Bat Yam (בת ים) is a city in Israel, on the central coastal strip, just south of Tel Aviv, and part of the Gush Dan metropolitan area, in the Tel Aviv District.
The key feature of Bat Yam is its beautiful beach, attracting tourists every summer.
History
Bat Yam was established in 1926 as Bayit VaGan (Hebrew: בית וגן, House and Garden), and was geared toward Orthodox Jews. During the 1929 Palestine riots, Bayit VaGan came under attacks by Arab gangs from neighbouring Jaffa and was evacuated by British Authorities, then was reestablished in 1930. In 1936 it was given the status of local council.
Bayit VaGan's name was changed in 1938 to Bat Yam. The 1948 Arab-Israeli War reached its borders, and Bat Yam was under heavy fire from Jaffa, until Jaffa surrendered on May 13, 1948.
In the first decades of Israel's independence Bat Yam grew due to mass immigration, becoming a local council in 1949 and a city in 1958. It experienced a rapid growth again in early 1990s, as many immigrants from former Soviet Union chose Bat Yam as their new residence because of its proximity to industrial centers of the country, combined with relatively low real estate prices. According to Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics, the city population as of June 2005 is some 130,000 people.
Twin cities
Image:Bat-Yam-municipality.jpg|The municipality building.
Image:Bat-Yam-beach-south-1.jpg|The beach, south.
Image:Bat-Yam-kikar-hameginim-1.jpg|Kikar ha-Meginim (The Defenders Square).
Image:Azrli_18.JPG|Bat Yam from the Azrieli Towers in Tel Aviv.
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