Topic summary
Rishon LeZion
31°57′N34°48′E / 31.950°N 34.800°E
Rishon LeZion (Hebrew: רִאשׁוֹן לְצִיּוֹן, lit. "First to Zion") is a city in Israel, located along the central Israeli coastal plain eight kilometres (5 mi) south of Tel Aviv. It is part of the Gush Danmetropolitan area. With a population of 259,275 as of 2024, Rishon LeZion is the fifth-largest city in Israel.
Founded in 1882 by Jewish immigrants from the Russian Empire who were part of the First Aliyah, it was the first settlement founded in Israel by the New Yishuv and the second Jewish farm settlement established in Ottoman Syria in the 19th century, after Petah Tikva.
The city is a member of Forum 15, which is an association of fiscally autonomous cities in Israel that do not depend on national balancing or development grants.