Be'er Sheva is a city in Israel and the largest city of the Negev desert, often known as the "Capital of the Negev". In 2004, Be'er Sheva had a population of 184,500 making it the fifth largest city in Israel. 20 years before, the population was just 110,800. It is the administrative center for the southern region and home of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Soroka Hospital, and the Israeli Sinfonietta of Be'er Sheva. The city dates back at least to the time of Abraham. The city has expanded considerably since the founding of the state in 1948. Today the town is inhabited mainly by Jews who originally immigrated to Israel from Arab countries and the former Soviet Union. Be'er Sheva is surrounded by a number of satellite towns: Omer, Lehavim and Meitar are mainly Jewish towns and there are a number of Bedouin towns around Beersheba the largest are Rahat, Tel Sheva and Laqye. Hebrew (עִבְרִית ‘Ivrit) is a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic language family spoken by more than seven million people in Israel with the West Bank, the United States, and Jewish communities around the world. ... Image File history File links He-Beer_Sheva. ... The Arabic language (Arabic: ‎ translit: ), or simply Arabic (Arabic: ‎ translit: ), is the largest member of the Semitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family (classification: South Central Semitic) and is closely related to Hebrew and Aramaic. ... Image File history File links ArBeersheva. ... A panorama of Sydney, Australia at night. ... There are six main districts of Israel, known in Hebrew as mehozot (singular: mehoz) and thirteen sub-districts known as nafot (singular: nafa). ... The South District of Israel, highlighted. ... Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (הלשכה המרכזית לסטטיסטיקה) is a state organization for the creation and maintenance of numeric data related to populations vis-à-vis the ethnic makeup of Israel and its cities. ... A dunam or dönüm, dunum, donum is a unit of area. ... Ruins in the Negev desert The Negev (Hebrew נֶגֶב;, Tiberian Hebrew Néḡeḇ; Arabic النقب an-Naqab) is the desert region of southern Israel. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... אוניברסיטת בן-גוריון בנגב, The Ben-Gurion University of the Negev The Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (אוניברסיטת בן-גוריון בנגב) was founded in 1969, in Beer Sheva, Israel. ... It has been suggested that Abraham (Hebrew Bible) be merged into this article or section. ... 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1948 calendar). ... The Arabs (Arabic: عرب ) are a large and heterogeneous ethnic group found throughout the Middle East and North Africa, originating in the Arabian Peninsula of southwest Asia. ... Omer (Hebrew: עומר) is a town (local council) in the Southern District of Israel, bordering Beersheba. ... Lehavim (Hebrew: להבים) is a town (local council) in the Southern District of Israel. ... Meitar is a small town north-east of Beersheba, in the southern region of Israel. ... Bedouin resting at Mount Sinai Bedouin, derived from the Arabic , a generic name for a desert-dweller, is a term generally applied to Arab nomadic groups, who are found throughout most of the desert belt extending from the Atlantic coast of the Sahara via the Western Desert, Sinai, and Negev... Rahat (רהט) is a city in the Southern District of Israel. ... Tel Sheva (Hebrew: תל שבע) is a Bedouin town (local council) in the Southern District of Israel, bordering Beer Sheva. ... Lakiya, or Laqye (Hebrew: לקיה) is a Bedouin town (local council) in the Southern District of Israel. ...

Soroka Hospital, Be'er Sheva

Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1965x757, 210 KB) Soroka Hospital. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1965x757, 210 KB) Soroka Hospital. ...

History

City logo

Image File history File links Bslogo. ...

Prehistory and Biblical era

An archeological site called Tel Beer Sheva, a few kilometers north-east of modern day Beer-Sheva has evidence of being populated since the 4th millennium BC. It was destroyed and rebuilt many times during its history. (5th millennium BC – 4th millennium BC – 3rd millennium BC - other millennia) // Events Sumerian city of Ur in Mesopotamia (40th century BC); Sumerian hegemony in Mesopotamia, with the invention of writing, base-60 mathematics, astronomy and astrology, civil law, complex hydrology, the sailboat, the wheel, and the potters wheel, 4000...

