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Netanya - History |
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Netanya
was founded in 1928 and named for the American-Jewish merchant and
philanthropist Nathan Straus (1848–1931). The site was originally
established as a non-collective agricultural settlement (moshav) devoted
to citrus cultivation. Jewish immigration from Nazi-held European
countries after 1933, and further immigration after World War II, gave it
an increasingly urban character, and Netanya is now the focus of a large
urban agglomeration.
Israel
is one of the world's largest exporters of diamonds (this is the
country's principal export to the U.S.) and Netanya is home to many
diamond-cutters and polishers who came to Palestine
primarily from
Belgium before and during World War II. A
new industrial area developed in Netanya since 1950–52 includes
textile mills and factories producing rubber and plastic articles,
complex machinery, and raw
Netanya
has also developed as a resort centre.
As
a coastal city of 170,000 people, it has a new image. It used to be known
as a working- and small-business-class town that catered to tourists, and
as a cheaper and less crowded urban alternative to Tel Aviv, one that had
grown fast in recent years with new immigrants. Netanya has come to be
thought of by Israelis as simply "Chicago."
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materials for the pharmaceutical industries.
Just south of the city is one of Israel's largest breweries.
