‘Tis the season once more to be jolly. Christmas trees are going up in homes, and colorful blinking lights are illuminating the night time skies.

But that’s if you stay in a Catholic household, though. But what concerned our Jewish brothers and sisters?

Of course, they additionally rejoice in the course of the winter, however, it isn’t Christmas.

The Jewish community has its festivity referred to as Hanukkah, in course which they have rejoiced for eight days and nights.

Let’s work out how and why the Jewish trust celebrates this excursion with the aid of taking a nearer appearance at its history.

What is Hanukkah?

Firstly, Hanukkah is no longer the Jewish model of Christmas. Minimum no in the religious sense.

Hanukkah or Chanukah, which mode “dedication” in Hebrew, is a party of remembrance of the victory of Jewish rebels against their Greek-Syrian bully and the rededication of their Holy Temple in Jerusalem.

This rededication took place on the 25th day of the month of Kislev and each and every year since then.

Some might also be careworn about why it falls on random dates each and every year, however, it doesn’t, as per the Hebrew calendar, which follows the lunar cycle.

Because the lunar and solar cycles do now not align absolutely, Hanukkah falls whenever from late November to late December.

As the story goes, their temple needed a holy light to shine internal of it at all times, however, the Jewish human beings solely had oil that would last for one night.

Miraculously, the light stored shining for eight days, which is why Hanukkah is rejoiced for eight days and is the cause it’s additionally known as the Festival of Lights.

The story of Hanukkah no longer shows up in the Torah, the Holy Book of the Jewish faith, due to the fact it is stated to have befallen after it was once written.

Instead, it can be located cited in the Bible’s New Testament when Jesus attended a get-together known as the “Feast of Dedication.”

What are the disparate traditions of Hanukkah?

During every night time of Hanukkah, a Menorah will be lit to celebrate the holiday.

This candelabra holds 9 candles, one in its middle that needs to be used to mild the 4 others on every side. This candle is referred to as the shamash.

One candle is lit every night till all eight are lit collectively on the festival’s last night.

It has continually been the lifestyle to grant cash to one other at some stage in Hanukkah.

And, due to the fact of how the reputation of Christmas grew, the Jewish community has additionally adopted its culture of gift-giving.

The Jewish human beings would additionally play the dreidel for the duration of this holiday.

This is their model of the teetotum, a gambling toy located in numerous European cultures.

During dinners, most of the usual meals served are fried and are supposed to characterize the miracle oil that stored the lights burning for eight days.

Over 175 million jelly donuts, or sufganiyot in Hebrew, are eaten up in Israel throughout the holiday.

What kind of food is served during Hanukkah?

Much like any massive excursion get-together the place a giant quantity of meals is served all through gatherings, Hanukkah is no different.

Besides everyone’s favorite sufganiyot or the jelly donut, different common Hanukkah dinner staples consist of latkes, which are potato pancakes or fritters; the applesauce that goes with latkes; and challah, a braided bread eaten in the course of ceremonial occasions.

The main courses can involve braised beef brisket, salmon with lemon and dill, crispy rosemary rooster and fries, and roasted inexperienced beans.

It is additionally customary for the regular food being served to be cooked no longer solely symbolically with oil but additionally kosher.

Kosher is a time period used to describe meals that complies with the strict dietary guidelines of regular Jewish law, derived from Leviticus eleven and Deuteronomy 14:1-12.

How has Hanukkah been represented in the famous culture?

There have been lots of Hanukkah illustrations in pop culture over the years.

One of the examples that obtained mainstream awareness was once the track Chanukah Song using the famous comic Adam Sandler.

The song’s stupidity is beside the point. It has paved the way for numerous extra Hollywood writers and actors to embody their Jewish identification extra openly.

The 2000s kicked it into high equipment by way of giving Hanukkah extra visibility.

There’s the seriously panned however now-considered cult basic movie, Eight Crazy Nights, which coincidentally additionally starred Adam Sandler.

Then there’s the teen TV drama, The OC, watched by way of millions weekly, the place broody, hipster teenagers have fun on an all-inclusive vacation dubbed Chrismukkah.

Meanwhile, humans gathered to see rockers like Perry Farrell of the band Jane’s Addiction host the now annual New York City get-together A Jewcy Hanukkah.

There’s additionally Hanukkah-themed pop punk band The LeeVees, who launched their CD Hanukkah Rocks! in 2005 to some praise.

So, whether thru music, film, or television, the spirit of Hanukkah is obviously alive and good. Hanukkah certainly rocks!

 Hanukkah has a lengthy history in the Jewish community that rejoices in miracles and their triumphs.

It is an essential holiday, and its observance is something festive with masses of singing, eating, and household time.

So the subsequent time you meet a Jewish buddy this season, be certain to greet them with a Chag sameach or a Happy Hanukkah!

Hopefully, you get invited to a minimum of one of the eight days of celebration!