Yesterday was the first night of Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights.
The holiday lasts eight days and will run this year up to the 14th December.
The key ceremony at the centre of Hanukkah, also spelled Chanukah, is lighting a menorah, a special kind of candlestick, each night. Each branch (or candelabrum) represents each of the eight nights a one-day supply of oil miraculously lasted for a small band of Jewish people in 165 B.C. fighting to defeat the Greek army.
These days, people also celebrate Hanukkah by eating foods fried in oil, such as potato pancakes called latkes. There are also games children play, like spinning a dreidel, and they receive chocolate coins called gelt for victory.
Happy Hanukkah to any of our Jewish children and their families! Have a look at this traditional Hanukkah song below:
