Kfar Giladi
| Kfar Giladi | ||
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| Founded | 1916 | |
| Founded by | Hashomer members | |
| Region | Upper Galilee | |
| Affiliation | Kibbutz Movement | |
| Coordinates | 33°14′33″N 35°34′30″E / 33.2425°N 35.575°ECoordinates: 33°14′33″N 35°34′30″E / 33.2425°N 35.575°E | |
| Population | 499[1] (2008) | |
 Kfar Giladi
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| Website | www.kfar-giladi.org.il | |
Kfar Giladi (Hebrew: כְּפַר גִּלְעָדִי, lit. Giladi Village) is a kibbutz in the Galilee Panhandle of northern Israel. Located south of Metula on the Naftali Mountains above the Hula Valley and along the Lebanese border, it falls under the jurisdiction of Upper Galilee Regional Council.
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[edit] History
The kibbutz was founded in 1916 by members of Hashomer on land owned by the Jewish Colonization Association, and was named after Israel Giladi, one of the founders of the Hashomer movement. The area was subject to intermittent border adjustments between the British and the French, and in 1919, the British relinquished the northern section of the Upper Galilee containing Tel Hai, Metula, Hamra, and Kfar Giladi to the French jurisdiction. After the Arab attack on Tel Hai in 1920, it was temporarily abandoned. Ten months later, the settlers returned. Tel Hai was absorbed into Kfar Giladi in 1926. Several older buildings stand on the kibbutz that memorialize previous battles on the site, before and during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
On August 6, 2006, during the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict, twelve reserve IDF soldiers were killed after being hit by a Katyusha rocket launched by Hezbollah from Southern Lebanon. The group of artillery gunners were gathering on the kibbutz in preparation for action in the conflict.
[edit] Economy
Kfar Giladi is home to several diverse industries, including agriculture, a quarry, nurseries, an eyewear factory (Galilee Optics, which closed in 2005) and a modern hotel.
The agricultural activities of the kibbutz include the growing of apples and avocados, the main crops that are considered a significant portion of the kibbutz's income. Volunteers are solicited to help pick the fruits during the harvest season along with kibbutz members. Other crops include lychees, corn, cotton, wheat, and potatoes. Livestock includes chickens and dairy cows, and fish ponds.
The kibbutz hotel is a modern facility with several three-story structures located close to a communal dining room and indoor and outdoor pools. Cafeteria and hotel workers include lifelong kibbutz residents and students from the nearby Tel-Hai Academic College, Israel's northernmost institution of higher education. Some college staffers come up for a day or two a week from Tel Aviv and other points south and use the hotel for regular weekly lodging.
[edit] Archaeology
An archaeological site at Kfar Giladi was excavated by J. Kaplan in 1957 and 1962.[2] It revealed remains four stages of occupation in different periods. An early neolithic stage was suggested to date between 6400 and 5800 BC. Finds included Dark faced burnished ware with incisions and rope patterns.[3] Flints included axes, adzes, arrowheads and denticulated sickle blade elements. Similar finds were located in a later neolithic stage including a female clay figurine dating between 5800 and 5400 BC. Two later periods of occupation were attributed to chalcolithic occupations similar to Wadi Rabah.[4]
Another nearby neolithic site was excavated by M. Lechevallier & G. Dollfus in 1973.[5] They found Byblos points and tips of Jericho points and Amuq points, polished cutting axes, chisels and fine-toothed sickles. Finds were similar to Tell Ramad.[5]
[edit] References
- ^ "Locality File" (XLS). Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. 2008. http://www.cbs.gov.il/ishuvim/ishuv2008/bycode.xls. Retrieved 2010-06-25.
- ^ Kaplan, J., Kfar Giladi, Israel Exploration Journal, 8:274, 1958
- ^ Council for British Research in the Levant, p. 54 & 63; British School of Archaeology in Jerusalem; British Institute at Amman for Archaeology and History (1973). Levant. British School of Archaeology in Jerusalem. http://books.google.com/books?id=cbVtAAAAMAAJ. Retrieved 1 May 2011.
- ^ Moore, A.M.T. (1978). The Neolithic of the Levant. Oxford University, Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis. pp. 436–442. http://ancientneareast.tripod.com/182.html.
- ^ a b Francis Hours (1994). Atlas des sites du proche orient (14000-5700 BP). Maison de l'Orient méditerranéen. ISBN 9782903264536. http://books.google.com/books?id=KlZtAAAAMAAJ. Retrieved 1 May 2011.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Kfar Giladi |
- Official website (Hebrew)
- Kfar Giladi Jewish Agency for Israel
- Atlas des sites Prochaine-Orient 14000 et 5700 BP - MOM's online application - Atlas of Near East Archaeological Sites 14000 to 5700 BP
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