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Kfar Tavor (Hebrew: „“) is a village in the Lower Galilee region of northern Israel, at the foot of Mount Tabor. Founded in 1901, it was recognized as a Local Council in 1949. Kfar Tavor now has a population of 2,300 (2003).
History
The community of Kfar Tavor was founded by the children of Jews who settled in the country during the First Aliyah. They arrived from the agricultural settlements of Zichron Yaakov, Metulla, Rosh Pina, and Shefaya. The original name of the new settlement was Mas'ha, after the abandoned Arab village that they occupied. It was in 1903 that they decided to change the name, at the suggestion of Zionist leader Menachem Ussishkin. During a visit to the settlement, Ussishkin was surprised to learn that it did not yet have a Hebrew name, and suggested that they name it after the hill under which their houses nestled. At first, there was some debate over whether to include the term kfar (, Hebrew for "village") in the name, with some residents arguing that this would inhibit any future growth. Ussishkin responded that he had visited the German town of Düsseldorf, which had also originated as a dorf, or village, but was now a full-fledged city. Kfar Tavor is the birthplace of Yigal Allon.
Trivia
Camp Tavor, a Habonim Dror summer camp in Western Michigan, United States, is also named for Mount Tavor and has contact with the village.
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