The founders, Ben-Zvi, Alexander Zaid, and Yisrael Shochat (among others), named the organization after Simon Bar Giora, one of the leaders of the Jewish Revolt against the Romans.

 

Members of Bar Giora trained in weaponry and agriculture, guarding Jewish villages, property, and crops. In 1909, Bar-Giora evolved into Hashomer, the precursor to the Haganah, which would later evolve into the IDF.

 

Bar-Giora chose a line from Yaakov Cohen's poem, Habiryonim, as their slogan - a slogan that would later be adopted by Hashomer and the revisionist self-defense organization, Brit HaBirionim: "In fire and blood did Judea fall; in blood and fire Judea shall rise!"