Etymology and the Biblical narrative

Biblically, the site of Be'er Sheva is mentioned in two of the three Genesis stories of a wife confused for a sister as a location where an oath of non-aggression was made between the Philistines, represented by a king named Abimelech, and the Israelites. The bible describes the oath being made on two separate occasions by the Israelites, once represented by Abraham, and once by Isaac. Be'er Sheva is also mentioned in Joshua 19:2. Beersheba was the southernmost city of Israel in Biblical times hence the expression "from Dan to Beersheba" to describe the whole kingdom. Genesis (Greek: Γένεσις, having the meanings of birth, creation, cause, beginning, source and origin), also called The First Book of Moses, is the first book of Torah (five books of Moses), and is the first book of the Tanakh, part of the Hebrew Bible; it is also the first book of... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... The historic Philistines (Hebrew plishtim פלשתים) (see other uses below) were a people who inhabited the southern coast of Canaan around the time of the arrival of the Israelites, their territory being named Philistia in later contexts. ... It has been suggested that Abraham (Hebrew Bible) be merged into this article or section. ... It has been suggested that Ishaq be merged into this article or section. ...

Between the two Abimelech stories, there are several different etymologies given for the origin of Beersheba's name: Etymology is the study of the origins of words. ...

• in memory of the oath of Abraham and Abimelech (well of the oath)
• in memory of seven wells dug by Isaac (seven wells), though only 3 or 4 are identified
• in memory of the oath of Isaac and Abimelech (well of the oath)
• in memory of the seven ewes which stood witness to Abraham and Abimelech's oath (well of the seven).

In the midrash, which generally exhibits a xenophobic attitude toward the Philistines, the last of these is seen as particularly reproachful, and the setting aside of these ewes is interpreted to have directly condemned seven righteous descendants of Abraham to death by the hand of Abimelech's descendants, namely condemning Hophni, Phinehas, Samson, Saul, and Saul's three sons, to death by the Philistines. In addition, the midrash extends the numerology to also be the ultimate cause of the destruction of seven sacred objects - named as the Tabernacle of the Congregation, the Second and First Temples, and unnamed sacred objects in Gilgal, Nob, Gideon, and Shiloh - and the reason that the Ark of the Covenant comes to abide amongst the Philistines for seven months. Midrash (Hebrew: מדרש; plural midrashim) is a Hebrew word referring to a method of exegesis of a Biblical text. ... Look up xenophobia in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Phinehas or Pinhas - פִּינְחָס, Standard Hebrew Pinəḥas, Tiberian Hebrew Pînəħās is a name shared by two characters in the Hebrew Bible. ... Samson or Shimshon (שִׁמְשׁוֹן Of the sun (perhaps proclaiming he was radiant and mighty) or [One who] Serves [God], Standard Hebrew Å imÅ¡on, Tiberian Hebrew Å imšôn) is the third to last of the Judges of the ancient Children of Israel mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. ... Saul (Hebrew Shaul meaning demanded) is: 1. ... The Tabernacle is known in Hebrew as the Mishkan ( משכן Place of [Divine] dwelling). It was to be a portable central place of worship for the Hebrews from the time they left ancient Egypt following the Exodus, through the time of the Book of Judges when they were engaged in conquering... Drawing of the Second Temple in Jerusalem during the time of Herod the Great A stone (2. ... Solomons Temple was the first Jewish temple in Jerusalem which functioned as a religious focal point for worship and the sacrifices known as the korbanot in ancient Judaism. ... Gilgal is a place name in the Hebrew Bible. ... Nob is: Nob, a village mentioned in the Book of Judges a slang term for the penis a British slang term for a person of wealth and social standing Nob the short-hand title for the self-proclaimed emperor of the internet. ... Gideon (גִּדְעוֹן, Standard Hebrew Gidʿon, Tiberian Hebrew Giḏʿôn) is a character who appears in the Bibles Book of Judges. ... Shiloh refers to a number of place names: There is Shiloh the Biblical site, for which see Shiloh (Biblical). ... A late 19th-century artists conception of the Ark of the Covenant, employing a Renaissance cassone for the Ark and cherubim as latter-day Christian angels The Ark of the Covenant (ארון הברית in Hebrew: aron habrit) is described in the Hebrew Bible as a sacred container built at the command...

