Traditions
Hanukkah
The celebration of Hanukkah includes a variety of religious and nonreligious customs. Like Purim, Hanukkah is a joyous festival that lacks the work restrictions characteristic of the major festivals of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
Menorah
The most important of all Hanukkah traditions is the lighting each evening of a special nine-branched candelabra called a ḥanukkiyah, which is a type of menorah. A menorah is a traditional seven-branched candelabra used in the Temple of Jerusalem and a potent symbol in Judaism. To represent the miracle of one day’s worth of oil burning for eight days, the Hanukkah menorah has eight branches for candles plus a holder for the shammash (“servant”) candle. The shammash candle is used to light the other eight candles, and its holder is typically offset higher than the others. Styles for Hanukkah menorahs vary widely from simple to elaborate, traditional to modern, and there are also electric versions.
One candle is lit on the first evening, and an additional candle is lit on each subsequent evening until eight candles are burning on the last evening. Olive oil was traditionally used for lighting the menorah, but it was replaced by candles, which are inserted in the menorah incrementally each night of the festival from right to left but are lit from left to right. The Hanukkah candles are lit after sundown, except on the Sabbath; because of the prohibition on lighting a fire during the Sabbath, they are lit before the Friday-evening Sabbath candles. Blessings are also offered after the candles have been arranged in their places and while holding the lit shammash prior to using it to light the other candles. Two blessings are sung each night, and a third is added on the first night. The menorah was originally kindled outside the home, with the intention of publicizing the miracle, but it was brought inside in ancient times to guard against danger or offending neighbors. It is frequently lit in a home’s window.
Liturgy and prayers
The Hanukkah observance is also characterized by the daily reading of Scripture, recitation of some of the Psalms, almsgiving, and singing of a special hymn. The liturgy includes Hallel, public readings from the Torah, and the ʿal ha-nissim (“for the miracles”) prayer. The Scroll of Antiochus, an early medieval account of Hanukkah, is read in some synagogues and homes. Along with the daily prayers, thanks are offered to God for delivering the strong into the hands of the weak and the evil into the hands of the good. The word Hanukkah in Hebrew also means “education,” and rabbis and Jewish educators try to instill in their congregants and students the notion that the holiday celebrates Jewish strengths, perseverance, and continuity.
Nonreligious traditions
There are a number of nonreligious customs associated with Hanukkah, including festive meals, songs, games, and gifts to children. Potato pancakes (latkes), doughnuts (sufganiyot), and other treats fried in oil, which recall the miracle of the oil, are beloved foods. Children receive presents and gifts of money (Hanukkah gelt). Hanukkah gelt is sometimes distributed in the form of chocolates wrapped in gold foil. Popular Hanukkah songs include “Maoz Tzur” (“Rock of Ages”) and “Mi Yimalel” (“Who Can Retell?”); there are popular English versions of those songs as well as English-origin tunes such as “Hanukkah, O Hanukkah” and “I Have a Little Dreidel.” In countries where Christmas rituals are widespread, some echoes of those practices appear in Hanukkah celebrations; some families, for example, exchange gifts or decorate their homes. Since the 1970s, the Chabad movement has often sponsored the erection of large menorahs in public spaces.
Children often play a game with a four-sided top called a dreidel (Hebrew sevivon). On each side of the top is a Hebrew letter, which forms the initials of the words in the saying “Nes gadol haya sham,” meaning “A great miracle happened there.” In modern Israel the letters of the dreidel were changed to reflect the saying “Nes gadol haya po,” meaning “A great miracle happened here.” It likely originated in the 18th century among Ashkenazi Jews in Europe from a popular top game called teetotum.
Dreidel is a children’s game played with a four-sided top on which four Hebrew letters are written. Each player begins play with the same number of tokens (e.g., coins, chocolates, raisins, beans, or matchsticks). Before each player’s turn to spin the dreidel, all players contribute to a central community pot. The side facing up when the dreidel lands determines whether and how much the player who spun the dreidel gives to or takes from the pot. The letters stand for the Hebrew saying “Nes gadol haya sham” (“A great miracle happened there”) and for Yiddish words pertaining to the game.
- נ (nun): “nisht,” take nothing
- ג (gimel): “gantz,” take everything
- ה (hey): “halb,” take half
- ש (shin): “shtel arayn,” put in (a token)
In Israel
In contemporary Israel, Hanukkah is a national holiday, and students present plays, sing holiday songs, and have parties. Schools are closed, and menorahs are displayed atop such prominent buildings as the Israeli parliament, the Knesset. A highlight of the eight-day festival is an annual relay from Modiʿin to Jerusalem. Runners carry burning torches through the streets, beginning in Modiʿin. The runners continue until the final torchbearer arrives at the Western Wall, which is the last remnant of the Temple. The torchbearer hands the torch to the chief rabbi, who uses it to light the first candle of a giant menorah.