Discover your Israeli roots

Questions to ask the older generation

Memories fade faster than photos. Ask these over a meal or a phone call, and write the answers down.

1. Which town or region of Israel did our family come from? Was it near Tel Aviv, Haifa, Acre?
2. Who was the first in the family to leave Israel, when, and why?
3. Which dishes from Israel were cooked at home? Did anyone make Hummus or Falafel?
4. Does anyone in the family still speak Hebrew, or use a few words of it?
5. Were there songs, prayers, games or holidays from Israel that the family kept?
6. Are there old photos, letters or documents from Israel? Who has them?
7. If you could visit Israel together, where would you go first?

A short history of Israel

Many peoples, empires and faiths have left their mark on this narrow strip of land between the Mediterranean and the desert. These are some key moments, from an ancient Egyptian stone to a small spacecraft sent to the Moon.

1. 1208 BC

   Egyptian stele names Israel

   Around 1208 BC, Pharaoh Merneptah of Egypt set up a stone slab listing his victories in Canaan. It contains the earliest known written mention of a people called Israel. The stele is now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

2. AD 70

   Romans destroy the Second Temple

   During a Jewish revolt against Rome, Roman legions besieged Jerusalem and destroyed the Second Temple in AD 70. The Western Wall is part of the old retaining wall around the Temple Mount.

3. 1187

   Saladin takes Jerusalem

   After defeating the Crusaders at the Battle of Hattin near Tiberias, the sultan Saladin took Jerusalem in 1187.

4. 1517

   Ottoman rule begins

   The Ottoman Turks took the region from the Mamluks and ruled it for four centuries. Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem's Old City that still stand today.

5. 1925

   Hebrew University opens

   The Hebrew University of Jerusalem opened on Mount Scopus on 1 April 1925. Albert Einstein was one of its founders and later left his personal papers to it.

6. 1948

   Israel declares independence

   On 14 May 1948, as British rule ended, Jewish leaders in Tel Aviv declared the State of Israel. War with neighbouring Arab states followed. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinian Arabs fled or were driven from their homes, an event Palestinians call the Nakba, and many Jews later came to Israel from Arab countries and from Europe.

7. 1979

   Peace treaty with Egypt

   Israel and Egypt signed a peace treaty in Washington in 1979, the first between Israel and an Arab state. Israel returned the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt by 1982.

8. 2019

   Beresheet reaches the Moon

   Beresheet, a small lander built by the non-profit SpaceIL and Israel Aerospace Industries, reached the Moon on 11 April 2019. An engine problem made it crash during landing, but it was the first privately funded attempt to land on the Moon.

Family recipes to cook together

Hummus 20 min · serves 4Shakshouka 35 min · serves 4Israeli salad 15 min · serves 4Malabi 3 h 25 min · serves 6Limonana 10 min · serves 4

Hebrew words to teach the grandchildren

Towns and regions

• Jerusalem, Jerusalem District: The Old City, The Israel Museum.
• Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv District: The White City, Beaches and the seafront promenade.
• Haifa, Haifa District: The Bahá'í Gardens, Mount Carmel.
• Acre, Northern District: The Old City of Acre, Crusader halls.
• Nazareth, Northern District: The Basilica of the Annunciation, The old market.
• Tiberias, Northern District: The Sea of Galilee, Hot springs.
• Safed, Northern District: Kabbalah, The artists' quarter.
• Beersheba, Southern District: Gateway to the Negev, Ben-Gurion University.
• Arad, Southern District: The road to Masada, Clean, dry desert air.
• Eilat, Southern District: Coral reefs and diving, Winter sunshine.