Yagur () is a

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 ...

northern Israel The Northern District (; ) is one of Israel's six administrative districts. The Northern District has a land area of 4,473 km2, making it the second largest district in Israel. The Golan Heights has been run as a sub-district of the North ...

. Located on the northeastern slopes of

Mount Carmel Mount Carmel (; ), also known in Arabic as Mount Mar Elias (; ), is a coastal mountain range in northern Israel stretching from the Mediterranean Sea towards the southeast. The range is a UNESCO biosphere reserve. A number of towns are situat ...

, about 9 km southeast of

Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...

, it falls under the jurisdiction of Zevulun Regional Council. In it had a population of , making it one of the two largest kibbutzim in the country.

Name

The name Yagur was taken by the founding members from a nearby Arab village called " Yajur". There is a site with a similar name (Yagur) mentioned in the

Book of Joshua The Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and the Old Testament, and is the first book of the Deuteronomistic history, the story of Israel from the conquest of Canaan to the Babylonian captivity, Babylonian exile. It tells of the ...

(), though it was located in territory belonging to the

Tribe of Judah According to the Hebrew Bible, the tribe of Judah (, ''Shevet Yehudah'') was one of the twelve Tribes of Israel, named after Judah (son of Jacob), Judah, the son of Jacob. Judah was one of the tribes to take its place in Canaan, occupying it ...

, far to the south.

History

Yagur was founded in 1922 by a settlement group called ''Ahva'' ''(Brotherhood)''. At first, the members worked drying up the

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

s surrounding the

Kishon River The Kishon River (, ; , – ''the intermittent river''; alternative Arabic, ) is a river in Israel that flows into the Mediterranean Sea near the city of Haifa. Course The Kishon River is a perennial stream in Israel. Its furthest source is t ...

and preparing the land for permanent settlement. They established various agricultural divisions and the kibbutz began to grow. On 11 April 1931 three members of the kibbutz were killed by members of a cell of the Black Hand. During the Mandate era, Yagur was an important center for the

Haganah Haganah ( , ) was the main Zionist political violence, Zionist paramilitary organization that operated for the Yishuv in the Mandatory Palestine, British Mandate for Palestine. It was founded in 1920 to defend the Yishuv's presence in the reg ...

. During

Operation Agatha Operation Agatha (Saturday, June 29, 1946), sometimes called Black Sabbath () or Black Saturday because it began on the Jewish sabbath, was a police and military operation conducted by the British authorities in Mandatory Palestine during the J ...

on 29 June 1946, the

British army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

conducted a major raid on the kibbutz and located a major arms depot hidden there after receiving a tip from informants. More than 300 rifles, some 100 2-inch mortars, more than 400,000 bullets, some 5,000 grenades and 78 revolvers were confiscated. Many members of the kibbutz were arrested.

Economy

The economy is now based on diversified

agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

and

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

. The kibbutz operates a 5-month work-study program for young adults (18-28) in which participants learn conversational

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 ...

and work in the kibbutz.

Notable people

* Yisrael Bar-Yehuda (1895–1965),

Knesset The Knesset ( , ) is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Israel. The Knesset passes all laws, elects the President of Israel, president and Prime Minister of Israel, prime minister, approves the Cabinet of Israel, cabinet, and supe ...

member * Uziel Gal (1923–2002), designer of the Uzi submachine gun * Yoel Marcus (1932–2022),

Haaretz ''Haaretz'' (; originally ''Ḥadshot Haaretz'' – , , ) is an List of newspapers in Israel, Israeli newspaper. It was founded in 1918, making it the longest running newspaper currently in print in Israel. The paper is published in Hebrew lan ...

commentator *

Itamar Marzel Itamar Marzel (; born May 16, 1949) is an Israeli former basketball player. He played the point guard position. He played in the Israeli Premier Basketball League, and for the Israel national basketball team. Biography Marzel was born in Israel, ...

(born 1949), basketball player *

Yoram Taharlev Yoram Taharlev (; 24 January 1938 – 6 January 2022) was an Israeli poet, lyricist, and author. He wrote lyrics for hundreds of songs recorded by prominent composers and performers. Biography Yoram Taharlev was born on Kibbutz Yagur to Yaffa ...

(1938–2022), poet, lyricist, author *

Ruth Westheimer Karola Ruth Westheimer (née Siegel; June 4, 1928 – July 12, 2024), better known as Dr. Ruth, was a German and American sex therapist and talk show host. Westheimer was born in Germany to a Jewish family. As the Nazis came to power, her paren ...

German-American sex therapist * Assaf Yaguri (1931–2000), Knesset member

Gallery

Image:The camp of gdud 'Shomeria'.jpg, Shomeria pioneer group at Yagur, 1921 File:יגור - מראה כללי-JNF029030.jpeg, Yagur 1926 File:יגור - צילום אויר-JNF035082.jpeg, Yagur 1939 File:יגור - מראה כללי-JNF022034.jpeg, Yagur 1945 File:Kibutz Yagur after the Black Shabath (Operation Agatha) H ih 040.JPG, A room in Kibbutz Yagur after a weapon search conducted during

. File:Yagur.jpg, Members of the Yiftach Brigade training at Yagur, 1948 File:נחל יגור בזרימה חזקה באזור הסכר בכנעסה לקיבוץ יגור.jpg, Nahal Yagur after rainfall

References

External links

Kibbutz website

Kibbutz Yagur Collection
(in Hebrew) on the Digital collections of

Younes and Soraya Nazarian Library The Younes and Soraya Nazarian Library is a central academic library of the University of Haifa, and one of the largest in Israel. It is also one of the most progressive Israeli libraries in terms of service, collection, physical space, and libra ...

, University of Haifa {{Authority control Kibbutzim Kibbutz Movement Populated places established in 1922 Populated places in Haifa District 1922 establishments in Mandatory Palestine