Nataf (, lit. ''

Stacte Stacte () and nataph () are names used for one component of the Solomon's Temple incense, the ''Incense offering in rabbinic literature, Ketoret'', specified in the Book of Exodus (). Variously translated to the Greek term (Amplified Bible, AMP: ...

'') is a

community settlement A community settlement (, ''Yishuv Kehilati'') is a type of town or village in Israel and in the West Bank. In an ordinary town, anyone may buy property, but in a community settlement, the village's residents are organized in a cooperative an ...

in central Israel. Located in the

Judean Mountains The Judaean Mountains, or Judaean Hills (, or ,) are a mountain range in the West Bank and Israel where Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Hebron and several other biblical sites are located. The mountains reach a height of . The Judean Mountains can be div ...

, west 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 ...

, it falls under the jurisdiction of

Mateh Yehuda Regional Council Mateh Yehuda Regional Council (, ''Mo'atza Azorit Mateh Yehuda'', ) is a Regional council (Israel), regional council in the Jerusalem District of Israel. In 2024 it was home to 51,125 people. The name of the regional council stems from the fact t ...

. In it had a population of .

Etymology

Its biblical name is adopted from the

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

word for

stacte Stacte () and nataph () are names used for one component of the Solomon's Temple incense, the ''Incense offering in rabbinic literature, Ketoret'', specified in the Book of Exodus (). Variously translated to the Greek term (Amplified Bible, AMP: ...

, one of the spices used in the

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...

().

History

According to

Walid Khalidi Walid Khalidi (; born in Jerusalem on July 16, 1925) is a Palestinian historian who has written extensively on the Palestinian exodus. He is a co-founder of the Institute for Palestine Studies, established in Beirut in December 1963 as an inde ...

, Nataf was founded in 1982 on land belonging to the depopulated

Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...

village of Bayt Thul, less than 1 km south of the village site of

Nitaf Nitaf (, ''Natâf'') was a small, short-lived Palestinian Arab village in the Jerusalem Subdistrict. It was established in the early 20th century. It was forcefully depopulated during the 1947–1948 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine on April 15 ...

. The village website states that Nataf was built on land bought from Arabs. According to

Davar ''Davar'' (, lit. ''Speech, Word'') was a Hebrew-language daily newspaper published in the British Mandate of Palestine and Israel between 1925 and May 1996. A similarly named website was launched in 2016, under the name ''Davar Rishon'' as an ...

, 40 Israeli families bought the land from

Abu Ghosh Abu Ghosh (; ) is an Arab-Israeli local council in Israel, located west of Jerusalem on the Tel Aviv–Jerusalem highway. It is situated 610–720 meters above sea level. It takes its current name from the dominant clan inhabiting the town, ...

Arabs.

Religious outlook

20% of the residents are

Modern Orthodox Modern may refer to: History *Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Philosophy ...

; 80% of the residents are secular. The village has an unaffiliated

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

with three sections for prayer: a men's section, a women's section and a mixed section.

Geography

Nataf is situated on a ridge bounded by Kefira Valley to the north and Hamisha Valley to the south; the elevation is around 500 m above MSL. It lies at the end of a 5-kilometer road that passes through

. Nataf spring, overlooking the Kefira Valley, is a popular

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

destination. The spring flows year-round but with little water during the dry summer. The water flows from a cave via a channel to a pear-shaped cistern (5X5 meters), from which it is impossible to exit. Entering the cistern is dangerous and many hikers have had to be rescued in a state of exhaustion and hypothermia.

Notable residents

* Avram Burg (b. 1955), politician, author and businessman * Bradley Burston, retired journalist *

Ehud Shapiro Ehud Shapiro (; born 1955) is an Israeli scientist, entrepreneur, artist, and political activist who is Professor of Computer Science and Biology at the Weizmann Institute of Science. With international reputation, he made contributions to many s ...

(b. 1955), multi-disciplinary scientist, artist and entrepreneur

References

{{Mateh Yehuda Regional Council Community settlements Populated places established in 1982 Populated places in Jerusalem District 1982 establishments in Israel