Fifteen Fun Facts About Israel

Just under 10 million people live in all of Israel – that's less than half of the population of Bejing, the capital of China.

Israel is 8550 square miles big - about the size of New Jersey (the 5th smallest state in the US).

About three-quarters of the people who live in Israel are Jewish.

There are two official languages in Israel: Hebrew and Arabic. Lots of Israelis speak English, Russian, and French, too!

An early version of the blue and white flag of Israel was designed by Rabbi Jacob Baruch Askowith of Boston in 1891. The design of the flag was inspired by the tallit, or Jewish prayer shawl.

The lowest place in the world is in Israel: The Dead Sea. The Dead Sea is one of the saltiest bodies of water on earth, which makes everyone float. In fact, it’s hard not to float in the Dead Sea, which is probably a good thing - you don’t want to get that salty water in your mouth or eyes!

Israel is the only country in the world that has more trees today than it did 50 years ago.

People who are born in Israel are called sabras, the Hebrew word for a prickly pear cactus. It’s a fun way of saying that even though Israelis can seem tough and prickly on the outside, they’re sweet and sensitive on the inside!

Israelis looove their hummus. It’s estimated that over one million pounds of hummus are eaten every year in Israel. That’s the equivalent of one hundred adult elephants worth of hummus!

You can ride your bike down the middle of the highway in Israel - but only on Yom Kippur! On that holiest of holidays, Israelis stay out of their cars and the roads are empty.

During the eight-day holiday of Hanukkah, Israelis eat about 24 million sufganiyot, or donuts. That’s at least 2 donuts for every person, child, and baby in the entire country. In addition to traditional jelly donuts, you can get vanilla, chocolate, Oreo, pistachio, passionfruit. If you head to Burger King, you can get a SufganiKing (that’s right, it’s a hamburger in a donut!).

The postage stamps in Israel are made with kosher glue, and the paper money has special metallic strips of different lengths on them so blind people can tell the bills apart!

Many people think the official emblem of Israel is the Star of David, but it’s actually a menorah with olive branches on either side. The menorah is a seven-branched candelabrum that looks a lot like a hanukkiah, which is the nine-branched candelabrum that is lit during Hanukkah.

The national anthem of Israel is HaTikvah, or The Hope. It was the unofficial anthem until 2004, when the Knesset, or Israeli legislature, voted to make it official.

Israel was officially declared a nation on May 14, 1948, or 5 Iyar 5708 in the Hebrew calendar. Israel’s independence is celebrated on the 5th day of the Hebrew month of Iyar every year, which lands on April 26 in 2023. Chag sameach (happy holidays), and Yom Ha’atzmaut sameach (happy Independence Day), everyone!