Life in Israel
Israel is often seen as a place of conflict and strife, however, in reality there is much more. There's business and research; art and culture; spirituality and religion, community and family. In coming here you will discover the real Israel, not the media's Israel. It is about people living ordinary lives in an extraordinary place.
Daily life and culture here are as diverse as its citizens. The Israeli population is composed of about 76% Jews, about 18% Arabs, Druze, Bedouin and others. While the Jewish population as of 1948 consisted mostly of those from central and Eastern Europe (not including Russia), Jews from African and Asian countries came in increasing numbers after 1948. The majority of the current Jewish population was born in Israel. Around 500,000 Russian Jews have arrived in recent years, and a small population of Ethiopian Jews. The Arab population is primarily Sunni Muslim and the remaining others, albeit fewer in number, are Christians. Today, over 7 million inhabitants embrace a mixture of people with varied ethnic backgrounds, lifestyles, religions, cultures and traditions. Hebrew is the official language, while Arabic is used officially for the Arab minority and English is widely spoken.
Whatever your religion is, you will find interesting places to visit in Israel, interesting people to meet, different dishes to taste, local folklore to discover and a high level of study in it's universities. We look forward to welcoming you to Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and wish you a pleasant and enriching experience.
Last update 17.01.12Back