Holon

Holon
Holon
Hebrew transcription(s)
• Hebrew	חוֹלוֹן
• ISO 259	Ḥolon
Arabic transcription(s)
• Arabic	حولون
	; Logo
	; Logo
	Holon
	Coordinates: 32°01′N 34°46′E / 32.017°N 34.767°ECoordinates: 32°01′N 34°46′E / 32.017°N 34.767°E
District	Tel Aviv
Founded	1936
	Government
• Type	City (from 1950)
• Mayor	Moti Sasson
	Area
• Total	18,927 dunams (18.9 km2 / 7.3 sq mi)
	Population (2009)
• Total	184,700
Name meaning	(Little) sand
Website	holon.muni.il

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For other uses, see Holon (disambiguation).

Location of Holon in the Tel Aviv District

Holon (Hebrew: חוֹלוֹן‎‎ (audio) (help·info)) is a city in Israel, on the central coastal strip south of Tel Aviv.

Holon is part of the metropolitan area known as Gush Dan in the Tel Aviv District. In 2009, it had a population of 184,700.^[1] Holon has the second-largest industrial zone in Israel, after Haifa.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Etymology

The name of the city comes from the Hebrew word holon, meaning "(little) sand". The name Holon also appears in the Bible: "And Holon with its suburbs, and Debir with its suburbs" (Book of Joshua, 21:15).^[2]

[edit] History

Holon was founded on sand dunes six kilometers from Tel Aviv in 1935.^[3] The Łódzia textile factory was established there by Jewish immigrants from Łódź, Poland, along with many other industrial enterprises.^[3] In the early months of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Holon was on the front line, with constant shooting taking place on the border with the village of Tel A-Rish to its northwest—a suburb of Arab Jaffa—and clashes also in the direction of the town of Yazur to the east. An attack by the Holon-based Haganah militia units on Tel A-Rish was repulsed with considerable losses. However, the fall of Jaffa—center of the Palestinian Arab forces in this region—to an attack launched from Tel Aviv precipitated the fall of both Tel A-Rish.^{[clarification needed]}^{[citation needed]}

After the establishment of the state, Holon expanded to include Tel A-Rish (renamed "Tel Giborim", "The Mound of the Heroes") and the orange groves of Yazur. In the 1950s, the city was populated by Jewish immigrants from Arab countries.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Urban development

Design Museum Holon

Holon, an important part of the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, is experiencing a new burst of building on the remaining sand dunes to its south, creating a continuum with Rishon Lezion. Environmentalist groups have been campaigning to preserve some of the sand dunes, with their unique flora and fauna, and prevent them from all being engulfed by the real estate boom.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Local government

[edit] Mayors

Haim Kugel – 1940 to 1953
Pinhas Eylon – 1953 to 1987
Haim Sharon – 1987 to 1988
Moshe Rom – 1988 to 1993
Moti Sasson – 1993 to present

[edit] Culture

Yanshul, symbol of the Holon Children's Museum

Holon used to host the annual Storytellers Festival, now held in Giv'atayim. It also hosts the annual Yemay Zemer song festival and a spring festival devoted to women. Daniel Barenboim organizes an annual summer music camp in the city.^{[citation needed]}

Since the election of Moti Sasson as mayor of Holon in 1993, many cultural projects have been inaugurated. Billing itself as a "children's city," Holon is home to the Holon Children's Museum and the Mediatheque youth theater.^[4] Holon also plays host each year to a street carnival in celebration of the Jewish holiday of Purim, the Adloyada. Thousands of children dress up in costumes and the streets close down for a parade featuring colorful floats.^{[citation needed]}

The city has many parks and lush greenery. The park on the corner of HaHistadrut and Eilat streets is famed for the backgammon or "shesh besh" tournaments which take place daily. The Holon cemetery contains memorials for Jewish communities wiped out in the Holocaust.^{[citation needed]}

The Design Museum Holon, which opened in 2010 near the "Médiathèque" and the Faculty of Design of Holon Institute of Technology, is the first Israeli museum of design.

[edit] Transportation

Mediatheque cultural center

Holon is surrounded by a few intercity roads. The main road serving the city is the Ayalon Expressway, passing alongside Holon's western border. Road 44 passes by on the northeastern side of the city, connecting it with Lod and Ramle. Highway 4 passes by on the eastern border.^{[citation needed]}

Holon's public transport is based solely on bus service, operated by the Egged and Dan transport companies. The majority of the bus routes are regional, connecting the city to neighboring cities in the metropolitan area, but there are also a few local routes.^{[citation needed]}

Train service to the city is planned to be established in 2011, with the opening of the "Tel Aviv—West Rishon Le Zion" suburban line. Four stations would serve the city: "Sha'ar Holon" at the northern main entrance to the city, and "Wolfson", "Yoseftal", and "Komemiyut" along the western side.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Samaritan community

Holon's Samaritan synagogue

In 1954, the president of Israel, Yitzhak Ben-Zvi, helped to establish a Samaritan quarter on the outskirts of Holon. The quarter was named Neve Pinchas after Pinhas Ben-Abraham, the high priest of the Samaritan community.^[5]

Holon is one of only two cities in the world to have a Samaritan community, the other being the village of Kiryat Luza on Mount Gerizim above Nablus on the West Bank. That community fled Nablus for Kiryat Luza following the outbreak of the First Intifada (1987–93).^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Sports

Hapoel Holon (basketball) – premier league, national champion in 2008 and state cup holder in 2009
Hapoel Tzafririm Holon F.C. (football) – Liga Alef [3rd tier]
Maccabi Kiryat-Sharett Holon (handball) – Liga Leumit [1st tier]
Hapoel Holon chess (chess) – Liga Leumit [1st tier]