Tel Aviv is the common name of the second largest city of Israel. The full name of the city is Tel Aviv-Yafo and takes into account the history of the famous resort origin. In terms of urban planning Tel Aviv is relatively young as it was founded in 1909 as a port on the outskirts of the ancient port city of Jaffa, which has been known since the biblical times (it is believed that prophet Jonah had set off from the port of Jaffa and was later swallowed by a giant fish). The new port has been growing so rapidly that it outshined ancient Jaffa, which seems to be frozen in time. In the 1950s the Israeli authorities decided to merge the two cities – Tel Aviv is an economic center, whereas beautiful Jaffa attracts foreign tourists who are interested in the Arabic past of the city.
