Israel's Desert The Negev Trivia Quiz

Answer: Beer Sheva

The first mentioning of Beer Sheva or Beersheba as an alternative spelling is found in the biblical book Genesis 21:14. It was here that Hagar, the concubine of Abraham, was sent away with their son Ishmael.

Answer: David Ben-Gurion

Did you know that Albert Einstein was invited to be Israel's second president? It's true, he was invited to do so in 1952 by David Ben Gurion whose house is located on kibbutz Sde Boker. Ben Gurion had a passionate love for the desert of Israel and had a dream that it would flourish just as the prophet Isaiah claimed it would some day.

Answer: Canaanites

The ancient city of Arad was conquered by Joshua, who was the leader of the Tribes of Israel upon Moses' death. Since this archaeological site has been excavated many important findings have come to light. The most exciting of which is the Holy of Holies in the temple there in the city. It was a smaller version of the one located in Jerusalem under the command of King Solomon.

Answer: Air Force

Well, first off, Israel has no marines in her ranks and as far as navy ships in the desert it would take a bit of doing! But it's the air force who stores planes in this rust free environment for people to come and enjoy.

Answer: False

The awesome ruins of Petra are located in the Jordanian Mountains that form the eastern border of the Arava Valley. It's believed by some that Petra was the capital of the Nabateans who also operated and lived in the Negev Desert carrying out their trade in spices.

Answer: Bedouins

The Bedouins are actually Arabs, but they stand by themselves within the Arab people. At times they're looked down upon by their Arab brethren for their chosen way of life. While they still remain nomadic to some degree the majority of the 110,000 Bedouin in the Negev have been settled into villages by the Israeli government.

The Bedouin people can be found throughout the nation of Israel with an additional 50,000 members living in the north of the country primarily in the Galilee.

Answer: Eilat

Eilat is the play ground for Israelis. It has many posh hotels and eateries and it includes a lot of attractions such as the aquarium. Eilat offers border crossings with both Egypt and Jordan so it gets a fair bit of through travelers for this very reason.

Answer: geological formations

Once upon a time there was a large body of water that covered the Negev and as it receded it left a mountain behind which, as it drained left an unstable "roof". That roof collapsed and created the craters which can be seen today. The largest one is 40 km. across. Still confused? Think of a sporting stadium covered with a dome. Now fill it with water and allow one set of doors open to drain the water. If the stadium were made exclusively out of dirt and rock then when the water was gone it would not have the support to bear the weight of the dome, hence it would crash downward leaving the walls intact. Those 'walls' would be the rim of the massive crater.

Answer: Kibbutz Lotan

Kibbutz Lotan is a fine example of what can be done in the area of ecological friendly tourism. Bird watchers are a great asset to Israel's tourism, one that has not been fully capitalized on as of yet. But the folks of K. Lotan caught the vision early and have done remarkable well. Check out their site and see the birding pictures they offer: http://www.birdingisrael.com/

Answer: 5

There are a total of five regions each categorized by the amount of rainfall they receive : Northern Negev has the most rainfall with 12" per annum, the Western Negev 10", Central Negev 8",the high plateau 4" and the Arava Valley with as little as 2" per year.