The underlying origin of the still existing site is uncertain, though it certainly exhibits archaeological signs of religious use. There are many wells on the site, but only 3 are dated as far back as the early first millennium, each having been refaced by the romans. These are likely to be the three wells mentioned in the Isaac story - Esek, Sitnah, and Rehoboth. The presence of 3 rather than 7 wells, together with the awkwardness of interpreting Beersheba as seven wells, which grammatically should be written as Shebabeer, has lead this possibility to be generally discounted as a folk etymology. Folk etymology (or popular etymology) is a linguistic term for a category of false etymology which has grown up in popular lore, as opposed to one which arose in scholarly usage. ...

The stories also state that a religious foundation was made by the patriarchs at the site, with Isaac building an altar, and Abraham an Asherah grove. Until the reforms of Josiah, it appears that Beersheba was regarded as an holy place of great importance, it being frequently mentioned in the later parts of the bible as a noteworthy location for people to have an association with. In critical thought, it is hence seen as something that needed to be explained by the biblical authors, who chose to use folk etymologies and myths to do so. The most likely etymology to be correct is that which renders Be'er Sheva as well of the oath, though whether the oath refers to a single oath that took place in that location, or in fact refers to the general religious practice on the site - making of oaths - is a matter of debate. Josiah or Yoshiyahu (יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ supported of the LORD, Standard Hebrew Yošiyyáhu, Tiberian Hebrew Yôšiyyāhû) was king of Judah, and son of Amon and Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. ...

According to the documentary hypothesis, both the Elohist and Yahwist used a pre-existing source or folk-tale surrounding the site in producing their narrative of an oath having been made between a patriarch and Abimelech, the regional philistine overlord. Where they differ is in the atmosphere of the story - Abraham makes a fair treaty with Abimelech on friendly terms, but Isaac's makes his treaty with Abimelech in an atmosphere of squabbling. The documentary hypothesis is a hypothesis proposed by many historians and academics in the field of linguistics and source criticism that the Five Books of Moses (the Torah) are in fact a combination of documents from different sources rather than authored by one individual. ... The Elohist (E) is one of the sources of the torah postulated by the documentary hypothesis Nature of the Elohist text In this source Gods name is always presented as Elohim (Hebrew for God, or Power) until the revelation of Gods name to Moses, after which God is... The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ...

Later history

The latest inhabitants of Tel Be'er Sheva were the Byzantines, which abandoned the city at the 7th century. The Turkish Ottomans who had controlled Israel since the 16th century barely paid any interest to Be'er Sheva until the end of the 19th century. At the beginning of the 19th Century Be'er Sheva was noted by European pilgrims as ruined, with a well and Bedouin living nearby. Byzantine Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered around its capital in Constantinople. ... // Overview Events The Roman-Persian Wars end. ... The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power Imperial motto El Muzaffer Daima The Ever Victorious (as written in tugra) Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital İstanbul ( Constantinople/Asitane/Konstantiniyye ) Sovereigns Sultans of the Osmanli Dynasty Population ca 40 million Area 12+ million km² Establishment 1299 Dissolution October 29, 1923... (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to some dispute as to Europes actual borders. ... Bedouin resting at Mount Sinai Bedouin, derived from the Arabic , a generic name for a desert-dweller, is a term generally applied to Arab nomadic groups, who are found throughout most of the desert belt extending from the Atlantic coast of the Sahara via the Western Desert, Sinai, and Negev...

