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Published November 30, 2018
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This year, Hanukkah begins December 2 at sunset and ends December 10, also at sunset. Its annual starting date is always sometime between late November and late December.
Thomas Northcut
On the Hebrew calendar, it begins on the eve of the 25th day of the month of Kislev.
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It is also known as the Festival of Lights, Feast of Dedication and Feast of the Maccabees.
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It commemorates the victory of the Maccabees over the Syrians around 165 BC and the re-dedication of Jerusalem's Second Temple.
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Hanukkah is not "the Jewish Christmas."
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But often children receive gifts, especially in areas where Jewish and Christian children are in close contact.
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Re-dedication was necessary because Seleucid king of Syria, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, had defiled the Temple by having an altar to Zeus placed there.
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When the Maccabees began preparing the Temple for the re-dedication, they found that they only had oil to light the Temple for one night.
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It ended up lasting for eight days, until the delivery of new consecrated oil.
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Candles are lit each night of Hanukkah to commemorate the miracle.
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On the first evening, a candle is lit in a special candelabra called a menorah or hanukkiyah. After that, one candle is added every night until the total reaches eight.
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The candles are lit by a separate candle called a Shamash, which is lit first and then is used to light the other candles.
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The candles are placed in the menorah from right to left, but are lit from left to right.
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One symbol of Hanukkah is the dreidel. A game is played with this four-sided spinning top.
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Traditional Hanukkah foods, such as latkes, or potato pancakes, are fried in oil, as another way to incorporate the memory of the Maccabees into the holiday.
Courtesy Daniel Spils