Petah Tiqwa or Petah Tikva? Itll Cost $84K to Decide
Israel's Prime Minister's Office will spend $84,000 to standardize Latin script transliteration of Israeli place names.
Jerusalem, 30 August, 2026 (TPS-IL) — The Prime Minister’s Office plans to work with the Academy of the Hebrew Language to establish uniform rules for transliterating the names of Israeli communities into Latin script. The project, expected to cost the state about NIS 250,000 ($84,000), aims to end years of inconsistency in the spelling of place names on official documents, maps and public signs.
For example, names such as Bene Beraq/Bnei Brak and Petah Tiqwa/Petah Tikva are currently spelled in several different ways. The new guidelines are intended to create a single, binding standard for government ministries and official bodies.
The Prime Minister’s Office, which oversees the Government Names Committee, will lead the project in cooperation with the Academy’s Scientific Secretariat.