Jerusalem on the Map Basic Facts and Trends 1967-1996 Maya
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The Jerusalem Institute tor Israel Studies Founded by the Charles H. Revson Foundation Jerusalem on the Map Basic Facts and Trends 1967-1996 Maya Choshen The Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies Founded by the Charles H. Revson Foundation, N.Y. Jerusalem on the Map Basic Facts and Trends 1967-1996 Maya Choshen Maps: Israel Kimhi Graphic design: Naama Shahar 1998 The Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies Founded by the Charles H. Revson Foundation, N.Y. Jerusalem on the Map Basic Facts and Trends 1967-1996 Maya Choshen Maps: Israel Kimhi Graphic design & production: Naama Shahar This publication was aided by a grant from the Charles H. Revson Foundation, New York The author assumes sole responsibility for all statements made © 1998, The Jerusalem institute for Israel Studies The Hay Elyachar House 20a Radak St., 92186 Jerusalem http://www.jiis.org.il ISSN 0333-9831 Acknowledgments I would like to thank Israel Kimhi for preparing the maps and making important comments about the text; Naama Shahar for graphic design and production; Esti Boehm for textual design; Michal Korah for research assistance and proofreading; and Ralf Mandel for the English translation. Maya Choshen Contents Introduction 1 Jerusalem as a National, Historical, and Religious Center 2 Area and Municipal Boundaries 4 Infrastructure and Economic Features 7 Economic Status of the Population 10 Tourism 13 The Educational System in Jerusalem 16 Higher Education 18 Planning and Construction 1. Introduction 19 2. Jewish Building 20 3. Arab Building 21 4. Housing Density 22 Population Trends in Jerusalem 24 1. Changes in the Size and Growth of the Population of Jerusalem 24 2. Population Distribution Throughout the City 37 Metropolitan Jerusalem 43 1. Introduction 43 2. From City to Metropolitan Jerusalem 45 3. Boundaries 47 4. Population 47 Tables Table 1: Employed Persons Working in Israel, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv-Jaffa And Haifa, by Economic Branch, 1995/1996 8 Table 2: Guests, Overnight-stays and Occupancy Rate in Tourist Hotels in Jerusalem. 1980-1996 14 Table 3: Population and Population Growth in Jerusalem, 1967-1996 27 Table 4: Population of Jerusalem by Groups. 1967-1996 28 Figures Figure 1: Employment of Jewish Residents of Jerusalem by Economic Branch, 1995/1996 9 Figure 2: Poverty Rate - Percentage of Poor Families in Israel, Jerusalem, Benei-Beraq, Tel Aviv-Jaffa and Haifa, 1991-1996 11 Figure 3: Employees' Average Gross Salary Per Month, in Israel, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv-Jaffa and Haifa, by Gender, in Selected Years 12 Figure 4: Rooms in Tourist Hotels in Jerusalem, 1987-1996 15 Figure 5: Students at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, as a Percentage of the Students in Israel's Universities, by Degree, in Selected Years 17 Figure 6: Population in Israel and in Jerusalem, by Population Group. 1922-1996 25 Figure 7: Population in Israel and in Jerusalem, by Population Group, in Selected Years 26 Figure 8: Births and Deaths in Israel and in Jerusalem, by Population Group, in Selected Years 31 Figure 9: Immigrants to Jerusalem, Tel Aviv-Jaffa and Haifa, as Percentage of Total Immigrants to Israel, 1979-1996 33 Figure 10: Sources of Population Growth in Jerusalem - Immigrants, Internal Migration Balance (Jews), and Natural Increase (Jews), 1985-1996 34 Maps Jerusalem - Changes in the Municipal Area 6 Jerusalem - Built-Up Area, 1997 23 Jewish and Arab Population in Jerusalem, 1997 41 Jerusalem - Population 1967 42 Jerusalem - Population 1997 42 Jerusalem Area - Distribution of Jews & Arabs Population, 1997 44 Introduction Jerusalem, the capital of Israel since the time of King David, became the ideal of all Jews in their enforced exile. Since the state's establishment, the city has been the focus of national and international attention. The city became even more central on the global and local agenda in the wake of the 1967 war. Whereas before 1967 Jerusalem lay at the eastern extremity of the Jerusalem Corridor, bordering an enemy state, after the war the city found itself located at the center of an area containing numerous Jewish and Arab settlements. Jerusalem is today Israel's largest city in area and in population - both of Jews and Arabs. However, although it is the country's largest city, Jerusalem is not located in Israel's major urban area. The core of Israel is in fact Metropolitan Tel Aviv, with a population of two million. The unification of Jerusalem in 1967 was a powerful spur to the city's physical, demographic, and economic growth. The national policy of strengthening the capital city, which had been pursued since the state's establishment, was reaffirmed, resulting in significant growth of the municipal area together with a building boom and a dramatic population increase. However, the development momentum of the late 1960s and the 1970s tapered off