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Sometimes referred to as The Festival of Lights, Hanukkah, is a Jewish celebration. It is a time when Jewish people remember how they won a three year war against the Greek people who tried to stop them from practicing their religion freely. Over 2000 years ago, the Greek ruler Antiochus and the Syrian army forced the ancient Jewish people to put aside their religious practices and intended to make them worship their Greek gods instead. A rebel group of Jews (the Maccabees) led by Judah Maccabee fought back bravely against the Greek army and won, despite being vastly outnumbered. They recaptured and restored the holy temple in Jerusalem, which had previously been destroyed by the Greek people. Once inside the temple, the Maccabees found a magic jar of oil to light their menorah. It was only enough oil for one day but, miraculously, the menorah burnt for eight days.
Whilst under he control of the Greek people, Jewish students were forbidden from studying the Torah. Despite the ban, many Jewish people would study in secret and when questioned by the Greek people, would pretend to be playing a gambling game with a dreidel. Nowadays, Jewish families play “Spin the Dreidel” during the Hanukkah festival. Players start with a selection of sweets or chocolates and at the start of each player’s turn, they all put one object in the centre. A player spins the dreidel and the letter that it shows when it stops spinning denotes how many of the objects they can take from the centre. If you run out of sweets or chocolates, you are out.
 
Traditionally, very oily foods are eaten during the Hanukkah festival as a reminder of the oil burnt in the temple for eight days. Latkes and doughnuts which are cooked in oil, are a popular choice and as many of as 17. 5 million doughnuts are eaten as Israel at Hanukkah. Another tradition of Hanukkah is to eat lots of dairy foods. This is to remind Jewish people of the story of Judith, a hero who managed to save her village from being attacked by Syrian soldiers. Judith fed the enemy’s general, Holoferns, with too much wine and cheeses that he got very sleepy. Bravely, Judith took his sword and rescued her village.
Over the eight days of Hanukkah, families traditionally exchange gifts, much as books and games. Children are mostly given “Hanukkah Gelt” and chocolate coins have become a particularly popular option for children.
In memory of the candle that the Maccabees burnt in the temple, one candle of a menorah is lit each night during Hanukkah. There are actually nine candles in total as one (the shamash) is used to light the other candles, usually around windows. Menorahs are an important aspect of Hanukkah as they symbolize the light and hope of the Jewish people.