Hanukkah, commonly known as the Festival of Lights, is a Jewish holiday celebrated for eight days and nights. It starts on the 25th day of the Jewish month of Kislev which coincides with late November – late December on the secular calendar. This year’s Hanukkah celebration runs from December 6-14.
In Hebrew, the word “hanukkah” means “dedication.” The holiday commemorates the re-dedication of the holy Temple in Jerusalem following the Jewish victory over the Syrian-Greeks in 165 B.C.E.
Following their victory, Jewish troops were determined to purify the Temple by burning ritual oil in the Temple’s menorah for eight days. They discovered there was only one day’s worth of oil left in the Temple. They lit the menorah anyway and to their surprise the small amount of oil lasted the full eight days.
This is the miracle of the Hanukkah oil that is celebrated each year when Jews light a special menorah known as a hanukkiyah.
While many consider it to be, Hanukkah is not the Jewish equivalent of Christmas. Although gifts are exchanged, Hanukkah actually is considered a minor Jewish holiday while Christmas is one of the two main holidays on the protestant Christian calendar along with Easter.
