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Degania Alef -

Degania, later Degania Alef, was established in 1909, making it the earliest socialist Zionist farming commune in pre-state Israel.

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First agricultural settlement -

Degania was the first kvutza-type agricultural settlement established by Zionist pioneers, at a location south-west of the Sea of Galilee. Pictured is the original wooden shack at Umm Juni, a Palestinian Arab village.

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Aliyah -

The kibbutzim were founded by Jews from the Russian Empire and Eastern Europe who emigrated to Ottoman-ruled Palestine in the late 19th century and whose goal was the agricultural settlement of the Land of Israel. This major wave of Zionist immigration became known as the First Aliyah. Between 1904 and 1914, another 35,000 Jews arrived in Palestine, in what was the Second Aliyah. Pictured in 1912 are Second Aliyah workers eating lunch in the fields of Migdal.

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Escaping antisemitism -

To escape the pogroms and rising antisemitism in eastern Europe, tens of thousands of Russian Jews immigrated to Palestine in the early 1920s, in a further wave of immigration that was called the Third Aliyah. Pictured is Kibbutz Givat Haschlova, around 1925. In the background are the houses of the collective economy. In the front, agricultural land.

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Rise of kibbutzim -

Palestine had been conceded by the Ottoman Empire following the end of the First World War in 1918, and was now under a British mandate. By 1920, there were 12 kibbutzim, with a population of 805. By 1930, 29 kibbutzim had been established, the population rising to 3,900. Pictured is a young woman weaving a fishing net at Kibbutz Plugat HaYam, established in 1935.

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New land, new challenges -

Difficulties confronting these new Jewish immigrants included a lack of agricultural know-how, scarcity of water, and limited funds. The land was desolate and neglected and would require hard physical labor to manage.

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Hostile environment -

The environment was hostile in every sense of the word. Security was always an issue. Pictured is a member of Kibbutz Ma'abarot on guard duty in 1936.

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Ancient homeland -

During the 1930s, kibbutzim expanded throughout the Land of Israel, the traditional Jewish name for an area of indefinite geographical extension in the Southern Levant. Young pioneers had come not only to reclaim the soil of their ancient homeland, but also to forge a new way of life.

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Kibbutz Shaar Golan -

Jewish volunteers raise a watch tower as they complete in a one-day operation the "Tower and Stockade" pioneering cooperative community of Kibbutz Shaar Golan in the Jordan Valley.

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Defense -

Settlers and members of the pre-state Haganah defense movement pictured in 1938 at their guard post in Kibbutz Givat Brenner. Haganan was the main paramilitary organization of the Jewish population ("Yishuv") in Mandate Palestine between 1920 and 1948. It later became the core of the Israel Defense Forces.

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Kibbutz Ramat David -

Jewish shepherds walk their livestock to pasture within Kibbutz Ramat David in 1939. By 1940 the kibbutz population had increased to 26,550 in over 82 kibbutzim.

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Farming methods -

Kibbutz in Hebrew means "communal settlement." Living and working together was as it is today, a way of life. Chores  and responsibilities were shared, except childcare, which was the sole responsibility of women.

Most settlers had no prior farming experience, though by the 1940s several youth group members had at least some agricultural training before joining a kibbutz. Pictured is a young woman sorting oranges in 1944.

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Unique rural community -

As a unique rural community, a kibbutz represents a society dedicated to mutual aid and social justice. It's a socioeconomic system based on equality and cooperation of production, consumption, and education. Pictured is a member of Kibbutz Degania Bet, plowing fields near the Sea of Galilee in the summer of 1945.

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Kibbutz Urim -

Settlers work a potato field near the cooperative farming community of Kibbutz Urim in the Negev Desert in 1946.

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Kibbutz Dan -

The fields of Kibbutz Dan in 1946 being irrigated. Kibbutzim continued to flourish through the 1940s. When the Second World War erupted, people were living on 79 kibbutzim, comprising 5% of the Jewish population of Mandate Palestine. 

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Kibbutz Gal-On -

Members of Kibbutz Gal-On clearing rocks from a field around their cooperative farming community in 1946.

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Kibbutz Glil Yam -

The committee for the allocation of tasks convene in the Kibbutz Glil Yam. In 1948, 200 members were ensconced at Glil Yam. On May 14, 1948, David Ben-Gurion formally proclaimed the creation of the State of Israel.

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Informal atmosphere -

In the early years of kibbutzim, communal meetings were limited to practical matters. Later, however, these became less formal and took place in the dining room, or the reading room. Pictured in 1948 are members of the Kibbutz Glil Yam relaxing on a Sunday, their only day off.

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Medical care -

A nurse administering a shot to a member of Glim Yam in the late 1940s. All kibbutzim were equipped with clinics to meet basic medical needs.

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Enjoying the Sabbath -

A family photographed in 1950 gather to celebrate the Sabbath. Most kibbutzim are laid out according to a similar plan. The residential area encompasses carefully-tended members' homes and gardens, children's houses, and playgrounds for every age group.

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Kibbutz Givat Brenner -

A young woman tends her seedlings at the Kibbutz Givat Brenner, around 1950. The plants are grown for use on the kibbutz and for sale elsewhere.

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Young lives -

Youngsters of the Kibbutz Givat Brenner on their way to pick a tomato crop.

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Desert bloom -

Women tending fields of flowers in the early spring of 1950. Kibbutz farmers were tasked with making the desert bloom. Barren lands were cultivated with crops and orchards.

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Life in agriculture -

Poultry, dairy, and fish-farming also flourished. Here, a woman strains milk at the dairy section of the Kibbutz Givat Brenner.

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Children and childcare -

Children at a kibbutz in 1955 being cared for by trained guardians who are reading them a story. Children born and raised on kibbutzim were not raised directly by their parents, but they knew who their moms and dads were and formed close bonds with them.

Sources: (Jewish Virtual Library) (Britannica) (TIME)

See also: Exploring the fascinating history that is Jerusalem

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