Yohanan Aharoni (7 June 1919 – 9 February 1976) was an Israeli archaeologist and historical geographer, chairman of the Department of Near East Studies and chairman of the Institute of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University.

Life

Born to the Aronheim family, in Germany on 7 June 1919, Aharoni immigrated to Mandatory Palestine in 1933. He studied at the Hebrew Reali School in Haifa, and later at the Mikve Yisrael agricultural school. He married Miriam Gross and became a member of kibbutz Alonim, where he lived until 1947.

Career

Aharoni studied archaeology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and began to teach there in 1954. By 1966, he became a professor at the university. However, in 1968, he moved to Tel Aviv University and replaced Shemuel Yeivin as chairman of the Department of Near East Studies. Together with his student Moshe Kochavi, his academic staff from his archaeological projects, and the teaching staff of the Department, Aharoni established the Tel Aviv University Institute of Archaeology, with the purpose of conducting archaeological fieldwork and research. Aharoni participated in many excavations, including Ramat Rachel, Tel Arad, Tel Be'er Sheva, Tel Hazor and Lachish. He also studied ancient roadways in the Negev, and participated in the discovery of the Bar Kokhba caves while surveying and excavating the Dead Sea region in 1953.

Publications

In addition to numerous articles published in archaeological journals, Aharoni wrote several books: