A
kibbutz ( / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural
kibbutzim) is a
collective community in
Israel that was traditionally based on
agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was
Degania. Today, farming has been partly supplanted by other economic branches, including
industrial plants and
high-tech enterprises. Kibbutzim began as
utopian communities, a combination of
socialism and
Zionism. In recent decades, some kibbutzim have been privatized and changes have been made in the communal lifestyle. A member of a kibbutz is called a
kibbutznik .
