The area was used by Arab
"gangs" and the settlers had to defend themselves against armed attacks on a nightly basis. This was in the middle of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine, known to the Jews of the time as the "disturbances." Despite a lack of water and hilly difficult reclamation, ten years later, with a population of 450, they "were a successful mixed hill farm with orchards, dry cereals, dairy products, sheep herding and chicken farming." .
Ein Hashofet was the first to be settled by American members of Hashomer Hatzair
and was considered influential in the movement in the U.S.
During the Israel's War of Independence
the settlers help to defeat Kaukji's forces
after their April, 1948 attack on Mishmar Haemek.
movement. There is a flowing spring nearby the kibbutz.
, where the group was created by joining two Hashomer Hatzair
groups, one from Poland
(including Aharon Efrat
, later a member of the Knesset
) and one from North America
, consisting the first Hashomer Hatzair group from North America, thus making the kibbutz the first kibbutz of North American pioneers (that is, of an aliyah
). The kibbutz's foundation was a part of the Tower and stockade
settlement drive.
, volunteers and non-member residents.
The kibbutz also retains some agriculture as a secondary industry as a source of income. Agriculture here encompasses both produce
and livestock
and is split into six branches
Ein HaShofet also has a long standing ulpan
course, with over 100 ulpan groups since 1951. Benjamin Urrutia
is amongst the alumni.
Kibbutz
A kibbutz is a collective community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including industrial plants and high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as utopian communities, a combination of socialism and Zionism...
in northern Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
in the Hills of Ephraim
Mount Ephraim
Mount Ephraim , or alternately Mount of Ephraim, was the historical name for the central mountainous district of Israel once occupied by the tribe of Ephraim , extending from Bethel to the plain of Jezreel. In Joshua's time , approximately sometime between the 18th century BCE and the 13th century...
. Located in the Ramat Menashe region around 30 km from the city of Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
, close to Yokneam, it falls under the jurisdiction of Megiddo Regional Council
Megiddo Regional Council
The Megiddo Regional Council is a regional council in northern Israel encompassing land on the Menashe Plateau, and partly in the Jezreel Valley...
. In 2008 it had a population of 759.
History
Ein Hashofet was established by American and PolishPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
immigrants in 1937. The area was used by Arab
Arab
Arab people, also known as Arabs , are a panethnicity primarily living in the Arab world, which is located in Western Asia and North Africa. They are identified as such on one or more of genealogical, linguistic, or cultural grounds, with tribal affiliations, and intra-tribal relationships playing...
"gangs" and the settlers had to defend themselves against armed attacks on a nightly basis. This was in the middle of the 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine, known to the Jews of the time as the "disturbances." Despite a lack of water and hilly difficult reclamation, ten years later, with a population of 450, they "were a successful mixed hill farm with orchards, dry cereals, dairy products, sheep herding and chicken farming." .
Ein Hashofet was the first to be settled by American members of Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair is a Socialist–Zionist youth movement founded in 1913 in Galicia, Austria-Hungary, and was also the name of the group's political party in the Yishuv in the pre-1948 British Mandate of Palestine...
and was considered influential in the movement in the U.S.
During the Israel's War of Independence
1948 Arab-Israeli War
The 1948 Arab–Israeli War, known to Israelis as the War of Independence or War of Liberation The war commenced after the termination of the British Mandate for Palestine and the creation of an independent Israel at midnight on 14 May 1948 when, following a period of civil war, Arab armies invaded...
the settlers help to defeat Kaukji's forces
Arab Liberation Army
The Arab Liberation Army , also translated as Arab Salvation Army, was an army of volunteers from Arab countries led by Fawzi al-Qawuqji...
after their April, 1948 attack on Mishmar Haemek.
Etymology
"Ein HaShofet" translates literally as "Spring of the Judge", with this judge being United States Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis (1856-1941), the first Jew to hold the aforementioned position, selected for his leading role in the American ZionistZionism
Zionism is a Jewish political movement that, in its broadest sense, has supported the self-determination of the Jewish people in a sovereign Jewish national homeland. Since the establishment of the State of Israel, the Zionist movement continues primarily to advocate on behalf of the Jewish state...
movement. There is a flowing spring nearby the kibbutz.
Development
Ein HaShofet was first settled on 5 July 1937 with the settlers living on the nearby hill of Joara for one year before moving to the final and current location of the kibbutz. Prior to the settling at Joara, the kibbutz's founders stayed for five years in HaderaHadera
Hadera is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel approximately from the major cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. The city is located along of the Israeli Mediterranean Coastal Plain...
, where the group was created by joining two Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair
Hashomer Hatzair is a Socialist–Zionist youth movement founded in 1913 in Galicia, Austria-Hungary, and was also the name of the group's political party in the Yishuv in the pre-1948 British Mandate of Palestine...
groups, one from Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
(including Aharon Efrat
Aharon Efrat
Aharon Efrat was an Israeli politician who served as a member of the Knesset for the Alignment and Mapam between 1974 and 1977.-Biography:Born in Lutsk in the Russian Empire , Efrat joined Hashomer Hatzair at the age of 16...
