Hanaton

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Hanaton (also spelled Hannaton) (Hebrew: חנתון) is a kibbutz in northern Israel, whose members (aprox. 90 in all) are affiliated with the Conservative movement of Judaism. Located 12 kilometers north of Nazareth and near the Arab town of Shefaram, Hanaton is part of the Jezreel Valley Regional Council.

The kibbutz was founded in 1984 by immigrants from the United States together with groups of Israeli youth doing their army duty. They were later joined by immigrants from South Africa, South America, the Netherlands, and Canada.

Its primary source of income is the kibbutz's Education & Lodging Center, where small groups of Conservative Jewish youth from North America learn about Israel and lodge overnight.

The Kibbutz is named for a biblical town that existed in the area and is mentioned in the Book of Joshua.

[edit] Early history

Before Kibbutz Hanaton was established, kibbutzim in Israel were either secular or orthodox. The success of the Reform movement's first kibbutz, Yahel, inspired a group of students loosely affiliated with the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York to plan a Conservative kibbutz in the early 1980s.

These students established a Gar'in ("nucleus") named Gar'in Nitzan and started planning to move to Israel and build the kibbutz. Recruiting members from across the United States, they also joined forces with Israel's branch of Conservative Judaism, known as the Masorati movement.

Meanwhile in Israel, the Masorati movement hired Ehud Bandel to recruit a group of high school seniors to join a Nachal Gar'in to help establish Hannaton. During 1982 and early 1983, this Gar'in, named Gar'in Noam, grew to about 30 young men and women.

On September 1, 1983, about 30 mostly-Israeli members of Gar'in Noam moved to Kibbutz K'far Hahoresh, an established kibbutz, for training. They were joined on September 20th, 1983 by about 40 mostly-American members of Gar'in Nitzan, including several families with small children. Members of Gar'in Nitzan ranged in age from 19 to 35; members of Gar'in Noam were all 18 or 19 years old.

Together, members of the two garinim worked on Kibbutz K'far Hahoresh and planned the new kibbutz, which was already under construction.

In September 1984, the new kibbutz was ready for occupancy. In the first years, there was a limited amount of agriculture. The kibbutz purchased a small crafts business called Hadran that made rug kits, providing some income. They also built a significant dairy sheep operation. Many kibbutz members worked on neighboring kibbutzim, especially K'far Hahoresh, in exchange for daily wages which went into the kibbutz communal fund.

[edit] Spelling

The biblical name Hanaton (חנתון) appears with a dagesh in the nun, which, by many transliteration standards, should be spelled in English with two n's, thus Hannaton. In early years almost every English document spelled the name of the kibbutz as Hanaton, so both spellings are now common.