Hanukkah (also spelled Chanukah and Chanukkah), known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple (the Second Temple) in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire of the 2nd century BCE. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar, which may occur at any time from late November to late December.
The festival is observed by the lighting of candles placed in a nine-branched menorah or hanukiah, adding one additional candle on each night of the holiday. According to Talmudic legend, when the Jewish people reclaimed the Temple in Jerusalem from Syrian invaders, there was only enough sanctified oil for one day’s lighting of the menorah. However, the legend says, a miracle occurred and it burned for eight days. Hanukkah has come to be a symbol of Jewish resistance to tyranny and assimilation.
The festival is observed by the lighting of candles placed in a nine-branched menorah or hanukiah, adding one additional candle on each night of the holiday. According to Talmudic legend, when the Jewish people reclaimed the Temple in Jerusalem from Syrian invaders, there was only enough sanctified oil for one day’s lighting of the menorah. However, the legend says, a miracle occurred and it burned for eight days. Hanukkah has come to be a symbol of Jewish resistance to tyranny and assimilation.
Hanukkah Customs
- On the first night, a single candle is placed on the far right of the menorah and lit. Since tradition says that no practical use can be made of the Hanukkah lights, an additional candle, the shamash (Hebrew for "attendant"), is used to light this candle and provide light. On the second night a second candle is place in the menorah just to the left of the first. According to one custom, lighting starts with the newest candle and proceeds to the right. This continues through the eighth night.
- It is customary to place the menorah where it can be seen from outside the house.
- Foods cooked in oil are traditionally eaten during Hanukkah. These include latkes (potato pancakes) and doughnuts.
- A game is played during Hanukkah using a four-sided top, or dreidel. The Hebrew letters nun, gimel, hey, and shin are written on the sides of the driedel. These letters are said to stand for “a great miracle happened there.”
- Many Jewish people exchange gifts during the holiday. However, this is a more modern addition to the celebration.
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Download Hanukkah101, a brief resource and introduction to celebrating the holiday.
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