Hanukkah

Hanukkah ( , Tiberian: Ḥănukkāh, nowadays usually spelled חנוכה in Modern Hebrew, also romanized as Chanukah ), also 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 of the 2nd century BCE, Hanukkah is observed for eight nights, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar , which may occur at any time from late November to late December in the Gregorian calendar . The festival is observed by the kindling of the lights of a special candelabrum , the nine-branched Menorah or Hanukiah , one additional light on each night of the holiday, progressing to eight on the final night. An extra light called a shamash ( Hebrew : "guard" or "servant") is also lit each night for the purpose of lighting the others, and is given a distinct location, usually above or below the rest. The "shamash" symbolically supplies light that may be used for some secular purpose.

Hanukkah ( / ˈ h ɑː n ə k ə / HAH -nə-kə ; khanuká , Tiberian : khanuká , usually spelled חנוכה , pronounced in Modern Hebrew , or in Yiddish ; a transliteration also romanized as Chanukah or Ḥanukah ), also known as the Festival of Lights and Feast of Dedication , 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 in the Gregorian calendar . The festival is observed by the kindling of the lights of a unique candelabrum , the nine-branched menorah or hanukiah , one additional light on each night of the holiday, progressing to eight on the final night. The typical menorah consists of eight branches with an additional visually distinct branch. The extra light is called a shamash ( , "attendant") and is given a distinct location, usually above or below the rest. The purpose of the shamash is to have a light available for practical use, as using the Hanukkah lights themselves for purposes other than publicizing and meditating upon Hanukkah is forbidden. Other Hanukkah festivities include playing dreidel and eating oil based foods such as doughnuts and latkes . Hanukkah began to be popularized in the American Jewish community in the mid-nineteenth century, as Jewish groups looked for ways to adapt to American life, because they could celebrate Hannukkah in place of Christmas which occurs at around the same time. Penina Moise 's Hannukah Hymn published in the 1842 Hymns Written for the Use of Hebrew Congregations was instrumental in the beginning of Americanization of Hanukkah. Hanukkah became more widely celebrated beginning from the 1970s, when Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson called for public awareness of the festival and encouraged the lighting of public menorahs . Hanukkah in America: A History . Throughout the nineteenth century some Jews tried various ways to adapt Judaism to American life. As they began looking for images to help understand and explain what a proper response to American Challenges might be, Hanukkah became ripe for reinvention. In Charleston, South Carolina, one group of Jews made Hanukkah into a time for serious religious reflexion that responded to their evangelical Protestant milieu...[Moise's] poem gave Hanukkah a place in the emerging religious style of American culture that was dominated by the language of individualism and personal conscience derived from both Protestantism and the Enlightenment. However, neither the Talmud nor the Shulchan Aruch identifies Hanukkah as a special occasion to ask for the forgiveness of sins. Southern Jewish History . 12 : 1– 38. A Kosher Christmas: 'Tis the Season to be Jewish .

Jewish holiday Hanukkah table Hanukkah ( / ˈ h ɑː n ə k ə / HAH -nə-kə ; ḥanuká , Tiberian : ḥanuká , usually spelled חֲנוּכָּה , pronounced in Modern Hebrew , or in Yiddish ; a transliteration also romanized as Chanukah or Ḥanukah ) is a Jewish festival commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire . It is also known as the Festival of Lights ( , ḥag ha'urim ). 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 in the Gregorian calendar . The festival is observed by lighting the candles of a candelabrum with nine branches, called a menorah (or hanukkiah). One branch is typically placed above or below the others and its candle is used to light the other eight candles. This unique candle is called the shamash ( , "attendant"). Each night, one additional candle is lit by the shamash until all eight candles are lit together on the final night of the festival. Other Hanukkah festivities include playing the game of dreidel and eating oil-based foods, such as latkes and sufganiyot , and dairy foods. Since the 1970s, the worldwide Chabad Hasidic movement has initiated public menorah lightings in open public places in many countries. Although a relatively minor holiday in strictly religious terms, Hanukkah has attained major cultural significance in North America and elsewhere among secular Jews as a Jewish alternative to Christmas, and is often celebrated correspondingly fervently.

