Eshhar

Eshhar אֶשְׁחָר
Hebrew transcription(s)
• unofficial	= Eshchar
Eshhar
Coordinates: 32°53′5.52″N 35°18′4.85″E / 32.8848667°N 35.3013472°E / 32.8848667; 35.3013472Coordinates: 32°53′5.52″N 35°18′4.85″E / 32.8848667°N 35.3013472°E / 32.8848667; 35.3013472
Council	Misgav
Affiliation	HaMerkaz HaHakla'i
Founded	1986
Founded by	American Jews
Population (2012)	672
Name meaning	Rhamnus palaestinus
Website	www.eshchar.co.il

Eshhar (Hebrew: אֶשְׁחָר) is a communal settlement in northern Israel. Located in the Galilee to the south of Karmiel and north of Sakhnin, it falls under the jurisdiction of Misgav Regional Council. In 2012 it had a population of 672.^[1] The village was named after Rhamnus palaestinus (buckthorn), a plant whose Hebrew name is Eshhar. It is adjacent to the Bedouin village of Arab al-Na'im, with which it shares an access road.

History

The idea for Eshhar was formulated by a group of friends in Chicago in the United States in 1979, who wanted to create a community in which religious and secular could live together, working together to find solutions to any issues that arise as a result. Eshhar was established in 1986 by a gar'in comprising this group together with other English-speaking and Israeli families.^[2][3] The original aim remains today, with residents following a few basic rules that enable a religious presence amongst secular residents, such as avoiding driving within the village on the Shabbat and keeping kosher at public events; beyond this residents define their own lifestyles, without coercion.

Practical attempts have been made to entrench the ideology of the village in its youth; the community has a scout group open to both religious and secular Jews.^[4] However an attempt at running a pluralistic Meguvan-affiliated primary school in the village failed after legal difficulties and opposition from both the Ministry of Education and the Regional Council; a subsequent attempt at opening a similar school as part of an established school in Moreshet failed at the last moment for similar reasons.^[5] Children attend local religious or secular schools instead.

Relations with the adjacent hillside Bedouin village of Arab al-Na'im are generally good, based on a firm footing established in initial meetings between the councils of the two villages in the 1990s, when it was agreed that "good neighborly relations" would be a pragmatic and helpful arrangement. Eshhar as a community, along with other Jewish organizations, have been involved in supporting Arab al-Na'im's leaders in obtaining state recognition and, subsequently, connection to municipal services and the institution of a master plan for the village, enabling the first permanent masonry-built houses to be constructed there in 2014.^[6]

Facilities

Facilities in the village include a new synagogue and community hall opened in 2014, a mikveh, a small petting zoo, a library, outdoor sports facilities and playgrounds, a community pub and a community orchard. There is a nursery for children from the age of three months to three years, and three kindergartens.

A third neighborhood is under construction as of 2015. There are plans for a further expansion (shlav dalet) after that.^[7]

References

External links

• Official website
• Eshhar page Galilee Development Authority (Hebrew)
• Eshhar page Misgav Regional Council (Hebrew)