This poster, published by the Ministry of Education and Culture in 1955, is a chart of Hebrew words that would be used at the grocery shop. The Hebrew word is written underneath drawings of common products such as bread, sweets, butter, honey, sausages, beans, flour, and oil. Common Hebrew phrases that a shopper would need to know are also written on the poster, which also lists the correct way to say the number of kilograms and the price in Iira, the currency of the day.
This poster reflects the efforts made by the Ministry of Education to integrate the new immigrants into Israel by teaching them everyday words. Similar posters were created for different aspects of life: health, transportation, domestic animals, eating out, and shopping. The poster illustrate the foods and household goods that were common in an Israeli home in the period, lasting from 1949 to 1959, known as the Tzena (the austerity period), when food, clothing, and furniture were rationed. The poster teaches new immigrants how to say important phrases related to the rationing such as: “Give me my monthly rations,” and “I still did not receive my oil ration.” The food pictures also tell us about the Israeli diet in the 1950s: bread, vegetables, fish, eggs, canned goods, and dairy products are pictured, while fresh meat and processed foods are not. While this might be due to a shortage of these products, it is more likely that these were products not bought in a grocery shop but rather in a butcher’s shop or at the market.
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Mass Immigration to Israel in the Early Years of Israel - The early years of the State of Israel were noted for the large wave of immigration from all corners of the world; in the State’s first three and a half years, 688,000 new immigrants arrived, doubling Israel’s population. The immigrants were mostly Holocaust survivors from Europe and refugees from Arab countries. This welcome influx of Jews necessitated many resources. The immigrants needed housing and jobs. They also needed to integrate into Israeli society, and there was therefore a massive campaign to teach the immigrants Hebrew.
