Modern GeographyBeersheba: Oasis in the Desert

Beersheba is the 7th largest city in Israel, and the largest in the southern desert region known as the Negev. In fact, Beersheba, the administrative center of the Southern District of Israel, is often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev."

Beersheba, also known as Be'er Sheva in Hebrew, has a unique history. Mentioned frequently in the Bible, the city nearly drops out of sight completely after the Byzantine period. For centuries, during Arab rule, Beersheba remained a desolate, uninhabited town, until its revival in the 20th century.

The nearby archaeological site of Tel Beersheba revealed that the area had been inhabited since the 4th millennium BCE. Each of the Patriarchs has a special connection to Beersheba. Abraham made a pact with Abimelech there (Genesis 21); Isaac built an altar in Beersheba(Genesis 26). Both Abraham and Isaac dug wells; in fact, the Hebrew word for "well" is "be'er," which is likely where the city's name came from. Jacob, after leaving Beersheba, had his famous dream about the ladder reaching up to the heavens (Genesis 28), and later, Jacob builds an altar in Beersheba; God speaks to him there and reassures him that the family should depart for Egypt, for God will later redeem them (Genesis 46). In later times, Beersheba is synonymous with Israel's southern border, and there are many references to the land of the Israelites stretching "from Dan to Beersheba" (Judges 20, among many others).

Despite the prominence of the city in the times of the ancient Israelites, Beersheba was mostly forgotten and neglected in later periods. After the Babylonian exile and the destruction of the First Temple, in 70 CE, most of the Jewish inhabitants were displaced. They later returned (Nehemiah 11), and Beersheba briefly became an important city during the Roman and Byzantine eras, as it formed part of the defense line against attacks from the Nabateans. However, during the Muslim period, starting in approximately the 7th century, Beersheba was neglected once again.

During the 19th century, under Ottoman rule, groups of Bedouin began to settle in and around Beersheba. When, at the end of the century, the Ottomans built a small police station in the city in order to have closer control over the Bedouins, the modernization of Beersheba began. Small homes and buildings began to crop up, mostly inhabited by Arabs and a few Bedouin. During World War I, the Ottomans built a military railroad from the Hejaz line, (the railroad which connected Damascus to Medina), to Beersheba. In October 1917, the famous Battle of Beersheba took place, in which a brigade of British and Australian soldiers charged the Turkish soldiers and successfully captured Beersheba.

Beersheba grew in prominence during the British Mandate years. It was established as an administrative center; however, tensions between the local Arab and Jewish populations escalated. Riots in 1928, which left over 100 Jews dead, caused many Jews to abandon Beersheba, and after an Arab attack on a Jewish bus in 1936, which led to the bloody 1936 Arab riots, the remaining Jews fled.

Thus, by 1947, the population in Beersheba was mostly Arab, and had been included in the possible Arab state in the recommendation put forth by the UN Partition Plan. After Israel declared its independence, Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion called for the invasion and conquest of Beersheba. Ben-Gurion had, for many years, been an advocate of the Negev, proposing that the Jewish people could turn the barren land into something cultivable and livable. His vision, then, included conquering Beersheba and making it part of the new Israeli state. Beersheba was under Egypt's control; after an intense barrage of air force combined with Israel's formidable ground force, the fledgling IDF captured Beersheba.

Today, Beersheba is an industrial city, home to thriving companies and universities that form much of the backbone of Israeli economy, including Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel Aerospace Industries and Soroka Medical Center. A high-tech park is being built near the train station. In recent years, the government has invested in Beersheba's tourism industry, and a new tourist center "Gateway to the Negev" will be opened in 2010. Arts centers, sports leagues, and museums, have cropped up in the city, drawing tourists from all over.

In Beersheba, the ancient and modern coexist. An enclosed well, said to be the one used by Abraham, still stands in Beersheba. Not far away is Hatzerim, the first air base built by Israel, which hosts the Israeli Air Force's pilot school, as well as the fascinating Air Force Museum. In Beersheba, Ben-Gurion's vision of the Negev has truly come to pass—a vibrant, booming city, right in the middle of the desert.