The moshav was established in 1949 by Jewish
Holocaust survivors from
Czechoslovakia, who had
immigrated to Israel with the help of the Aliya movement after
World War II. Kerem Maharal was named after legendary 16th century Rabbi
Judah Loew ben Bezalel, also known by the
Hebrew acronym "Maharal" (
Moreinu HaRav Loew, translated as
Our teacher, the Rabbi Loew). It was built on the site of the depopulated
Palestinian Arab villages of
Ijzim and
Khirbat Al-Manara, which were captured by the
Israel Defense Forces in
Operation Shoter during the
1948 Arab–Israeli War. The residents lived in the Arab stone houses until the 1960s and some of the original structures remain today. A hotel in the moshav was previously a
diwan or meeting house of
Mas'ud al-Madi" of
Ijzim, dating from the 18th century. ==Notable residents==