Hanukkah, which means “dedication” in Hebrew, begins on the 25th of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar and usually falls sometime in November or December. Hanukkah 2022 began on the evening of Sunday, December 18 and ends on the evening of Monday, December 26. Often called the Festival of Lights, the holiday is celebrated with the lighting of the menorah, traditional foods, games and gifts. 

We light the menorah because of the Hanukkah miracle. There was only one small cruse of pure oil, enough to light the menorah in the Temple for one day. But it lasted eight days, in time to produce new pure oil and the menorah was able to remain lit and never burn out. This miracle is attributed to God and the faith that the Jews had in God.

The dreidel is an interesting part of the holiday. In Israel, the letters on the dreidels go ,נ,ג,ה,פ (right to left) Which means נס גדול היה פה (the miracle was here) but in other countries the letters go נ,ג,ה,ש, (right to left) which means נס גדול היה שם (the miracle was there).

As a kid, when you hear Hanukkah (also spelled Chanukah), you think of a Jewish holiday that lasts for eight nights and usually occurs in December. You think of a holiday where you light another candle on the menorah every night for 8 nights. You think of a holiday where you receive presents from your family and spin dreidels with your friends. This sounds like an amazing time, but it’s not the same as you get older.

As you get older, getting presents and spinning dreidels is forgotten. Every night you and your family light an extra candle on the menorah and sing Hanukkah songs. You don’t blow out the candles you lit, instead let the candles go out themselves. After lighting the candles, you have dinner with your family and sometimes family friends as well, and eat foods usually like Latkes which is like a pancake based with potatoes or other fried foods. The usual Hanukkah dessert is a sufganiya (sufganiyot in plural), which is similar to a donut.

From the presents and dreidels to the candles and songs, Hanukkah is a holiday for everyone. It’s a fun yearly experience that leaves everyone with a smile.