Magdiel
Magdiel(Hebrew:מגדיאל) is one of the four original communities of Jewish farmers who combined in 1964 to formHod Hasharon,Israel. It was founded in 1924 and according to acensusconducted in 1931 by theBritish Mandate authoritieshad a population of 740.[1]
History
[edit]Before the 20thcentury, the site of Magdiel formed part of the Forest of Sharon, a hallmark of the region's historical landscape. It was an open woodland dominated by Mount Tabor Oak (Quercus ithaburensis), which extended fromKfar Yonain the north toRa'ananain the south. The local Arab inhabitants traditionally used the area for pasture, firewood, and intermittent cultivation. The intensification of settlement and agriculture in thecoastal plainduring the 19thcentury led todeforestationand subsequent environmental degradation known fromHebrew sources.[2]
Magdiel was established as amoshava,starting on 4,000dunamsof land purchased near the Arab village ofBiyar 'Adas.The initial population included Jewish immigrants fromRussia,PolandandLithuania,later joined by a group from theNetherlands.[3]In 1964, four villages – Magdiel, Ramatayim, Hadar, and Ramat Hadar – merged to become Hod Hasharon.[4]
The Magdiel Central Synagogue was built between 1930 and 1944, and was inaugurated in an uncompleted stage in 1931. In the run up to independence the synagogue served as aHaganahheadquarters.[5]In 2009 a smallHaganahweapons cache dating back to the 1948 war was found at the synagogue.[5]
The place name is symbolicMeged El(i.e., the oil of God) "[6]and appears in theTanach/Old Testament.Magdiel was the name of anEdomiteclan (possibly the name of an eponymous chieftain) mentioned inGenesis36:43. Its invocation ofElmay show that that deity was worshipped in Edom, along withKausand others.
Magdiel is the location of aYouth Aliyahboarding schoolof that name that took in young survivors of theHolocaust.[7]Other schools there include a comprehensive secondary school and a technical vocational boarding school of theORTeducational network.
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Magdiel 1927 -
Magdiel 1927 -
Magdiel 1942 1:20,000 -
Magdiel 1945 1:250,000 -
Magdiel soldiers during the1948 Arab–Israeli War
References
[edit]- ^Mills, 1932, p.14
- ^Marom, Roy (2022-12-01)."יער השרון (אל-ע'אבה) בתקופה העות'מאנית: בתקופה מהמחקר חדשות תובנות הגיאוגרפי-היסטורי The Oak Forest of the Sharon (al-Ghaba) in the Ottoman Period: New Insights from Historical- Geographical Studies".Muse.5:90–107.
- ^Encyclopedia Judaica, Keter Publishing House, Jerusalem, 1972, Vol. 8, p. 802, "Hod Ha-Sharon"
- ^Encyclopedia Judaica, Keter Publishing House, Jerusalem, 1972, Vol. 8, p. 802, "Hod Ha-Sharon"
- ^abLappin, Yaakov (5 February 2009)."Hagana weapons cache found in Hod Hasharon synagogue".Jerusalem Post.Retrieved29 November2023.
- ^Place names in Israel. A Compendium of Place names in Israel compiled from various sources. Translated from Hebrew, Jerusalem 1962, p.106 (Israel Prime Minister's Office. The Israeli Program for Scientific Translations) (Location of the book:Ben Zvi Institute Library,12 Abarbanel St., Jerusalem;in the online-catalogue[permanent dead link]
- ^"NJ Jewish News | Survivor describes escape route through Christianity and back again".Archived fromthe originalon 2007-10-26.Retrieved2008-08-19.