MAẒẒUVAH

MAẒẒUVAH (Heb. מַצּוּבָה), kibbutz near the Israel-Lebanese border S.W. of Ḥanitah, affiliated with Iḥud ha-Kevuẓot veha-Kibbutzim. Founded in 1940 by youth aliyah graduates originating from Germany and Austria, Maẓẓuvah joined Ḥanitah and eilon as a third border outpost in western Galilee. In its initial years, the kibbutz was confronted with the task of heavy reclamation work on its hilly soil, a lack of water and high incidence of malaria, and with sea winds damaging fruit orchards. By 1948 most of these difficulties had been overcome. In 1969, Maẓẓuvah's economy was based predominantly on hill farming (fruit orchards) and a spinning mill. Later it developed citrus groves, fruit orchards, and poultry   farming. The spinning mill closed down in 2003, causing a severe economic crisis in the kibbutz. In the mid-1990s, its population was approximately 600, dropping to 507 in 2002, with about a third above the age of 70. The name dates back to talmudic times (Tosef., Shev. 4:9; TJ, Dam. 2:1, 22d); and is preserved in the Arabic name for the site, Khirbat Maʿṣūb. Remnants were found of antique buildings, including a Greek tomb with a Greek and Phoenician inscription dating from 222–221 B.C.E. testifying that an Astarte sanctuary had been erected at the spot. (Efraim Orni / Shaked Gilboa (2nd ed.)