- Sabra (person)
Sabra ( _he. צבר) is a term used to describe a native-born
Israel iJew . [ [http://www.economist.com/daily/diary/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8160028 An Israel-America diary] "The Economist ", 16 November 2006] The word is derived from the Hebrew name for theprickly pear cactus , "tzabar," and related to the Arabic word for aloe/cactus, "sabr," which means "patience." [ [http://www.balashon.com/2008/03/tzabar.html Balashon, Hebrew Language Detective] ] The allusion is to a tenacious, thorny desert plant with a thick hide that conceals a sweet, softer interior, i.e., rough and masculine on the outside, but delicate and sensitive on the inside.The first use of the word to describe native-born Israelis is claimed by the journalist
Uri Kesari , who published an essay, "We Are the Leaves of the Sabra!", inDoar HaYom on18 April 1931 . [ [http://www.balashon.com/2008/03/tzabar.html Tzabar] Balashon - Hebrew Language Detective]In the 1980's, when television in Israel was still black and white and aired several hours a day, the Israeli children's show, "
Ma Pit'om " ("What on earth?" or "You don't say!," מה פתאום) featured as its star the talking cactus "Kishkashta;" "Kishkashta " was a "Sesame Street "-style felt puppet who introduced himself with a solitary song.References
External links
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLDOC0BCOG0 Youtube video of Kishkashta]
* [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=146529249619329575 Hebrew site with video of Kishkashta]
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