Israel was represented by the first Eurovision winner to perform entirely in a non-European language when Izhar Cohen and Alphabeta won in 1978 with “A-Ba-Ni-Bi.”
“A-Ba-Ni-Bi” was sung in Hebrew, a Semitic language rather than a European language. Israel won the final in Paris on 22 April 1978, ahead of Belgium and France. The song was written by Nurit Hirsch and Ehud Manor.
The entry used a children’s language game in which syllables are inserted into words. Its title comes from that playful linguistic device. Although Hebrew is not an Indo-European language, Israel had already participated in Eurovision several times before its first victory.
The contest’s language rule was later relaxed and eventually abolished, allowing entries to use English or other languages more freely. Israel won again in 1979, making it the first country to achieve back-to-back victories on home territory.