Shafir

Shafir
Shafir
Shafir
Shafir is located in Ashkelon region of Israel
Shafir
Shafir
Location within Ashkelon region of Israel
Coordinates: 31°41′48″N 34°43′43″E / 31.69667°N 34.72861°E / 31.69667; 34.72861
Country Israel
DistrictSouthern
SubdistrictAshkelon
CouncilShafir
AffiliationHapoel HaMizrachi
Founded15 August 1949
FounderCzechoslovak and
Hungarian immigrants
Population
 (2024)
1,074

Shafir (Hebrew: שָׁפִיר) is a moshav in southern Israel. Located in the Shephelah near Kiryat Malakhi, it falls under the jurisdiction of Shafir Regional Council. In 2024 it had a population of 1,074.

History

Shafir was founded on 15 August 1949 by immigrants from Hungary and Czechoslovakia, and was built on the land of the former Palestinian village of al-Sawafir al-Sharqiyya, which had been depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. It was named after the Biblical city of Shafir that is mentioned in the Book of Micah 1:11, which also means "good and beautiful". Today Shafir is made up of a Jewish settlers from Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, and Iran.

References

  1. 1 2 "Regional Statistics". Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 21 March 2026.
  2. ↑ Khalidi, Walid (1992), All That Remains: The Palestinian Villages Occupied and Depopulated by Israel in 1948, Washington D.C.: Institute for Palestine Studies, p. 135, ISBN 0-88728-224-5
  3. ↑ Vilnai, Ze'ev (1980). "Shafir (b)". Ariel Encyclopedia (in Hebrew). Vol. 8. Israel: Am Oved. p. 7996.