Sabra (person)

Derived from the Hebrew name for the prickly pear cactus, which is commonly spelled sabra in English, the words had come into widespread use by the 1930s, when they were used to designate a Jewish person whose place of birth was located within the Land of Israel—corresponding with Ottoman Syria until 1918 (cf.

Sabra is understood to be a term that is used to allude to the collective nature of Israeli Jews: it is a tenacious and thorny desert plant with a thick skin that conceals a sweet and soft interior.

This description is the basis for the design of Srulik, a cartoon character that represents the average sabra and thus serves as Israel's national personification.

It is thought to have been used as far back as the early 20th century, when it was used to refer to the first generation of native-born Hebrew speaking Jews produced by the Zionist movement, the children of the immigrants of the First Aliyah that began in 1881 in Romania.

[13] According to Israeli sociologist Oz Almog, who studied the sociological development of the term, the first indications of a new culture appeared around the time of World War I, when the children of First Aliyah immigrants were already displaying traditional sabra characteristics.

[9] At this time, there was now a large number of native-born Jews in the kibbutzim and moshavim and in urban areas, and as a result, sabra culture blossomed.

Almog wrote that "as the Sabra archetype and stereotype took shape, the students at the Hebrew gymnasiums, the young people of the kibbutzim and moshavim, and the members of the youth movements and Palmach began developing a consciousness about their cultural uniqueness.

Only in the native youth, born and reared in the country, does the first intimation of the future profile of Israel as a nation begin to outline itself.

[20] The Sabra received an artistic and symbolic representation in the form of the illustrated character "Srulik", who wears shorts, sandals and a Tembel hat, created by cartoonist Dosh.

[22] In popular culture, an episode of the American Saturday Night Live series contained a sketch entitled "Sabra Price Is Right" featuring Tom Hanks as the guest host.

The sketch was written by Robert Smigel and is a parody of Israel-born Jews making bargains with people who believe this show is The Price Is Right.

In the sketch, Hanks's character "Uri Shurinson" and the other Sabra are swindling the contestants, conning them into purchasing shoddy products.