, later a member of the Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
) and one from North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, consisting the first Hashomer Hatzair group from North America, thus making the kibbutz the first kibbutz of North American pioneers (that is, of an aliyah
Aliyah
Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...
). The kibbutz's foundation was a part of the Tower and stockade
Tower and stockade
Tower and stockade was a settlement method used by Zionist settlers in the British Mandate of Palestine during the 1936–39 Arab revolt, when the establishment of new Jewish settlements was restricted by the Mandatory authorities...
settlement drive.
Demographics
At the end of 2003, the kibbutz was home to 688 people: 455 kibbutz members and candidates for membership, 160 children under 18 years of age, 20 soldiers, and the remaining 53 ulpanistsUlpan
An ulpan is an institute or school for the intensive study of Hebrew. Ulpan is a Hebrew word meaning basically studio or teaching, instruction....
, volunteers and non-member residents.
Economy
The main income source of Ein HaShofet today is its four factories, three of which are located in the kibbutz and one in the USA;- Eltam, the kibbutz's largest employer; a company founded in 1967 as "Ein Hashofet Electric Industries" which today manufactures various components for electric devices, prominently light fixtureLight fixtureA light fixture, light fitting, or luminaire is an electrical device used to create artificial light and/or illumination, by use of an electric lamp...
s. - Mivrag; founded in 1950 and manufactures various small metalMetalA metal , is an element, compound, or alloy that is a good conductor of both electricity and heat. Metals are usually malleable and shiny, that is they reflect most of incident light...
objects, mainly screwScrewA screw, or bolt, is a type of fastener characterized by a helical ridge, known as an external thread or just thread, wrapped around a cylinder. Some screw threads are designed to mate with a complementary thread, known as an internal thread, often in the form of a nut or an object that has the...
s, in cold forming processes. - MAG EH; founded in 1999 and manufactures specific components for the automobile industry. It has an American division, MAG USA, which was founded in 2001 and is located in Knoxville, TennesseeKnoxville, TennesseeFounded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
.
The kibbutz also retains some agriculture as a secondary industry as a source of income. Agriculture here encompasses both produce
Produce
Produce is a generalized term for a group of farm-produced goods and, not limited to fruits and vegetables . More specifically, the term "produce" often implies that the products are fresh and generally in the same state as where they were harvested. In supermarkets the term is also used to refer...
and livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
and is split into six branches
- A dairyDairyA dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
was created when Ein HaShofet was settled in its final location in 1938. Today it holds 270 cows which give around 3 million liters of milk per year. - Beef cattle were first farmed at Ein HaShofet in the mid-fifties1950sThe 1950s or The Fifties was the decade that began on January 1, 1950 and ended on December 31, 1959. The decade was the sixth decade of the 20th century...
to exploit the surrounding lands which were unfit for crops. Today the branch is joined with that of neighboring kibbutz Mishmar HaEmekMishmar HaEmekMishmar HaEmek is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located in the western Jezreel Valley, it falls under the jurisdiction of Megiddo Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 964....
, with Ein HaShofet possessing 73% of the 750 cows. - The kibbutz has an AvocadoAvocadoThe avocado is a tree native to Central Mexico, classified in the flowering plant family Lauraceae along with cinnamon, camphor and bay laurel...
plantationPlantationA plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
which covers around approximate 360 dunamDunamA dunam or dönüm, dunum, donum, dynym, dulum was a non-SI unit of land area used in the Ottoman Empire and representing the amount of land that can be plowed in a day; its value varied from 900–2500 m²...
s (360,000 m²) around the kibbutz. - ChickenChickenThe chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
farms, which since 1971 serve solely for meat, today produce 2300 tons per year. - A cattleCattleCattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
fattening facility which fattens 1,500 cows per year services both the kibbutz's herd and imported cattle from AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, PolandPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and those from within IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
itself. - Arable farming encompasses approximately 4000 dunams (4 km²), with the crops changing according to market demands and weather conditions, though chiefly growing wheatWheatWheat is a cereal grain, originally from the Levant region of the Near East, but now cultivated worldwide. In 2007 world production of wheat was 607 million tons, making it the third most-produced cereal after maize and rice...
and cottonCottonCotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
.
Ein HaShofet also has a long standing ulpan
Ulpan
An ulpan is an institute or school for the intensive study of Hebrew. Ulpan is a Hebrew word meaning basically studio or teaching, instruction....
course, with over 100 ulpan groups since 1951. Benjamin Urrutia
Benjamín Urrutia
Benjamin Urrutia is an author and scholar. With Guy Davenport, Urrutia edited The Logia of Yeshua, which collected what Urrutia and Davenport consider to be Jesus' authentic sayings from a variety of canonical and non-canonical sources...
is amongst the alumni.