Hod HaSharon is home to
Tel Qana, an
archeological site inhabited in the
Early,
Middle, and
Late Bronze Ages, Iron Age I–II, and the
Persian,
Roman, and
Byzantine periods. A 1,300-year-old
olive oil factory, of mason-worked blocks, was unearthed in Hod HaSharon. According to the
Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), the size of the press suggested it was meant for commercial production, rather than local or personal use." Before the 20th century, the area of Hod HaSharon formed part of the Forest of Sharon, a hallmark of the region's historical landscape; the landscape was an open
woodland, dominated by sections of
Mount Tabor oak (
Quercus ithaburensis), extending from
Kfar Yona in the north to Ra'anana in the south. Traditionally, the local Arab inhabitants used the area for
pasture,
firewood and intermittent
cultivation. The intensification of settlement and agriculture on the
coastal plain during the 19th century led to
deforestation and subsequent
environmental degradation, known from
Hebrew sources. In 1964, Hod HaSharon was created through a merger of
Magdiel with
Hadar Ramatayim, an administrative body which encompassed the former moshavot of Ramatayim, Hadar and Ramat Hadar.
Magdiel Magdiel was founded on 2 August 1924, by a group of twelve
Ashkenazi families. They received a plot of land from
Yehoshua Hankin, which they cultivated and prepared for farming.
Ramatayim Ramatayim was founded in July 1925 by immigrants from Poland. In 1949, Ramatayim became the first local council to be established in Israel.
Ramat Hadar Ramat Hadar was established in December 1938 by middle-class immigrants fleeing from
Nazi Germany, members of the
Fifth Aliyah. File:Biyar 'Adas 1942.jpg|Ramatayim 1942 1:20,000 File:Hash Sharon 1942.jpg|Hadar 1942 1:20,000 File:רמתיים (הוד השרון) - מראה-JNF006952.jpeg|Ramatayim 1945 File:Herzliya 1945.jpg|Hadar 1945 1:250,000 ==Demographics==