Hannukkah Crash Course
Hanukkah is a holiday that commemorates the recovery of Jerusalem and then the subsequent rededication of the second temple at the beginning of the Jewish Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd Century BCE.
Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev in the Hebrew Calendar, which occurs anywhere from November 28 to December 27. To observe Hanukkah people light the 9 candles on the candelabrum, also known as a menorah. One candle is positioned above the other 8 and each night that candle, called the shammash, is used to light another candle until all 8 candles are lit on the final night of the festival.
Hanukkah was originally instituted as a feast “in the manner of Sukkot,” and Hanukkah does not require any obligations thus making it relatively minor in religious terms. In spite of this Hanukkah has become culturally significant especially among secular jews as it occurs around the same time as Christmas during the festive season.
Some Hannukkah Traditions
- The game dreidel is one interesting Hanukkah tradition where the sides of the dreidel refers to actions in a game, and objects in a “pool” are traded back and forth.
- During Hanukkah it is common to eat oil based foods like latkes and sufganiyot to commemorate the importance of oil.
- Many families also exchange gifts and give children “Hanukkah Gelt,” Hanukkah themed chocolate coins.