Jewish holiday For other uses, see Hanukkah (disambiguation) . English Wikisource has original text related to this article: 1 Maccabees Hanukkah table Hanukkah ( / ˈ h ɑː n ə k ə / ; חֲנֻכָּה ‎ listen ) is a Jewish festival commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem and subsequent rededication of the Second Temple at the beginning of the 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 according to the Hebrew calendar , which may occur at any time from late November to late December in the Gregorian calendar . The festival is observed by lighting the candles of a candelabrum with nine branches, commonly called a menorah or hanukkiah. One branch is typically placed above or below the others and its candle is used to light the other eight candles. This unique candle is called the shammash ( שַׁמָּשׁ ‎, "attendant"). Each night, one additional candle is lit by the shammash until all eight candles are lit together on the final night of the festival. Other Hanukkah festivities include singing Hanukkah songs , playing the game of dreidel and eating oil-based foods, such as latkes and sufganiyot , and dairy foods. Since the 1970s, the worldwide Chabad Hasidic movement has initiated public menorah lightings in open public places in many countries. Originally instituted as a feast "in the manner of Sukkot (Booths)", it does not come with the corresponding obligations, and is therefore a relatively minor holiday in strictly religious terms. Nevertheless, Hanukkah has attained major cultural significance in North America and elsewhere, especially among secular Jews, due to often occurring around the same time as Christmas during the festive season . The New York Jewish Week . In the second century BCE, the Holy Land was ruled by the Seleucids (Syrian-Greeks), who tried to force the people of Israel to accept Greek culture and beliefs instead of mitzvah observance and belief in G‑d. Against all odds, a small band of faithful but poorly armed Jews, led by Judah the Maccabee, defeated one of the mightiest armies on earth, drove the Greeks from the land, reclaimed the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and rededicated it to the service of G‑d. ... To commemorate and publicize these miracles, the sages instituted the festival of Chanukah. There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).

Jewish holiday For other uses, see Hanukkah (disambiguation) . English Wikisource has original text related to this article: 1 Maccabees Hanukkah table Hanukkah ( / ˈ h æ n ə k ə / , / ˈ h ɑː n ə k ə / ; חֲנֻכָּה ‎ Ḥănukkā listen ) is a Jewish festival commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem and subsequent rededication of the Second Temple at the beginning of the 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 according to the Hebrew calendar , which may occur at any time from November 28 to December 27 in the Gregorian calendar . The festival is observed by lighting the candles of a candelabrum with nine branches , commonly called a menorah or hanukkiah. One branch is placed above or below the others and its candle is used to light the other eight candles. This unique candle is called the shammash ( שַׁמָּשׁ ‎, "attendant"). Each night, one additional candle is lit by the shammash until all eight candles are lit together on the final night of the festival. Other Hanukkah festivities include singing Hanukkah songs , playing the game of dreidel and eating oil-based foods, such as latkes and sufganiyot (similar to jelly donuts), and dairy foods . Since the 1970s, the worldwide Chabad Hasidic movement has initiated public menorah lightings in open public places in many countries. Originally instituted as a feast "in the manner of Sukkot (Booths)", it does not come with the corresponding obligations, and is therefore a relatively minor holiday in strictly religious terms. Nevertheless, Hanukkah has attained major cultural significance in North America and elsewhere, especially among secular Jews , due to often occurring around the same time as Christmas during the festive season . The New York Jewish Week . In the second century BCE, the Holy Land was ruled by the Seleucids (Syrian-Greeks), who tried to force the people of Israel to accept Greek culture and beliefs instead of mitzvah observance and belief in G‑d. Against all odds, a small band of faithful but poorly armed Jews, led by Judah the Maccabee, defeated one of the mightiest armies on earth, drove the Greeks from the land, reclaimed the Holy Temple in Jerusalem and rededicated it to the service of G‑d. ... To commemorate and publicize these miracles, the sages instituted the festival of Hanukkah. There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).