Hanukkah (
/ˈhɑːnəkə/ HAH-nə-kə;
Hebrew: חֲנֻכָּה
ḥanuká,
Tiberian:
ḥanuká, usually spelled חֲנוּכָּה, pronounced
[χanuˈka] in
Modern Hebrew,
[ˈχanukə] or
[ˈχanikə] 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 (
Hebrew: חַג הַאוּרִים,
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 (
Hebrew: שַׁמָּשׁ, "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.
[2] 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.
[3]
