Hakhshara (; also transliterated Hachsharah, Hachshara or Hakhsharah) is a Hebrew word that literally means "preparation". The term is used for training programs and agricultural centres in Europe and elsewhere. At these centers Zionist youth and young adults would learn vocational skills necessary for their

emigration Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and subsequent life in

kibbutz A kibbutz ( / , ; : kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1910, was Degania Alef, Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economi ...

im. Such camps existed before

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and still exist today. Nowadays, these programs are usually based on

im in Israel for youth who are in their gap year, between finishing high-school and starting university, and include exploring Israel and studying Israeli culture. This was also true of the religious programs, that until a few decades were based on a religious kibbutz and typically contained a period of

Torah study Torah study is the study of the Torah, Hebrew Bible, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature, and similar works, all of which are Judaism's Sifrei kodesh, religious texts. According to Rabbinic Judaism, the study is done for the purpose of the ''mi ...

. Nowadays, the religious programs still incorporate a period on a religious kibbutz, but are more diverse in what they offer, see at

Bnei Akiva Bnei Akiva (, , "Children of Akiva") is the largest religious Zionist youth movement in the world, with over 125,000 members in 42 countries. It was first established in Mandatory Palestine in 1929, advocating the values of Torah and labor. Bne ...

website
here
.

List of Hakhshara centres

Pre-war Germany

*Schniebinchen in Germany (now

Świbinki Świbinki is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Tuplice, within Żary County, Lubusz Voivodeship, in western Poland. For the history of the region, see ''Territorial changes of Poland after World War II''. The village was the sit ...

, Poland). *Landwerk Neuendorf at

Steinhöfel Steinhöfel is a municipality in the Oder-Spree district, in Brandenburg, Germany. Since the beginning of 2019 it belongs to the collective municipality " Amt Odervorland" The contemporary municipality of Steinhöfel comprises a total of twelve ph ...

, Germany * Altona-

Blankenese Blankenese () is a suburban quarter in the borough of Altona in the western part of Hamburg, Germany; until 1938 it was an independent municipality in Holstein. It is located on the right bank of the Elbe river. With a population of 13,637 as of ...

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

, Germany *Fraustadt in Posen-West Prussia, Germany, now

Wschowa Wschowa (pronounced , ) is a town in the Lubusz Voivodeship in western Poland with 13,875 inhabitants (2019). It is the capital of Wschowa County and a significant tourist site containing many important historical monuments. It is part of the his ...

, Poland *Markenhof in Germany *Marx family at Gruessen (now Gemunden, Wohra), Germany

Italy

* Sciesopoli in Italy.

Netherlands

* Werkdorp Nieuwesluis in the Netherlands *

Westerbork (village) Westerbork () is a village in the municipality of Midden-Drenthe in the Netherlands. It is located in the middle of the eastern province of Drenthe. During World War II, the Westerbork transit camp was located near the village. The Westerbork Synth ...

Pre-war Poland

*over 200 hakhsharas *Iwanie Puste and nearby village of Tzygany, now in

Ternopil Oblast Ternopil Oblast (), also referred to as Ternopilshchyna () or Ternopillia (), is an Oblasts of Ukraine, oblast (province) of Ukraine. Its Capital (political), administrative center is Ternopil, through which flows the Seret (river), Seret, a tribu ...

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

Pre-war Lithuania

*Ponevezh (Yiddish) or

Panevėžys Panevėžys () is the fifth-largest List of cities in Lithuania, city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, eighth-most-populous city in the Baltic States. it occupies with 89,100 inhabitants. As defined by Eu ...

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

Post-war Australia

Springvale, Victoria Springvale is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Greater Dandenong local government area. Springvale recorded a population of 22,174 at the . Springvale ...

and later

Toolamba Toolamba is a town in the Goulburn Valley region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. It is in the City of Greater Shepparton Local government in Australia, local government area, north of the state capital, Melbourne. At the , Toola ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au/bitstream/handle/10072/14447/39635_1.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y

References

{{Authority control Jewish educational organizations Zionist organizations Hebrew words and phrases Zionist youth movements Aliyah