What to know about Hanukkah, celebrations
An Ultra-Orthodox Jewish man stands in front of a menorah on the third eve of Hanukkah, at the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest site in Jerusalem's old city, Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009. On eight consecutive nightfalls, Jews gather with family and friends to light one additional candle in the menorah candelabra. They do so to commemorate the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem in the second century BC, after a small group of Jewish fighters liberated it from occupying foreign forces.
(AP Photo/Sebastian Scheiner, File)
Hanukkah — also spelled Chanukah or other transliterations from Hebrew — is Judaism's "festival of lights." On eight consecutive nightfalls, Jews gather with family and friends to light one additional candle in the menorah — a multi-branched candelabra.
In Hebrew, Hanukkah means "dedication," and the holiday marks the rededication of the Temple in Jerusalem in the second century BC after a small group of Jewish fighters liberated it from occupying foreign forces.
With the tiny supply of ritually pure oil that they found in the temple, they lit the menorah — and it stayed lit for eight days. The ritual of lighting a nightly candle, as well as the emphasis on cooking foods in oil such as potato pancakes called latkes, memorialize this miraculously long-lasting oil.
Become a Subscriber!
You have read all of your free articles this month. Select a plan below to start your subscription today.
Already a subscriber? Login