The Ottomans built a police station in Be'er Sheva at the end of the 19th century in order to control the Bedouin. This attracted a small settlement to the East of the city of Bedouin wishing to abandon nomadic life and some Arabs from Hebron, Gaza and elsewhere. The Ottomans planned and built a perfect town centre with straight roads and small characteristic buildings built with local materials (many of which stand today but in disrepair). The Ottomans also built a train station and a railway to Ashkelon and Gaza. Hebron (Arabic (help· info) al-Ḫalīl; Hebrew (help· info), Standard Hebrew Ḥevron, Tiberian Hebrew Ḥeḇrôn: derived from the word friend) is a town in the Southern Judea region of the West Bank of around 130,000 Palestinians and 500 Israeli settlers. ... Gaza City (alternatively, simply Gaza; Arabic غزة Ġazzah; Hebrew עזה Azza). ... Ashkelon or Ashqelon (Hebrew אַשְׁקְלוֹן; Standard Hebrew Ašqəlon; Tiberian Hebrew ʾAšqəlôn; Arabic عسقلان (help· info); Latin Ascalon) was an ancient Philistine seaport on the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea just north of Gaza. ... Gaza City (alternatively, simply Gaza; Arabic غزة Ġazzah; Hebrew עזה Azza). ...

On October 31, 1917, as part of the Sinai and Palestine campaign during World War I, the Australian 4th Light Horse Brigade, under Brigadier General William Grant, charged more than four miles at the Turkish trenches, overran them and captured the wells at Be'er Sheva. This is often reported as the last successful cavalry charge in history. During the period of the British Mandate of Palestine Be'er Sheva remained a small administrative centre, with police and local courts most residents worked for the British. According to the 1947 UN Partition Plan Be'er Sheva was destined to be part of an Arab entity. On 21 October 1948, as part of Operation Yoav, the Israel Defence Forces captured Be'er Sheva from the Egyptian Army, which had invaded Israel and captured Beersheba in May 1948. October 31 is the 304th day of the year (305th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 61 days remaining, as the final day of October. ... 1917 (MCMXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar. ... Combatants Allies: Serbia, Russia, France, Romania, Belgium, British Empire, United States, Italy, and others Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire Casualties Military dead:5 million Civilian dead:3 million Total dead:8 million Military dead:4 million Civilian dead:3 million Total dead:7 million The First World... Map of the territory under the British Mandate of Palestine. ... On 29 November 1947 the United Nations Partition Plan for Palestine or United Nations General Assembly Resolution 181, a plan to resolve the Arab-Jewish conflict in the British Mandate of Palestine, was approved by the United Nations General Assembly, at the UN World Headquarters in New York. ... October 21 is the 294th day of the year (295th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 71 days remaining. ... 1948 (MCMXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1948 calendar). ... Operation Yoav (also called Operation Ten Plagues or Operation Yoav) was an Israeli military operation carried out between October 15 - 22, 1948 in the Negev Desert in the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. ... The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) (Hebrew: צבא ההגנה לישראל Tsva Ha-Haganah Le-Yisrael ([Army] Force [for] the Defense of Israel), often abbreviated צהל Tsahal, alternative English spelling Tzahal, is the name of Israels armed forces (army, air force and navy). ... The Egyptian Army is the largest service within the Egyptian military establishment. ...

