Chanukah (also spelled Hanukkah) is an eight-day Jewish holiday known as the Festival of Lights. It commemorates both a military victory and a miracle associated with the Temple in Jerusalem.
Basic meaning
Chanukah means “dedication” in Hebrew, referring to the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in the 2nd century BCE after it had been defiled by the Seleucid (Syrian-Greek) empire. The holiday marks the success of the Maccabees, a small Jewish resistance group, in reclaiming the Temple and restoring Jewish worship there.
The miracle of the oil
According to rabbinic tradition, when the Temple was reclaimed there was only enough ritually pure oil to keep the Temple’s menorah burning for one day. The oil miraculously lasted eight days, the time needed to prepare new pure oil, and the eight-day holiday reflects that miracle.
How it is celebrated
Jews celebrate Chanukah by lighting a special nine-branched menorah (chanukiah) each night, adding one more light on each of the eight nights using a helper candle called the shamash. The holiday also includes special prayers, traditional songs, games like spinning a dreidel, and customs such as eating foods fried in oil, like latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly doughnuts).