Taking a deeper look at five Hanukkah traditions and their origins to celebrate the arrival of the festival of light. 

For the first time in 19 years, the first night of Hanukkah falls on Christmas Day in 2024, bringing about an extra special holiday for millions of Americans. Hanukkah is the second most celebrated winter holiday in the United States, but remains significantly smaller than Christmas, and thus has less known about it. While there are many traditions of Hanukkah that have their origins deep in ancient biblical history, here are five of the most common: 

  1. Hanukkah is known as the Festival of Lights. The term dates back to early in the first century after Christ, to a Jewish historian named Josephus Flavius, who lived in Jerusalem. According to Flavius’ accounts, the term centers on an ancient Jewish miracle of a tiny jar of oil that lasted for eight nights, simultaneously setting the length of the Jewish holiday. While Flavius’ account differs from some other historians, it references the likeliness of the term originating from the Menorah, the most famous item of Hanukkah for Jewish families. The Menorah is lit each night to recognize the miracle of the jar of oil, and for each night of Hanukkah, one more candle is lit. By the end of eight nights, the Menorah is fully lit with flame on each of its candles. 
  2. The first night of Hanukkah is different every year, marking its start on Christmas Day for the first time in 19 years, and before that, the first time in 46 years. Hanukkah always begins on the 25th Day of Kislev, according to the Jewish calendar. The Talmudic sage Rabbi Chanina recounts the process of building the Mishkan – a portable temporary tabernacle that was used as a central temple of the Jewish faith before the great temple was constructed in Jerusalem. The work of the Mishkan was finished on the 25th Day of Kislev, thus marking historically the first night of Hanukkah. This is why Hanukkah falls on a different day every year, because the 25th Day of Kislev is not a direct translation from the Roman calendar. 
  3. Hanukkah is famous for chocolate coins called Hanukkah Gelt. The gelt is meant to symbolize the sacrifice made by workers throughout the year, and was once used as a tip to these workers to celebrate the holidays. While it’s now synonymous with children and dreidel games to win the chocolate, it wasn’t until the mid 19th century that the practice of using these coins to tip laborers ended. 
  4. Hanukkah can be spelled many different ways, and the word itself has been debated for centuries. While the true meaning of why the holiday is called Hanukkah – and why there are so many spellings – isn’t immediately known, the word itself translates directly to the word “dedication” in Hebrew. It’s also one of the few Jewish holidays that is celebrated the same way by all the groups of Judaism – reform to conservative to orthodox – and is always celebrating the rededication of the Jerusalem temple in the 2nd century after Christ. 
  5. The dreidel is one of the most famous – and fun – Jewish symbols, and it’s now a game that’s played by millions around the world on Hanukkah, other Jewish holidays, and sometimes not in observance of anything. But the dreidel was once an important tool of the Jewish people – being used as a way for young children and adults to learn the Torah and the language of Hebrew when it was outlawed by the ancient Greeks. Families would gather around the dreidel and use the letters painted on the side to teach themselves about their history and language.