Until 2004 there were almost no terrorist attacks in Be'er Sheva but on 31 August 2004, 16 people were killed in 2 suicide bombings on buses in Beersheba for which the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas claimed responsibility. On August 28, 2005 another suicide bomber attacked this time at the central bus station seriusly injuring 2 security guards. (Those parts of Israel that border on the West Bank where there is an effective security fence have been proven to be almost free of terrorist attacks, the southern section of the fence, nearest to Be'er Sheva, is not expected to be effective until 2006.) August 31 is the 243rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (244th in leap years), with 122 days remaining. ... A suicide bombing is an attack using a bomb in which the individual(s) carrying the explosive materials composing the bomb intend(s) and expect(s) to die upon detonation (see suicide). ... The factual accuracy of this article is disputed. ... August 28 is the 240th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (241st in leap years), with 125 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The barrier route as of May 2005. ...

Neighborhoods

Be'er Sheva is divided into a number of small neighbourhoods that are mostly numbered. Shekhuna (Hebrew for neighbourhood) Alef (1), Bet (2), Gimmel (3), Dalet (4), Hey (5), Vav (6), Tet (9), Yud-Alef (11), Ramot, Neve Noy, Neve Ze'ev, Darom, the Old City, Nahal Beka and Nahal Ashan. (For no apparent reason there is no Shekhuna Zayin (7), Het (8) or Yod (10)). The Old City is somewhat run-down, and though it has a number of memorable buildings dating from Ottoman times, the municipality has done little to restore these gems. Some private organisations own these buildings and maintain them but most are ruins. North Dalet and parts of Gimmel have bad reputations for being populated by drug users, but the parts of these neighbourhoods that are closer to the University are full of students and are less affected by crime. Nahal Beka (The Beka river) is a neighborhood in Beer Sheba, Israel. ... Imperial motto (Ottoman Turkish) دولت ابد مدت Devlet-i Ebed-müddet (The Eternal State) The Ottoman Empire at the height of its power (1683) Official language Ottoman Turkish Capital Söğüt (1299-1326), Bursa (1326-1365), Edirne (1365-1453), İstanbul (1453-1922) Imperial anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Sovereigns Padishah of the Osmanl...

Beersheba Municipality

The current mayor of Be'er Sheva is Yaakov Turner, the deputy-mayors are David Bumfeld and Rubiq Danilovits and the vice-mayors are Sima Navon and Yitshaq Martsiano. Previous mayors are David Tuviahu, Zeev Zrizi, Eliyahu Nawi, Moshe Zilberman, Yitshaq Rager and David Bumfeld. The Be'er Sheva Municipality has been plagued for many years by an ineffectual leadership, a politicised work-force, plain corruption and a general lack of ability to fulfill even it basic tasks. The municipality suffers from a general malaise. No doubt low income from local taxes and bad financial planning are also contributing factors. The residents of Be'er Sheva experience a low level of infrastructure, including cultural and educational facilities, and a dysfunctional parks and litter departments. Some improvements have been made recently: in 2005 the Parks Department did not stop caring for the parks and cleaning the streets (unlike in 2004 when it failed to clean the streets or water the parks for a number of months), some cultural centres have been built (the Youth Centre opened in 2005 and the Cultural Centre should open in 2006), a street in the old city of Beersheba was renovated and the mayor has not been indicted of any serious crime during this current candidacy (unlike previous ones).

Demographics

According to the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), in 2003 Be'er Sheva had a population of 184,500 making it the 5th largest town in Israel, compared to 110,800 20 years previous. (Currently its population is estimated to be app. 200,000.) In 2001 the ethnic makeup of the city was 98.9% Jewish and other non-Arab, with no significant Arab population. See Population groups in Israel. According to CBS, in 2001 there were 86,500 males and 91,400 females. The population of the city was spread out with 31.8% 19 years of age or younger, 17.4% between 20 and 29, 19.6% between 30 and 44, 15.8% from 45 to 59, 4.0% from 60 to 64, and 11.4% 65 years of age or older. The population growth rate in 2001 was 2.9%. Many people come to live in Beersheba for short periods of time, e.g. to study in the university or to serve in the many army bases in, or near to, the town. Jews (Hebrew: יהודים, Yehudim) are followers of Judaism or, more generally, members of the Jewish people (also known as the Jewish nation, or the Children of Israel), an ethno-religious group descended from the ancient Israelites and converts who joined their religion. ... The Arabs (Arabic: عرب ) are a large and heterogeneous ethnic group found throughout the Middle East and North Africa, originating in the Arabian Peninsula of southwest Asia. ... Population groups in Israel are the major ethnic groups of Jews and Arabs. ...

