Can someone tell me all about Hanukkah?

Answer 1

Like another famous winter-time holiday, Christmas, Hanukkah is about history. The celebration of Hanukkah is a commemoration of an event that happened more than 2,000 years ago.

In 167 B.C., the Syrian king Antiochus IV began to outlaw Jewish religious practices and forced Jews to adopt Greek rituals. His men took control of the Jews' Holy Temple in Jerusalem, looted it and erected an idol of a Greek god there. One Jewish family, the Hasmoneans (led by Mattityahu and his five sons), decided to take a stand against the persecution. The Greek forces arrived in the town of Modiin, near Jerusalem. It was here that after refusing to violate his own religion by praying to the Greek god Zeus, Mattityahu attacked the Greek soldiers.

This action began the Jewish rebellion. Mattityahu and his sons became known as the Maccabees, which means "men who are as strong as hammers" in Hebrew. The small army, led by Mattityahu's most famous son, Judah Maccabee, fought sizeable Greek forces. In 165 B.C., the Maccabees were triumphant. On the 25th of the Hebrew month Kislev, the Maccabees reclaimed the Holy Temple.

They decided to rededicate the temple -- the word "Hanukkah" means dedication. The Jewish army was unable to find enough oil to light the Menorah, or candle holder, to be used in the service. The Maccabees found only one bottle of oil, enough for only a single night. Miraculously, the oil lasted eight nights, giving the Jews time to produce more oil.

The holiday of Hanukkah commemorates this miracle. By lighting candles for eight nights, beginning every year on the 25th of Kislev (usually in December on the Western calendar, but not always), Jews celebrate the triumph of the Maccabees, the rededication of the Holy Temple and the miracle of the oil lasting for eight days. In 2007, Hanukkah began today December 4th.

Answer 2

Well, basically, it's like most Jewish holidays: They tried to kill us, we won, let's eat!

But seriously, you got some other wonderful answers and I will try not to repeat them because they are very detailed.

At one time, the Jews had a holy temple in Jerusalem. It was built by King Solomon, destroyed by the Babylonians, then rebuilt by King Herod. A Syrian King, Antiochus, and his army defiled the second temple and destroyed sacred objects used by the Jewish priests to offer sacrifices.

Led by the fearless Judah Macabee and his army of revolutionaries, the Jews once again regained control over the temple. But when they searched for the sacred objects, there were none to be found. One of the requirements of those days was that a light should constantly burn inside the holiest area of the temple. They searched and finally found one tiny flask of oil -- enough to burn for one day. They didn't know if they could find more oil, given the state of Jerusalem after a successful revolution, but they knew they must find more to restore the temple to its former holy state.

Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days - enough time to find more oil and resume holy rituals. That is why the Jews celebrate Chanukah (which starts tonight at sundown). To commemorate the miracle. Nothing more, nothing less.

Believe it or not, Chanukah is a melancholy reminder to the Jews that despite being in control of Jerusalem, they still do not have control of the Temple Mount -- the area where both temples once stood -- and therefore cannot rebuild the temple again. Why? Because today that same site houses the Al Asqa mosque, or as it is better known: The Dome of the Rock. The area is controlled by the Palestinian Authority. And with no end in sight to the current conflict, Jews continue to pray at the remnants of the last temple, the Western Wall, for another miracle.

Answer 3

HANUKKAH 2007 begins on the evening of Tuesday, December 4, (TODAY) and lasts until Wednesday, December 12.

Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, is one of the most joyous times of the Jewish year. The reason for the celebration is twofold (both dating back to c. 165 BCE): the miraculous military victory of the small, ill-equipped Jewish army over the ruling Greek Syrians, who had banned the Jewish religion and desecrated the Temple; and the miracle of the small cruse of consecrated oil, which burned for eight days in the Temple's menorah instead of just one.

Hanukkah is celebrated by:

* lighting a menorah for eight nights with olive oil or wax candles; one on the first night and an additional one each succeeding night, so that the last night has eight lights
* eating food fried in oil, especially potato pancakes (latkes) and jelly doughnuts (sufganiyot)
* playing with a dreidel, a four-sided top; the player wins or loses money depending on which side it lands on (each is marked with a different Hebrew letter)

In 1997, a 60-foot, 18-ton menorah was built in Latrun, Israel; a rabbi was lifted by crane each night to kindle the lights. The same year, a 12-foot pyramid of 2,400 jelly doughnuts was built near Afula, Israel; the pastries were later distributed to soldiers serving near the northern border.-

Answer 4

Everyone has given some great answers, but I wanted to let you know that Hanukkah or Channukah is NOT a major holiday to most Jews. Although it falls near Christmas, it should not be thought of as Jewish Christmas. The Jewish holidays of Rosh Hashanna (Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippor (the Day of Atonement) which occur in September/October are much more important to Jews.

Typically, Jewish children receive small gifts during the holiday, one on each night of Hanukkah, such as socks and underwear. OF course, many families now give large presents to their children as well.

Answer 5

look it up on wikipedia :) tons of info there http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanukkah

and lots of sources you can go to for more

there's also something on www.history.com