What Is the Movement for Jewish Return to Palestine Called?

The movement is called Zionism — a nationalist ideology advocating for the re-establishment of a Jewish homeland in historic Palestine (Eretz Yisrael).

Origins and Development

• Late 19th century: Formalized by Theodor Herzl (1896 pamphlet The Jewish State, First Zionist Congress 1897) in response to European antisemitism, pogroms, and the Dreyfus Affair.
• Pre-state institutions: Jewish National Fund, Histadrut, Haganah built infrastructure, settlements, defense.
• Balfour Declaration (1917): British support for "a national home for the Jewish people" in Palestine.
• 1948: Declaration of the State of Israel — realization of political Zionism's core goal.

Diverse Strands

Zionism encompasses political, labor, religious, revisionist, and cultural variants — not a monolith. Today, it remains central to Israeli identity and a subject of intense global debate.