Rechov Dizengoff, the best known street in the city of Tel Aviv, is legendary.
It was named in honor of Meir Dizengoff, the first mayor of Tel Aviv, a post he held from 1911 until his death in 1936.
Looking around Tel Aviv is like reading a history book in some ways.
There is almost no major personality in Israel that doesn’t have a name in their memory and Meir Dizengoff, a man with faith and purpose, rightly deserved this honor.
He was a man with vivid dreams who envisioned the city of Tel Aviv, not merely as a commercial hub of activity, but with a cosmopolitan presence in a modern city, where commerce and culture mingled with pioneering memories could thrive.
And Rechov Dizengoff grew as a reflection of his vision.
In the early days of statehood, Rechov Dizengoff was the cultural center of the city where writers and artists of all description, mostly migrants from Europe, gathered in the coffee shops and bars to give the city a truly Bohemian flavor.
The cosmopolitan nature of Rechov Dizengoff remains to this day.
The street has often been likened to Broadway and Sunset Boulevard with its mixture of fashion boutiques and eating houses serving foods from different countries around the world.
Always a Revolutionary
Meir Dizengoff was born in Bessarabia in 1861.
He became active in Russian revolutionary circles in his youth and was arrested in 1885, but that didn’t deter him in any way as he later became active in the Hibbat Zion movement, a pro-Zionist organization formed in 1881 in response to the anti-Jewish pogroms in the Russian Empire.
Hibbat Zion was the forerunner and foundation builder of modern Zionism promoting the immigration of Jews to Palestine.
Later in the 1880s, Dizengoff went to France to study chemical engineering where he met Baron Edmond de Rothchild who had established the very first vineyard in Israel near Zichron Yaakov.
In 1892, Rothchild sent Dizengoff to Palestine to establish a glass factory to supply bottles for his wines, but the factory closed after two years as the local sand was unsuitable.
During his tenure in Palestine, his pioneering spirit never waned and, together with some others, he tried to form a Jewish workers’ organization.
In 1897, Dizengoff returned to Russia where he went into business and in 1904 formed a company to purchase land in Palestine.
As director of the company he set an example of leadership by returning to Palestine in 1905 and settled in Jaffa.
His Vision
In 1909, Dizengoff founded a company designed to build a modern Jewish quarter near the Arab city of Jaffa.
This marked the beginning of his dream to establish a Jewish city in Palestine where Hebrew would become a living language.
In 1914 the Gymnasia Herzliya high school was built in the center, becoming the Mecca of the living Hebrew language for the Hebrew press, the theatre and literature.
He emphasized the city’s newness and modernity in stark contrast to Jewish life in the diaspora with its emphasis on exile and antisemitism, but he was also ideologically driven to represent and interpret the past and adapt it to a modern world.
With the introduction of modern Hebrew, his vision of the future was readily unveiled.
The Old and the New
In the center of the city, the contemporary Art Gallery and Museum, together with the nearby Performing Arts Centre and fine restaurants, highlight the city as the cultural capital of Israel.
Just a couple of blocks away is the fine Charles Bronfman Auditorium, home of the Israel Philharmonic, a world class orchestra.
Attractions in these complexes have much appeal throughout the year where world class exhibitions and theatrical performances always draw big attendances.
Yet, further down the road the shades of old Tel Aviv are no less colorful where the busy Carmel shuk with its low prices draws thousands of customers day after day.
The Carmel shuk is a reminder of yesterday, still preserved in its original form.
Hot New Tech City
Newsweek magazine once described Tel Aviv as one of the three ‘hot new tech’ cities outside the United States – the other two being Cambridge, England and Bangalore, India.
Some people claim Tel Aviv is Silicon Valley’s most serious global competitor.
Very complimentary remarks, but one thing is quite clear.
Tel Aviv is at the heart of Israel’s high-tech industry which represents nearly 50% of the country’s exports.
It attracts young people from around the world with its vibrance and round-the-clock activity.
Meir Dizengoff’s dream has blossomed in so many different directions.
He would have been very proud to see his vision of Tel Aviv realized with the subsequent developments and achievements.
