by nate on Friday, December 11th, 2009 | Diary, Knowledge, Life

Why Fried Means Festive

The most popular way to prepare Hanukkah dishes is to fry them in oil — an homage to the miracle that inspired the annual celebration.

A Christmas Alternative

Until the 19th century, Hanukkah was, as one blogger put it, the religious equivalent of Flag Day. (”Not even the Zionists make a fuss about Chanukah,” wrote a reporter for the American Jewish Chronicle in 1916.)

A Calendar That Keeps People Guessing

Unlike Christmas, Hanukkah does not fall on the same dates each year because Jewish holidays are based on a “lunisolar” calendar. A lunisolar calendar is regulated by both the sun and moon. Hanukkah always starts on the 25th of Kislev — the month on the Hebrew calendar that generally coincides with November or December. A year on the Hebrew calendar varies from 353 to 385 days, so the timing of the Festival of Lights is always a bit of a guessing game.

The Real Hanukkah Miracle

Hanukkah commemorates the 165 B.C. victory of the Maccabees, a Jewish rebel army, over the Syrians and the subsequent rededication of the holy Temple in Jerusalem.

Menorah

Lighting a special, 9-branched candelabrum is the main ritual on Hanukkah. Most people —including Jews —incorrectly refer to this as a “Menorah,” when in fact the correct name for the candleholder is “Hanukkiah” or “Hanukkah Menorah.” A “menorah,” which has only seven candleholders, was the lamp used in the ancient Holy Temple in Jerusalem — now a symbol of Judaism and an emblem of Israel. A “Hanukkiah.”

Tags: Christmas Alternative, Christmas celebration, festivals, Hanukah, hanukkah, Holiday, Israel Holiday, Jewish, Jewish festival, Jewish holiday, Menorah, what is hanukkah