Elyakhin is a town (local council

Local council (Israel)

Local councils are one of the three types of local government found in Israel, with the other two being cities and regional councils. As of 2003, there were 144 local councils in Israel, these being settlements which pass a minimum threshold enough to justify their operations as independent...

) in the Center District

Center District (Israel)

The Central District of Israel is one of six administrative districts, including most of the Sharon region. The district capital is Ramla. It is further divided into 4 sub-districts: Petah Tikva, Ramla, Sharon and Rehovot. The district's largest city is Rishon LeZion. Its population as of 2008 was...

 of Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

. It is located just south of Hadera

Hadera

Hadera is a city located in the Haifa District of Israel approximately from the major cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. The city is located along of the Israeli Mediterranean Coastal Plain...

 and borders the Emek Hefer Regional Council. It is accessible by local road 5812. Elyakhin's population at the end of 2008 was 2,900, and its jurisdiction was 1,600 dunams.

History

Elyakhin was founded in 1950 as a ma'abara

Ma'abarot

The Ma'abarot were refugee absorption camps in Israel in the 1950s. The Ma'abarot were meant to provide accommodation for the large influx of Jewish refugees and new Olim arriving to the newly independent State of Israel, replacing the less habitable immigrant camps or tent cities...

near the ruins of the Arab village al-Zalafa

Zalafa

Zalafa can refer to:*Khirbat Zalafa, a Palestinian village in the District of Tulkarm that was depopulated in April 1948*Zalafa, Ara Valley, a Palestinian village that was incorporated into Israel in 1948...

. It has a symbolic name, meaning "God will prepare", i.e. God prepared the land for the settlement of olim

Aliyah

Aliyah is the immigration of Jews to the Land of Israel . It is a basic tenet of Zionist ideology. The opposite action, emigration from Israel, is referred to as yerida . The return to the Holy Land has been a Jewish aspiration since the Babylonian exile...

.

Geography and structure

Elyakhin is bordered by Hadera in the north and the Hefer Valley Regional Council

Hefer Valley Regional Council

The Hefer Valley Regional Council is a regional council in the Hefer Valley region of central Israel.The council covers an area adjacent to Hadera in the north, to Netanya in the south, to the Mediterranean in the west and to Tulkarm and the Green Line in the east...

 in the south. The adjacent villages in the regional council are Herev Le'et

Herev Le'et

Herev Le'et is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the coastal plain to the south of Hadera and covering 1,750 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hefer Valley Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 796....

, Hibat Tzion

Hibat Tzion

Hibat Tzion is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the coastal plain near Hadera and covering 4,500 dunams, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hefer Valley Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 492....

 and Givat Haim (Ihud). Elyakhin's average elevation is 30 m.

Elyakhin consists of the eastern part of the town, as well as three western neighborhoods - HaAlonim, HaShikmim and HaOranim.

Public structures

Elyakhin has 11 synagogue

Synagogue

A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...

s, five of which are adjacent and located in the center of the town. Three more are located on the sides of HaBanim Park on the eastern part.

Elyakhin also has a community center and public library in the town's center.