Income

According to CBS, as of 2000, in the city there were 61,016 salaried workers and 3,010 are self-employed. The mean monthly wage in 2000 for a salaried worker in the city is 5,223 NIS, a real change of 5.3% over the course of 2000. Salaried males have a mean monthly wage of ILS 6,661 (a real change of 5.2%) versus ILS 3,760 for females (a real change of 3.9%). The mean income for the self-employed is 6,533. There are 4,719 people who receive unemployment benefits and 26,469 people who receive an income guarantee. The major employers in Beersheba are the municipality, Israel Defense Forces, Ben-Gurion University and the Soroka Medical Centre. There are also a number of electronics and chemical factories in Beersheba and the vicinity. 1 sheqel coin (1994–5). ... The Israel Defense Forces are part of the Israeli Security Forces. ... אוניברסיטת בן-גוריון בנגב, The Ben-Gurion University of the Negev The Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (אוניברסיטת בן-גוריון בנגב) was founded in 1969, in Beer Sheva, Israel. ...

Media:Example.ogglyyyyhkmnnnnnnnnnnn== Education == According to CBS, there are 81 schools and 33,623 students in the city. They are spread out as 60 elementary schools and 17,211 elementary school students, and 39 high schools and 16,412 high school students. 52.7% of 12th grade students were entitled to a matriculation certificate in 2001. There are also a number of private educational institutions mostly Yeshivoth that cater for the religious. Be'er Sheva is also the homekkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk of the first class Ben-Gurion University and some local colleges such as the Technical College of Be'er Sheva. Yeshiva or yeshivah (Hebrew: ישיבה pl. ... אוניברסיטת בן-גוריון בנגב, The Ben-Gurion University of the Negev The Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (אוניברסיטת בן-גוריון בנגב) was founded in 1969, in Beer Sheva, Israel. ...

Sports

The most popular sport in Be'er Sheva is football led by the Hapoel Beer Sheva team. The club was formed in 1949. The team has a history of two league championships (1975 and 1976), one national cup (1997) and two Toto cups (1989 and 1996). The local arena is the Wassermill stadium with a capacity of 14,000. The most successful sport in Be'er Sheva is Chess. The Chess club has won national championships and cups many many times and represented Israel in the European Cup. It hosted the world teams championship in 2005. The Chess club was founded in 1973 by Eliyahu Levant, who is still the dynamo behind the success of this club. e'er Shevaa has a higher percentage of grandmasters per capita - eight - than any other city worldwide, the majority of them immigrants from the former Soviet Union; the city of 183,000 has one grand master per 22,875 residents. Beersheba is also the home of The Camels-ASA Beer-Sheva;a successful rugby team—whose senior and youth squads have won several national titles (including the recent Senior National League 2004-2005 championship). Other sports in Be'er Sheva are wrestling and tennis. Football (soccer) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... Rugby union (often referred to as just rugby, or union) is a variant of rugby football. ... The Wrestlers from Uffizi Gallery, Florence. ... Tennis ball This article is about the sport. ...

Be'er Sheva has one of Israel's 14 tennis centers, which opened in 1991 and features 8 lighted courts.

External links

• Be'er Sheva Municipality website (In Hebrew)
• Ben-Gurion University
• Soroka University Medical Centre (In Hebrew)
• Be'er Sheva Theatre (In Hebrew)
• Camels Be'er Sheva Rugby in Israel (In Hebrew)
• Hapoel Be'er Sheva Football Club (In Hebrew)
• Central Bureau of Statistics