Ruhama

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Ruhama
Founded	1911 (original settlement) 1944 (modern settlement)
Founded by	Hashomer Hatzair members
Region	Negev
Industries	Agriculture, manufacturing
Affiliation	Kibbutz Movement

Ruhama (Hebrew: רוחמה‎),which takes its name from the Book of Joshua and the Hebrew word root 'rachmanut', meaning "compassion", is a kibbutz in the Negev desert in southern Israel. The original settlement established in 1911, is considered the first modern Jewish settlement in the Negev.^[1]

It is under the jurisdiction of the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council.

The membership of Ruhama totals some 200 families.^[2]

Contents 1 Geography 2 History 3 Economy 4 Attractions 5 Prominent Residents 6 Footnotes 7 References 8 External links

[edit] Geography

The nearest city was Sderot, located approximately 10 km east of the Ruhama.

The kibbutz is surrounded by a nature reserve.

[edit] History

Ruhama was first established in 1911, on land purchased in the same year by the "Remnant of Israel" (Hebrew: שארית ישראל‎) company, set up by Russian Jews in Moscow to invest money in Jewish agricultural settlements in the Land of Israel. The group also included members of the socialist Zionist movement Hashomer Hatzair. However, the initial settlers were expelled by the Ottoman Empire in 1917; a dilapidated museum building is all that is left of that original settlement.^[1]

HaShomer used the Ruhama farm as its main forward base along the Gaza-Beersheva line^[3].

Two subsequent attempts to re-establish the settlement during the period of the British Mandate were curtailed by the Arab riots in 1929 and 1936. The kibbutz was eventually successfully re-established in 1944, and grew to a population of 399.

In 2005, the Film "Sweet Mud" was filmed in Ruhama and Nir Eliyahu.^[4]

In 2006, a group of the older, diehard communist ideologues blocked an attempt by the younger, more liberal members of Ruhama to establish a synagogue.^[5]

[edit] Economy

The economy is based on four agricultural branches: field crops, irrigated cultivation, orchards and henhouses, but agricultural crops do not generate enough income to support the kibbutz, so to earn a living, many of Ruhama's members have taken jobs outside the kibbutz.

Like many kibbutzim, Ruhama went through a process of privatization in the late 1990's.

The kibbutz operates a factory which produces brushes, including toothbrushes, which are exported. In 1984, Ruhama established a PCB design company.

Ruhama has a full-care center for elderly patients, with about 25 beds, attending to patients suffering from Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, dementia, paralysis and stroke. With membership dropping from 350 members to 210, upkeep of the senior care center has meant self-taxation and general belt tightening on the kibbutz.

A symbol of how greatly times have changed, the kibbutz cut community services like the dining room, so that every family now cares for itself.

[edit] Attractions

Atar Ha-Rishonim, or The Negev Pioneers, just outside the fence surrounding the kibbutz, is where the first Jewish settlers in modern times settled in the Negev. The site includes several buildings and a well, as as farming tools used almost 100 years ago.

[edit] Prominent Residents

• Recha Frier, a deputy to Zionist leader Henrietta Szold, first lived on a kibbutz near the Lebanese border, but moved to Ruhama in 1947.

[edit] Footnotes

[edit] References

• From Fighters to Soldiers: How the Israeli Defense Forces Began Written by Yaacov N. Goldstein, Published 1998 Sussex Academic Press,ISBN 1902210018, Page 68 tells story of Ruhama farm as southern base for HaShomer
• Building Together for Peace and Development article by Ruth Seligman, for Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs; mentions Kibbutz Ruhama as residential center for Negev Institute for Strategies in Peace and Development (NISPED).

[edit] External links

• Ruhama Negev.net
• Kibbutz Ruhama site by Kenny Sahr, with pictures of the kibbutz

Coordinates: 31°30′00N, 34°42′00E