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Hovevei Zion (transliterated Hebrew, alternatively Hibbat Zion; English translation: Lovers of Zion) organizations are considered the forerunner and foundation of the modern Zionist movement. The first aliyah: Biluim used to wearing traditional Arab headdress, the kuffiyeh Some of the first Zionist groups were established in Eastern European countries in the early 1880s with the aim to promote Jewish immigration to the Land of Israel, then a part of Ottoman Empire, and advance Jewish settlement there, particularly agricultural. Most of them stayed away from the politics.
In 1882, a group of Hovevey Zion found Rishon LeZion, the first Zionist settlement in the land of Israel. They later were reinforced by Bilu pioneers who strengthen the settlement and enlarge it. For many years, text books gave Bilu the credit for the establishment of Rishon, but in the last decades - after a campain by the veterans of Rishon and their sons - Hovevey Zion were given the credit as Rishon LeZion founders.
In 1884, thirty-six delegates met in Kattowitz, Germany (today Katowice, Poland). Rabbi Samuel Mohilever was elected president and Leon Pinsker chairman of the organization they named Hovevei Zion. The group tried to secure financial help from Baron Edmond James de Rothschild and other philanthropists to aid Jewish settlements and to organize educational courses.
In the Russian Empire, waves of anti-Jewish pogroms of 1881-1884 (some allegedly state-sponsored), as well as the May Laws introduced by Tsar Alexander III of Russia in 1882, deeply affected Jewish communities. Numerous informal groups sprung up, varied in their views, political and religious affiliation, size and activities.
In order to attain legal recognition by the authorities, Russian branch of Hovevei Zion had to meet a demand to be registered as a charity. Early in 1890 its establishment was approved as "The Society for the Support of Jewish Farmers and Artisans in Syria and Eretz-Israel," which came to be known as "The Odessa Committee."
See also
External links - The BILU movement and Hovevei Zion (http://www.wzo.org.il/home/movement/bilu.htm) at the WZO
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