In the system of rules under which Waze currently operates, there is a procedure that (after a brief investigation) turns out to be completely wrong regarding the determination of settlement names.
Currently, a settlement name is approved for use in Waze only when it appears in the government database.
As mentioned, this procedure is fundamentally flawed.
To understand the subject, I will provide the explanation regarding the authorities of the โGovernment Names Committeeโ as it appears on its website:
The Committeeโs authorities and their source:
The Committee operates by virtue of Government Decision No. 258 dated March 8, 1951, which established the Government Names Committee. This decision states that the Committee shall operate within the Prime Ministerโs Office and that its decisions shall be binding on state institutions. This decision thus merged the Committee for Naming Geographical Features in the Negev with the Committee for Naming Settlements of the Jewish National Fund (Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael).
The Committee is the only authorized body for naming settlements and various sites, including junctions, interchanges, tourist sites, nature and landscape sites, industrial and employment sites, and the like in the State of Israel. Even in the High Court of Justice (HCJ) ruling 146/81 (regarding the name โHalamishโ) it was emphasized that โit is inconceivable that every individual, or even every community in a specific place, should be allowed to name themselvesโโฆ
The Committeeโs primary goal is to establish Hebrew names as far as possible on the maps of Israel. The Committeeโs decisions are made in its plenary sessions and are published in the โReshumotโ (Official Gazette).
Based on the above, a settlement name takes effect and gains official status the moment the Committee decides on it and the decision is published in the โReshumotโ.
This means: It is the publication in the โReshumotโ that grants official status to a settlement, just as it does for any law or regulation published therein.
Therefore: Any database (of the Ministry of Interior or other authorities) is merely a practical reflection of a decision that has already gained legal force, but it does not determine official status by itself.
Consequently: It is irrelevant whether a settlement name appears in any particular database, as long as it appears in a decision by the Names Committee published in the โReshumotโ.
Attached as examples are 2 โYalkut HaPirsumimโ (Official Gazette) files referring to many settlement names which have clearly been official for all intents and purposes for quite some time, and they should be added to the map without delay: Yalkut HaPirsumim-11573 Yalkut HaPirsumim-13726
Naturally, there are many other publications regarding settlement names.
I urge those responsible for this matter to rectify the situation promptly.
Thank you and Happy Holiday.
An updated publication of the list of locality names as decided by the Government Names Committee is attached here.
Please specify which localities are missing from the map.
Thank you.
This publication is from April.
In the meeting of the Naming Committee in July, the following names were added:
Alon
Haresha
Kerem Reโim
Neria
Tal Menashe
Abei HaNahal
Gvaโot
Migron
Shvut Rachel
Avnat
Brosh HaBikโa
Yashuv
In the records files I attached, there are more:
Malachei HaShalom
Mishmar Yehuda
Sde Boaz
Sde Tzuri
Evyatar
Sde Ephraim
Thank you.
Over the years, there have been changes in the names of localities; new ones are added, and there are unifications and mergers of localities.
As far as the Government Names Committee is concerned, the determining factor is the most recent publication of the list of localities + decisions made from the date of the listโs publication until today.
We will examine the gaps and add missing localities as necessary.
Hello,
The rules for settlement names have been updated, and in accordance with the decision of the Government Names Committee and publication in the Official Gazette, the following settlements have been added:
Thank you very much.
There is another list of settlements published in the official records (in the two files I provided above), some of which do not yet exist in Waze:
Malachei HaShalom
Mishmar Yehuda
Sde Boaz
Sde Tzuri
Evyatar
Sde Ephraim
Residents of Nofei Nehemia filed an appeal against the Names Committeeโs decision to change the settlementโs name to Yashuv; therefore, the update was not performed, and I am in contact with the residents.
Aside from that, all segments and places in each settlement have been updated.
I am requesting again to add the list that does not yet exist in Waze, which the Government Names Committee determined in its meeting on the 10th of Tammuz 5783 (June 29, 2023):
Malachei HaShalom
Mishmar Yehuda
Sde Boaz
Sde Tzuri (-not yet existing. After October 7th, the government decided to change the name of the settlement to โOfirโ)
And in its meeting from the 23rd of Tevet 5785 (January 23, 2025):
Evyatar
Sde Ephraim
Hello,
As stated in the updated rules and in the law, the binding factor is the publication in the Official Gazette (Rashumot), not the protocol of the Government Names Committee itself.
If an appeal is filed and accepted, it will also be published in the Official Gazette. Therefore, for now, the settlementโs segment association should be changed; if a decision is made to change the name, it will be immediate and there will be no need for manual editing of segments and places.
Regarding the list of additional new settlements, have they all been published in the Official Gazette according to the link in the rules?
Attached is the appeal submitted by the settlement of Nofei Nehemia to the Government Names Committee.
About two weeks ago, the committee discussed the appeal after a settlement representative presented the issues with the new name, but it failed to reach a decision.
It was reported that the matter will be raised again at the next committee meeting.
Therefore, it is requested that we wait patiently for a decision and avoid causing further issues for map users.
Thank you
It indeed makes sense that there would be a few misses out of the approximately 1,500 edits Iโve made.
The following link in Alon doesnโt point anywhere.
The following link in Harasha doesnโt point anywhere.
The following link in Kerem Reโim also appears in Neriaโs list:
The following link in Neria doesnโt point anywhere:
Iโll remind you again that there are settlements on the list that havenโt been added to the map yet:
Malachei HaShalom
Mishmar Yehuda
Sde Boaz
Evyatar
Sde Ephraim