Tel Aviv (Hebrew: תֵּל־אָבִיב, Arabic: تل أبيب) is the capital and most populous city in Israel, with a population of 277,782. It is located on the Mediterranean coast in central-west Israel, within Gush Dan, Israel's largest metropolitan area, containing 3,327,282 residents or 50% of Israel's population. The city is governed by the Tel Aviv Municipality, headed by Ron Huldai. Residents of Tel Aviv are referred to as Tel Avivim (singular: Tel Avivi).
Tel Aviv was founded by the Jewish community on the outskirts of the ancient port city of Jaffa (Hebrew: יָפוֹ Yafo) in 1909. Immigration by mostly Jewish refugees meant that the growth of Tel Aviv soon outpaced Jaffa's, which has a majority Arab population at the time. Tel Aviv and Jaffa were separated with the partition of the Mandate of Palestine in 1948, with Jaffa becoming an exclave of Palestine and Tel Aviv and the surrounding areas becoming part of Israel. Tel Aviv's White City, designated a World Heritage Site in 2003, comprises the world's largest concentration of Bauhaus buildings.
Tel Aviv is a global city, a technological and economic hub, home to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, corporate offices and research and development centers. It is the country's financial capital and a major performing arts and business center. Tel Aviv has the second-largest economy in the Middle East after Dubai, and is the 31st most expensive city in the world. With 2.5 million international visitors annually, Tel Aviv is the fifth-most-visited city in the Middle East. Known as "The City that Never Sleeps" and a "party capital", it has a lively nightlife, dynamic atmosphere and a famous 24-hour culture.