in the 1980s. In recent years the authorities have tried to reverse this trend by launching new initiatives in high-tech industry, higher education and by developing the infrastructure, building modern commercial centers, promoting tourism, and accelerating housing construction. The peace process has again placed the city - resolution of the "Jerusalem question" will be a crucial element of the final-status talks - at the hub of the national and the international debate. A situation of peace giving rise to cooperation 1 The main origin of the data processed or presented in this publication is The Statistical Yearbook of Jerusalem, which is published annually by the Jerusalem Municipality and The Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies, and edited by Maya Choshen and Naama Shahar. 1 with the Arabs in the region could prove a tremendous boost to the city by exploiting the latent potential of interaction between the different population groups and between the city and the surrounding area. Jerusalem as a National, Historical, and Religious Center Jerusalem has been the holiest city to the Jews since David conquered it, 3,000 years ago, and made it his capital. His son, Solomon, built the First Temple there on Mount Moriah, inaugurating it in 960 BCE. Hence the name of the mount in Jewish lore, the "Temple Mount." By virtue of the temple Jerusalem was sanctified. Following the destruction of the temple and the prohibition imposed by the Muslims on entry of Jews to the Temple Mount, the Western Wall (a section of the western side of the wall that surrounded the Temple Mount) became a central site of the Jewish people; it has been a place of worship since at least the 10th century CE. In the sixteenth century the Turkish sultan recognized this and ordered that a space for prayer be cleared for the Jews in front of the wall. Thus, a thousand years before Jerusalem became sacred to Christianity and seventeen hundred years before it was sanctified for Muslims, Jerusalem was the capital of Israel and the holiest city in Judaism. For the Jews who were exiled from the Land of Israel, Jerusalem became a symbol of religious and national rebirth and yearning, the word Zionism - the national movement of the Jewish people - derives from one of the names conferred on Jerusalem in Jewish tradition.2 Upon the establishment of the State of Israel, Jerusalem was declared its capital and thus became the country's center of government. Under Israeli law, the major governmental and national institutions are located in Jerusalem, which thereby serves as the institutional focal point for the residents of Israel and for Jews worldwide. " Shmuel Berkovits. 1997, The Legal Status of the Holy Places in Jerusalem, Research Series No. 73. The Jerusalem Institute for Israel Studies. 2 Following the conclusion of Israel's War of Independence, Jerusalem remained a divided city from 1949 until 1967. The city was unified following the 1967 Six-Day War and its boundaries extended to incorporate areas which, since 1948, had been under Jordanian rule. In the wake of the unification, the government applied Israeli law, jurisdiction, and administration to the city's eastern section and enacted a law for the preservation of the holy places. In 1980, the Knesset enacted the Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel, stating that "Jerusalem, complete and united, is the capital of Israel" and is "the seat of the President of the State, the Knesset, the Government and the Supreme Court." The law also reiterates the provisions of the 1967 Protection of the Holy Places Law, and stipulates that the government is obligated to "provide for the development and prosperity of Jerusalem." These legislative acts were rejected by the international community, which does not recognize Israel's sovereignty in the city. Jerusalem also contains sites sacred to Islam and Christianity. Muslims prayed toward Jerusalem before they did toward Mecca. Although not mentioned by name in the Koran, Jerusalem is traditionally the site of the "remote mosque," Muhammad's destination in his Night Journey, from where he ascended to heaven after tying his steed, al-Buraq, to a stone of the Western Wall. In the year 638 CE, Jerusalem was captured by the Khalif Omar and thus became part of the precinct of Dar-al-Islam. In the seventh century the Khalif Ibn-Marwan built the shrine known as the Dome of the Rock on the site of the razed Temple. Despite the later Crusader conquests of the city, its religious status for Muslims was reinforced. Under Ottoman Muslim rule Jerusalem remained a magnet for the faithful, though its political importance derived from interests involving the Christian communities and powers. Today Jerusalem, and the Temple Mount/ Haram al-Sharif in particular, constitutes a central religious and national symbol for the Palestinians. Jerusalem's sanctity for Christians is bound up with its role in the life of Jesus. Jerusalem was the site of Jesus's arrest, trial, crucifixion, and resurrection.