Mapping Leisure and Life Through the Ages in Israel

While individuals are characterized by unique personal leisure preferences and behaviours, being part of a society, people’s leisure behaviours are also shaped by their socio-cultural contexts. Trends and developments which occur in any society bring with them changes to people’s leisure perceptions and behaviours. This chapter focuses on Israeli society with the aim to map its leisure and the way it has been shaped by demographic, social and cultural trends during the period prior to its establishment and over its 63 years of existence. Whereas studies focusing on leisure emerged mainly during the 1970s, the chapter attempts to depict aspects related to leisure starting from the late twentieth century when the first wave of immigrants arrived in Israel.