Chanukah or Hanukkah?
Hannukah, Chanukah, Hannukkah, and Channukah. Why is this Jewish holiday, also known as the Festival of Lights, spelled in so many ways, over 20 actually? Is there a right or wrong way to spell it?
The answer comes down to transliteration. Transliteration is when you “change (letters, words, etc.) into corresponding characters of another alphabet or language.” Hebrew is the language from which the Jewish festival’s name originates and the word for Hanukkah is not easily transliterated into English. It’s that simple…or is it? This accounts for why there are more than 20 spelling variants. But at the end of the day, Hanukkah and Chanukah are the two versions that are most widely used and accepted. Hanukkah is the most common spelling nowadays, possibly due to the fact that it looks exactly how it sounds in English. It's also the primary spelling used by Merriam-Webster. Once the most popular spelling back in 2005, Chanukah comes in second place on Google today, with over 6.3 million hits.
Regardless of how you spell it, the holiday lasts for eight days. Hanukkah means "dedication" in Hebrew. It commemorates the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem, during which Jews light candles on a menorah to celebrate the miracle of a one-day oil supply lasting eight after the Maccabean Revolt in the second century B.C. On each night of the holiday, a different branch of a candelabrum called a menorah is illuminated. The festival is also celebrated with foods like latkes, or fried potato pancakes, chocolate gelt, and sufganiyot (a.k.a. jelly donuts). In addition to the traditional foods, children play a game involving a type of wooden or plastic top called a dreidel to win chocolate coins and of course, there’s the exchange of gifts each night.
Now go celebrate Hanukkah and make it a happy one!
✡✡HAPPY HANUKKAH!✡✡
