Kfar HaRif ( he, כְּפַר הָרִי"ף, lit. ''Village of
the Rif
The Rif or Riff (, ), also called Rif Mountains, is a geographic region in northern Morocco. This mountainous and fertile area is bordered by Cape Spartel and Tangier to the west, by Berkane and the Moulouya River to the east, by the Mediterran ...
'') is a
moshav
A moshav ( he, מוֹשָׁב, plural ', lit. ''settlement, village'') is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists between 1904 an ...
in southern Israel. Located on the border of the
Shephelah and the
Israeli coastal plain around 2 kilometres northeast of
Kiryat Malakhi, it is the largest community under the jurisdiction of
Yoav Regional Council. In it had a population of .
The HaRif creek, named after the community, is located to the east of the village. Nearby are some wells.
History
The moshav was founded at the end of 1956 by
Jewish refugees and immigrants to Israel from
Morocco, and was named after the Rif (medieval rabbi
Isaac Alfasi), one of the great codifiers of Jewish law, who lived in
Fez
Fez most often refers to:
* Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire
* Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco
Fez or FEZ may also refer to:
Media
* ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...
, Morocco. The founders were later joined by Jewish immigrants from several countries in Eastern Europe.)
Kfar HaRif was founded on the lands of the depopulated
Palestinian Arab village of
Al-Masmiyya al-Saghira
Al-Masmiyya al-Saghira ( ar, المسمية الصغيرة), also known as Mamsiyyat al-Hurani, was a Palestinian Arab village in the Gaza Subdistrict, located northeast of Gaza. Established in the 19th century, it was situated at an elevatio ...
.
When it was founded, it joined the sector "HaMa'amad HaBeinoni" (the middle position) – a group of moshavim where the people who settled there paid for the economy they constructed, as opposed to most moshavim, which received their property for free from the government. Today, the moshav is part of the
Agricultural Union.)
In recent years, most residents have worked outside the community, while some continue to maintain an agricultural economy. The main branches of agriculture include orchards, vineyards, flowers and fowl.)
References
External links
Official website
{{Authority control
Moshavim
Populated places in Southern District (Israel)
1956 establishments in Israel
Populated places established in 1956
Agricultural Union
Moroccan-Jewish culture in Israel