Things to Know About Chanukah or is it Hanukkah?

Jewish families are spinning dreidels, lighting menorahs and opening presents as the first night of Hanukkah kicked off Tuesday. So what is the Festival of Lights all about, and how exactly do you spell it? Here's the lowdown:

1. Hanukkah or Chanukah? A quick Google search will come up with about 15 different spellings for the holiday. Why so many? To transliterate the Hebrew word to English, Americans have come up with several variations, mostly depending on whether a person chooses to start with an "H" or "Ch," or use a singular or plural "N" or "K." Many American Jews (including this editor) have grown up spelling it with the "Ch" form, which is not pronouced the same way one would say "Chinese food" (that's just what we eat on Christmas), but actually said with a very throaty sounding "Ha." The Library of Congress and Associated Press spell it "Hanukkah," which is what most news outlets follow as well. Of course, there is only one way to spell it in Hebrew: חנוכה

2. What is Hanukkah (Chanukah)? "We fought, we won, let's eat" is the joke that tends to sum up many Jewish holidays. Hanukkah is one of them. The holiday actually celebrates two miracles; According to Jewish theology, the first miracle is that in the second century BCE, a small and greatly outnumbered army of Jews, known as the "Maccabees" overpowered the mighty Greeks, who occupied the Holy Land and attempted to forcibly covert the Israelites to Hellenistic beliefs and polytheism. The second miracle is that the Maccabees found a candelabra (known as a menorah in Hebrew) in the Holy Temple after defeating the Greeks. The Maccabees only had enough oil to last one night, but the menorah burned for eight days and nights, allowing the Jews to continue their daily worship until new oil was produced. This is why Hanukkah is also called the "Festival of Lights." See? We fought, we won, let's eat.

3. How is Hanukkah celebrated? On Tuesday, Jewish families in Babylon Village began Hanukkah by lighting the menorah, a nine-branched candelabra. Two candles are lit on the first night: the shamash (attendant candle) and one other. On the second night, the shamash and two other candles are lit, on the third, the shamash and three others are lit, etc. This continues for eight nights. To pay homage to the miracle which kept the oil burning in the Holy Temple for eight nights, it is typical to eat fried foods such as latkas (potato pancakes) and jelly doughnuts. Children play dreidels (spinning tops), open gifts, eat gelt (chocolate coins) and families say prayers together. It is also customary to increase the amount given to charity during the holiday.

4. Why does Hanukkah sometimes fall before, on or after Christmas? Like most Jewish holidays, Hanukkah follows the lunar calendar. Hanukkah always begins on the 25th day of the Jewish month of Kislev, but since dates fluctuate on the lunar calendar, the first day of the holiday can fall anywhere between Nov. 28 and Dec. 26. This year, it began at sundown on Dec. 20.

*Some information in this article is from Chabad.org