From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
  (Redirected from Negev desert)
Jump to: navigation, search
Ein Avdat in the Zin Valley in the Negev
Israel's South District, roughly coterminous with the Negev
Sunset in the Negev Desert near Yeruham, Israel





The origin of the word negev is from the Hebrew root denoting 'dry'. In the Bible, the word Negev is also used for the direction 'south'; some English-language translations use the spelling "Negeb". In Arabic, the Negev is known as al-Naqab, though it was not thought of as a distinct region until the demarcation of the Egypt-Ottoman frontier in the 19th century and has no traditional Arabic name. During the British Mandate it was called Beersheba sub-district.[3]


Nahal Paran, Negev



Flora and fauna[edit]

Spring blooms in the Negev

Vegetation in the Negav is sparse, but certain trees and plants thrive there, among them Acacia, Pistacia, Retama, Urginea maritima and Thymelaea.[4]A small population of Arabian leopards, an endangered animal in the Arabian peninsula, survives in the Southern Negev.[5]The Negev Tortoise (Testudo werneri) is a critically endangered species that currently lives only in the sands of the western and central Negev Desert.[6]The Negev shrew (Crocidura ramona) is a species of mammal of the Soricidae family found only in Israel.[7]



Climate data for Beersheba
Record high °C (°F) 28.4
Average high °C (°F) 16.7
Average low °C (°F) 7.5
Record low °C (°F) −5
Precipitation mm (inches) 49.6
Avg. precipitation days 9.2 8 6.4 2.6 0.8 0 0 0 0.1 1.8 4.6 7.5 41
Source: Israel Meteorological Service[9][10]




Nomadic life in the Negev dates back at least 4,000 years [11] and perhaps as much as 7,000 years.[12] The first urbanized settlements were established by a combination of Canaanite, Amalekite, and Edomite groups circa 2000 BC.[11] Pharaonic Egypt is credited with introducing copper mining and smelting in both the Negev and the Sinai between 1400 and 1300 BC.[11][13]


According to the Book of Genesis chapter 13, Abraham lived for a while in the Negev near Kadesh after being banished from Egypt. Later the northern Negev was inhabited by the Tribe of Judah and the southern Negev by the Tribe of Shimon. The Negev was later part of the Kingdom of Solomon and then part of the Kingdom of Judah.[14]

In the 9th century BC, development and expansion of mining in both the Negev and Edom (modern Jordan) coincided with the rise of the Assyrian Empire.[11] Beersheba was the region's capital and a center for trade in the 8th century BC.[11] Small settlements of Israelites in the areas around the capital existed between 1020 and 928 BC.[11]


Archaeological ruins in the Negev

The 4th century BC arrival of the Nabateans resulted in the development of irrigation systems that supported new urban centers located along the Negev incense route: Avdat, Mamshit, Shivta, Haluza (Elusa), and Nitzana.[11] The Nabateans controlled the trade and spice route between their capital Petra and the Gazan seaports. Nabatean currency and the remains of red and orange potsherds, identified as a trademark of their civilization, have been found along the route, remnants of which are also still visible.[11] Nabatean control of the Negev ended when the Roman empire annexed their lands in 106 AD.[11] The population, largely made up of Arabian nomads and Nabateans, remained largely tribal and independent of Roman rule, with an animist belief system.[11]

Byzantines and Romans[edit]

Byzantine rule in the 4th century AD introduced Christianity to the population.[11] Agricultural-based cities were established and the population grew exponentially.[11]

Early Islamic period[edit]

The southern Negev saw a flourishing of economic activity during the 8th to 10th or 11th centuries.[15] Six Islamic settlements have been found in the vicinity of Eilat, along with copper and gold mines and stone quarries, and a sophisticated irrigation system and road network.[15] The economic center was the port of Ayla (Aqaba).[15]


Al-Tarabin tribe sheikhs in Beer Sheva, 1934

Nomadic tribes ruled the Negev largely independently and with a relative lack of interference for the next thousand years.[11] What is known of this time is largely derived from oral histories and folk tales of tribes from the Wadi Musa and Petra areas in present-day Jordan.[11] The Bedouins of the Negev historically survived chiefly on sheep and goat husbandry. Scarcity of water and of permanent pastoral land required them to move constantly. The Bedouin in years past established few permanent settlements, although some were built, leaving behind remnants of stone houses called 'baika.'[12] In 1900 the Ottoman Empire established an administrative center for southern Palestine at Beersheba including schools and a railway station.[11] The authority of the tribal chiefs over the region was recognized by the Ottomans.[11] A railroad connected it to the port of Rafah. In 1914 the Turkish authorities estimated the nomadic population at 55,000,[16] The Bedouin component of the population was estimated at 72,898 out of a total of 75,254 for the Beersheba sub-district.[16] The 1931 census estimated that the population of the Beersheba sub-district was 51,082.[17] This large decrease was considered to be an artifact of incorrect enumeration methods used in 1922.[16] An Arabic history of tribes around Beersheba, published in 1934 records 23 tribal groups.[18]

