Gedera
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| Gedera | ||
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| Hebrew | גדרה | |
| Name Meaning | Fenced city | |
| Founded in | 1884 | |
| Government | Local council | |
| District | Center | |
| Population | 12 500 (2006) | |
| Jurisdiction | 14 500 dunams (14.5 km²) | |
Gedera, or Gdera (Hebrew: גדרה) is a town (local council) in the Center District of Israel. It is located between the cities Rehovot (north) and Ashdod (west), and borders the moshav Kidron.
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[edit] History
Gedera was founded in 1884 by members of the Bilu group, near the ruins of a biblical Israelite city with a similar name.
[edit] Name origin
The Bilu settlers settled near a village called Qatra, which was built by the Arabs over the ruins of an ancient Israelite city.
Those ruins were thought to have been the ruins of a biblical city called HaGdera (The fenced city) or another biblical city called Gderot (fences), and therefore the name Gedera (Fenced city) was chosen.
Today, it is believed that Ha'Gdera and Gderot were further to the east, near the slopes of the Judean mountains, and that the ruins that Qatra was built on were the ruins of an even greater biblical city, Ekron.
[edit] Geography and demographics
Gedera is built on 7 hills, which rise to the height of 80 meters above sea level. It has an area of 14,500 dunams (14.5 km²) and a population of 13,600 (end of 2004 estimate).
Gedera is famous for its pastoral countryside view. Surrounded by green hills and agricultural lands, on the west it is possible to see all the way to the coastal city of Ashdod, and on the east there is a clear view of the Judean Mountains and Jerusalem Mountains.
Gedera is considered to be the southern edge of central Israel, while Hadera is considered the northern edge, hence the Israeli expression "from Hadera to Gedera" to describe the most populated area in Israel.
[edit] Recent expansion and development
Gedera's position near the big south-central cities of Israel (Rehovot, Ashdod and Kiryat Gat), low prices for private homes and the fact that it's a green and quiet town yet it's in the central district (not far from Tel-Aviv and Jerusalem), make it very attractive to Israelis. Gedera is one of the faster-growing towns in Israel, with a 7.9% growth rate. Recently, major developments have taken place in one section, creating a housing development for well-to-do and middle class residents, which has been nicknamed 'New Gedera'.
This major development, funded and built by the Azzura Company, is a large agglomeration of new neighborhoods and low-rise apartment buildings. The development has expanded inhabited Gedera by over 10 kilometers and established a new downtown zone that will contain the new Gedera Mall by 2010. In total, the development is three-quarters completed, and of the completed sections, 70% inhabited. Once completed, the new section will contain 8,000 homes, and Gedera's population will stand at an estimated 40,000 people.
The major road Highway 7 was recently constructed alongside the border of Gedera, and so its presence next to Gedera will soon link the town directly to Israel's under-cosntruction cross-country highway, Highway 6.
[edit] External links
- Town's community website (Hebrew)
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| Cities | Hod HaSharon | Kfar Saba | Lod | Modi'in-Maccabim-Re'ut | Ness Ziona | Netanya | Petah Tikva | Qalansawe | Ra'anana | Ramla | Rehovot | Rishon LeZion | Rosh HaAyin | Tayibe | Tira | Yavne | Yehud-Monosson |  |
| Local councils | Be'er Ya'akov | Beit Dagan | Bnei Aish | El'ad | Elyakhin | Even Yehuda | Gan Yavne | Gedera | Giv'at Shmuel | Jaljulia | Kafr Qasim | Kfar Bara | Kfar Yona | Kiryat Ekron | Kokhav Ya'ir | Mazkeret Batya | Pardesiya | Ramot HaShavim | Savyon | Shoham | Tel Mond | Tzoran-Kadima | Zemer | |
| Regional councils | Brenner | Gan Rave | Gederot | Gezer | Drom HaSharon | Hefer Valley | Hevel Modi'in | Hevel Yavne | Hof HaSharon | Lev HaSharon | Lod Valley | Nachal Soreq | |
| Boroughs | Neve Monosson | |
