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Hanukkah 2017: What is the meaning behind this Jewish festival and why is it sometimes called Chanukah?

They say every major Jewish holiday can be summed up by the following quote: 'They tried to kill us, we won, let's eat.'

In the case of Hanukkah, the story is that of the Maccabees, a guerrilla army of Jewish rebels based in Israel who revolted against the Seleucid Greek King Antiochus who had - as the saying goes - tried to kill us.

The exact historical truth of the religious version of events is disputed, but we do know that King Antiochus and the Maccabees existed. What is less established is whether the miracle described in the Hanukkah story really happened.

Jewish people are taught that the oppressed Maccabees somehow defeated Antiochus' mighty troops and reclaimed the Temple in Jerusalem. To celebrate, they attempted a ritual lighting of a seven-pronged Menorah candle - but they only had enough oil to last one day. Miraculously, the oil lasted a full eight days, giving Jews enough time to procure new oil. This is why Hanukkah is known as the festival of lights.

Around 2,000 years on, Jewish people celebrate Hanukkah by lighting their Menorah every night for eight days - with the crucial difference being that modern Menorahs - also known as Hanukkiahs - have eight prongs with a large prong, known as a shamash, in the middle. The shamash is used to light one extra candle each night for the eight days. Observing in public is a key part of celebrating the festival. Jewish people are encouraged to place the Menorah in the front window of their home, and some organisations have organised public Menorah lightings.

A modern menorah with seven prongs
A modern menorah with seven prongs

Now for the most important part, the food. The story of Hanukkah is about oil, so it's traditional to eat fried goods such as potato latke pancakes or doughnuts.

Because the festival normally falls in December (although there are no guarantees with the Jewish lunisolar calendar), Hanukkah is often known as Jewish Christmas . While gift giving doesn't have any religious significance on Hanukkah, a tradition has developed to give presents during the festival - normally one for every night - possibly because of where it falls in the calendar.

In 2017 the celebration begins on December 12 and ends on December 20.

Here are five facts you may not know about the festival:

1. Hanukkah is the only Jewish holiday not mentioned in the Hebrew Bible

Unlike other major Jewish holidays, Hanukkah is not mentioned in the Hebrew Bible.

2. Hanukkah means eating doughnuts

To commemorate the miracle of the burning lamp, Jews customarily eat foods fried in oil and this means doughnuts.

3. Chocolate coins

Chocolate coins or gelt (Yiddish for money) wrapped in gold and silver are exchanged at Hanukkah.

A Dreidel is spun as part of a competition during the Jewish festival of Hanukkah Getty
A Dreidel is spun as part of a competition during the Jewish festival of Hanukkah Getty

4. Spinning the Dreidel

Gelt is also used in a game played with a spinning top called a dreidel at Hanukkah.

Players sit in a circle and put a chocolate coin in the middle. Each person takes a turn at spinning the cube-shaped dreidel, which has a Hebrew letter on each side.

5. Exchanging gifts

Traditionally Jews only exchanged gifts on Purim, a Jewish holiday commemorating the time when the Jewish people living in Persia were saved from extermination by a young woman called Esther.

However, when Christmas became more prominent in the late 19th century and the Christian holiday’s consumerism grew, the Jewish custom shifted in imitation of Christmas.

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