Rahat, the largest Bedouin city in the Negev




Development plans[edit]

Blueprint Negev is a Jewish National Fund project introduced in 2005. The $600 million project hopes to attract 500,000 new residents to the Negev by improving transportation infrastructure, establishing businesses, developing water resources and introducing programs to protect the environment.[22][dead link]

Critics oppose building up the country's last open spaces, calling instead for an inclusive plan for the green vitalization of existing population centers, investment in Bedouin villages, clean-up of toxic industries and development of job options for the unemployed.[23][24][25][26]

A major Israel Defense Force training base is being constructed in the Negev to accommodate 10,000 army personnel and 2,500 civilian staff. Three more bases will be build by 2020 as part of a plan to vacate land and buildings in Tel Aviv and central Israel, and bring jobs and investment to the south. [27]

Environmental issues[edit]

The Negev is home to hazardous infrastructures that include a nuclear reactor, 22 agro and petrochemical factories, an oil terminal, closed military zones, quarries, a toxic waste incinerator Ramat Hovav, cell towers, a power plant, several airports, a prison, and 2 rivers of open sewage.[28]

In 2005, the Tel Aviv municipality was accused of dumping waste in the Negev at the Dudaim dump.[29] The Manufacturers Association of Israel established an authority in 2005 to move 60 industrial enterprises active in the Tel Aviv region to the Negev.[30]


Solar power[edit]

Solar troughs in the Negev

The Negev Desert and the surrounding area, including the Arava Valley, are the sunniest parts of Israel and little of this land is arable, which is why it has become the center of the Israeli solar industry.[34] David Faiman, an expert on solar energy, feels the energy needs of Israel's future could be met by building solar energy plants in the Negev. As director of Ben-Gurion National Solar Energy Center, he operates one of the largest solar dishes in the world.[35] Technically, however, the Arava is a separate desert with its own unique climate and ecology.

A 250 MW solar park in Ashalim, an area in the northern Negev, was in the planning stages for over five years, but it is not expected to produce power before 2013.[36] In 2008 construction began on three solar power plants near the city; two thermal and one photovoltaic.[37]

The Rotem Industrial Complex outside of Dimona, Israel, has dozens of solar mirrors that focus the sun's rays on a tower that in turn heats a water boiler to create steam, turning a turbine to create electricity. Luz II, Ltd., plans to use the solar array to test new technology for the three new solar plants to be built in California for Pacific Gas and Electric Company.[38][39][40]


Yatir Forest 2005, produced by Yatir Winery in the Negev

Vines have been planted in the Negev since ancient times. In modern times, vineyards have been established in the northern Negev hills using innovative computerized watering methods for irrigation. Carmel Winery was the first of the major wineries to plant vineyards in the Negev and operates a boutique winery at Ramat Arad. Tishbi has vineyards at Sde Boker and Barkan grows its grapes in Mitzpe Ramon.[41]Yatir Winery is a boutique winery in Tel Arad. Its vineyards are on a hill 900 meters above sea level on the outskirts of Yatir Forest.[42] Carmey Avdat is Israel's first solar-powered winery.[43]


  4. ^ Bedouin plant utilization in Sinai and the Negev
  5. ^ Gulf-Environment: Arabian Leopard Faces Extinction
  6. ^ Re-introduction - Negev tortoise
  7. ^ Crocidura ramona
  12. ^ a b Israel Finkelstein; Avi Perevolotsky (Aug., 1990). "Processes of Sedentarization and Nomadization in the History of Sinai and the Negev". Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research (279): 67–88. 
  14. ^ The Negev: The Challenge of a Desert, Michael Evenari
  20. ^
  21. ^,7340,L-3412128,00.html
  22. ^
  24. ^ "Ohalah resolution". 
  25. ^ "Neohasid's Save the Negev Campaign". 
  26. ^ Manski, Rebecca. "Blueprint Negev". MERIP/Mondoweiss. Retrieved 12.4.13. 
  27. ^ Israel looks to fulfil desert dream with Negev military base
  28. ^ Manski, Rebecca. "Bedouin Vilified Among Top 10 Environmental Hazards in Israel". AIC. Retrieved 12.4.13. 
  41. ^ Israel's Wine Regions
  43. ^ Israel's first solar-powered wine

External links[edit]
